Coastal Breeze News Talks with Council Candidates

For past City Council Elections, Coastal Breeze News has conducted video interviews with the candidates to ask questions pertinent to the community.

So to continue that tradition, these past few weeks Coastal Breeze News asked you, our readers, to send in your questions for the six candidates running for Marco Island City Council in 2026. We received many responses with a wide range of questions tackling everything from transparency, tourism, and redevelopment to water quality, city finances, and environmental protection.

What stood out among the questions were their similarities. Residents share more than a zip code; they also share many of the same concerns.

After curating the list, thirteen questions were selected. Moderators Randall Kenneth Jones and Lynn Alexander then sat down with Jason Bailey, Dennis Bartolucci, Darrin Palumbo, Chris Ricci, Teri Sommerfeld, and Rick Woodworth for one-on-one video interviews at the Coastal Breeze News office so they could address the issues, concerns, and questions the residents have about the future of Marco. You can view those six interviews at coastalbreezenews.com starting Saturday, October 3.

You will have another opportunity to hear the candidates' positions and thoughts on Island issues on October 8 when the Marco Island Chamber of Commerce and the Marco Island Board of Realtors (MIAAOR) hold their candidate forum from 5:00 PM to 7:30 PM at City Council Chambers, 50 Bald Eagle Drive. That event will be live-streamed from the City website.

So here’s your chance to get informed on the issues facing Marco Island. Go to coastalbreezenews.com starting Saturday, October 3, to view the candidates answering your questions.