Bill Kramer, legendary Naples High football coach, announces campaign for Naples City Council

Bill Kramer wants to bring his winning formula in sports to the Naples City Council.

On Thursday, the former football coach for Naples High School officially announced his candidacy for council at Cambier Park.

“I’m running for City Council,” Kramer said to cheers and applause from those in attendance.

He served as head coach for more than 20 years before moving on to another "calling."

While he doesn't consider himself a politician, Kramer said he was encouraged to enter the race by Gary Price, a former councilman, who is now running for mayor and looking for like-minded candidates to join him in his efforts to reshape and reset the council in 2024.

Like Price, Kramer, 60, sees a need for change, including putting a greater focus on public health and safety.

"I don't want to be a guy that just fusses about something if I'm in a position to do something about it," he said. "I want to help."

On his campaign website, he describes himself as "a proven leader ready to get in the game to serve and make a difference in the city of Naples."

His other priorities include safeguarding private property rights, building an "elite team" of city staff, and protecting the natural resources "God gave us."

"At the very least, we can make sure the staff understands we are part of a team, we are working together," Kramer said.

"We have to be grateful for our teammates, man," he added. "I don't get a sense that there is a lot of gratitude happening at City Hall right now."

Even before the launch of his campaign, Kramer said he's been in listening mode, paying closer attention to City Council meetings, and talking to residents about their needs and wants.

"My question is 'How can I help? How can City Council serve you better?' That's what I want to know," Kramer said.

For everybody that "plays by the rules," he said the city council should have an attitude of helping them in any way possible, and he doesn't believe it's doing that.

Also, he said, the council doesn't always seem to do enough homework ahead of time, leading to marathon meetings that make it harder for residents to stick around and share their concerns about the issues they're most concerned about in the city and in their own lives.

"Everybody deserves a seat at the table," Kramer said. "And everybody deserves a council that all they want to do is help and not stiff-arm folks that come before them."

He shares Price's frustration with the city council over private property rights that laid the seeds for him to run for mayor. After Hurricane Ian hit, the council started talking about changing the rules, including imposing new limits on lot coverage ‒ or building footprint, for single-family homes.

The city council has since pulled back on some of the harsher land use and development restrictions it adopted after Ian, due to Senate Bill 250. The state legislation included a retroactive prohibition on adopting tougher regulations. It essentially rendered them "null and void," applying to areas within 100 miles of where hurricanes Ian and Nicole made landfall – and reaching back to Sept. 28, the day Ian hit.

More: Former Naples Councilman Gary Price announces run for mayor in 2024

As with football, Kramer said he's not interested in keeping up with the competition, but beating it in every way possible, including providing higher-than-average pay to city employees, especially to police officers and firefighters that put their lives on the line.

"I don't want a close game. I want to go out and dominate the thing and be better than everyone else," he said.

Kramer left his long-time coaching job at Naples High in 2019, and now serves as the Collier County area director for the Fellowship of Christian Athletes, an interdenominational Christian sports ministry, which offers camps, clinics, leagues, teams, leadership training and small group bible study/devotion for coaches and athletes, known as "huddles."

He said he'd approach the job of city councilman like he does his current one.

"It's all of us," he said. "We don't clock in and out. It's a ministry basically. Minister means you care for others."

Kramer served as a teacher, guidance counselor and coach at Naples High from 1998 to 2021.

As a coach he amassed a 216-51 all-time record as the winningest football coach in the school's history.  He was inducted into both the Florida Athletic Coaches Association Hall of Fame and Florida High School Athletic Association's Hall of Fame.

The driving force behind his coaching philosophy was the idea that football could be a powerful tool used to grow and mold young men into "tremendous sons, husbands, fathers, citizens and leaders."  He has expanded on that effort in his current job.

More: Bill Kramer resigns as Naples High School football coach after 22 seasons

He and his wife Susan have been Neapolitans for more than 25 years, and they raised four daughters here. Susan is a seventh-generation Floridian.

Kramer holds a Bachelor of Science degree in Health and Physical Education from Liberty University, a Master’s degree in Computer Science from Nova Southeastern University, and another Master’s degree in Guidance and Counseling from Saint Thomas University.

Asked why he encouraged Kramer to run, Price said it had to do a lot with what he's done in shaping young men into the right kind of leaders in the community and in the home.

"It's such a great fit for what our city needs right now. So that's why I worked so hard to get him to consider it," Price said.

He expects residents to be inspired by Kramer's vision for the city, and their shared passion to "turn things around."

"I'm 100% sure we are not going to agree on things all of the time, but it's about putting the best people on the Council to make good decisions for the city," Price said.

Price was the first to announce his candidacy for mayor in 2024.

Since then, Councilman Ted Blankenship has announced he'll run for the top job too.

In case you missed it: City Councilman Ted Blankenship running for mayor to get Naples 'back on track'

City records show current Mayor Teresa Heitmann officially filed to run for reelection on Oct. 30.

The city will hold a general election on Tuesday, March 19, the same day as the Florida presidential preference primary. The mayoral seat and three council seats will be on the ballot.

Naples Daily News sports reporter Alex Martin contributed to this report.

This article originally appeared on Naples Daily News: Longtime Naples football coach Bill Kramer announces run for Naples City Council