Fate of NCH heart and stroke center will be determined by fraction of Naples City Council

The fate of a $200-million heart and stroke center in downtown Naples will be determined by a fraction of the current Naples City Council.

A first reading is scheduled for Jan. 18.

By then, council could be down by two members because of sudden, unexpected resignations, over new state-mandated financial disclosure requirements.

Another councilman has already recused himself from the vote, due to a conflict of interest.

That could leave the critical decision up to the remaining four on the seven-member board, including the mayor.

Ultimately, the project requires a rezoning, along with conditional use and site plan approvals from city council. A majority vote is required of a quorum on each petition.

The required quorum for a hearing is four council members.

The Planning Advisory Board voted in favor of the proposed five-story NCH Heart, Vascular, and Stroke Institute on Dec. 13, with conditions. The meeting ran for nearly 10 hours and the decision didn't come easy, or unanimously, despite a recommendation of approval by city staff.

Days later, Vice Mayor Mike McCabe announced his resignation from city council, in an emotional speech, effective Dec. 31, to avoid filling out what's known as a Form 6. As of Jan. 1, local elected officials will have to fill out the form to disclose their finances in much greater detail, the same as the governor, state legislators, county commissioners and a host of other elected officials, including judges and tax collectors.

"The changes that it makes is not what I signed up for," McCabe said about the new rules.

He's been in office since 2020 and he anticipated seeking reelection next year, until state lawmakers changed the rules.

"I am mad as hell and I am not going to take it anymore," McCabe said during the Dec. 18 council meeting about the state Legislature's actions of late. "I will not accept this government intrusion."

More: Naples Vice Mayor Mike McCabe set to resign over new Florida financial disclosure rules

Councilwoman Beth Petrunoff, who took office in 2022, is leaning toward resigning for the same reason. She expects to make a decision by Dec. 30.

She said she's still "exploring the remote possibility of being able to stay by finding an option that legally meets the disclosure requirements and one that my family is comfortable with."

When McCabe announced his decision to step down, she said it "felt like a bomb."

In case you missed it: Beth Petrunoff threatens to resign from Naples City Council. Here's why

Meanwhile, Councilman Ray Christman plans to recuse himself from voting on, or even participating in the discussions about the three-related petitions, after the city's independent Commission on Ethics and Governmental Integrity determined he had a conflict of interest because he lives so close to the NCH Baker Hospital, where the new building is planned.

He lives off Sixth Street North, and his home is one of only a few that sits directly across the street from and faces the site for the new building, and its new parking garage. The ethics commission found he had a conflict because the project could impact the value of his property.

The commission determined the project could increase Christman's property value "since it may be desirous for medical professionals to live near the hospital campus," or possibly hurt it by causing more traffic and noise, by looming larger over his property – and by spurring future expansions with larger impacts on the neighborhood.

Based on the commission's advisory opinion, Christman said it was "the right thing to do" to abstain from voting on any of the petitions. When the matters come up, he told his fellow council members he planned to make a brief statement, then "excuse himself from the dais and the room," and not participate in "any way."

Mayor Teresa Heitmann also sought an opinion from the ethics commission on whether she might have any conflicts in voting on the hospital expansion, as her husband has been granted “hospital privileges” to perform medical services for his patients at NCH for more than 30 years and provides "on call" medical services to the hospital two days a month.

In her case, the commission found no conflicts, determining her husband would neither benefit, nor lose anything based on her decisions on the hospital's petitions, one way or the other.

Councilman Terry Hutchison, a franchisee who owns multiple 7-Elevens in Naples, suggested he might need to seek an opinion from the ethics commission at the last council meeting, as his stores could see more business from the hospital expansion during and after construction. As of Thursday, he hadn't done so.

The new healthcare building, spanning 189,000 square feet, would exceed the city's height limit of 42 feet, with a maximum height of 87 feet, which has been one of its biggest hurdles. Last October, city council added a “community hospital” as a permitted use in a public services zoning district on NCH’s behalf as a potential work around.

NCH says the new heart center would save lives and provide better care for patients in one setting, offering the latest in heart and stroke care so patients don’t have to travel out of town, and attracting top-notch heart specialists to Naples.

More: Planning board votes to support new NCH heart and stroke center in downtown Naples

Councilman Paul Perry, who considered resigning over the new financial disclosure requirements, said one reason he didn't is because he knew important decisions, including the hospital expansion, in particular, were on the horizon, and he felt an obligation to see them through.

"I don’t like the required disclosures, especially since this changed in the middle of my term, but I think it's even more important that I stay until the end of my term," he said.

His four-year term ends in a few months, and he'd already decided not to seek reelection before Form 6 became a mandate for the job.

"It was for personal reasons," he said. "My wife and I were wanting to get some traveling in."

Besides the hospital expansion, Perry said he wanted to stick around to be part of the council's decision on a new city attorney.

"I don't want council to be down to four members," he said. "I think I need to stay. To make sure these decisions can be made."

If Petrunoff does indeed resign, Perry said he might consider running to serve out the rest of her term, expiring in 2026.

"I haven't come to a complete conclusion on that," he said. "But it's a possibility."

At 72, he said he just can't see himself serving out another four-year term, but two years might not be so bad, with his wife keeping busy for another few years before rolling off as the board chair for an insurance company.

"We're both failing at retirement," he quipped.

After facing many delays, NCH is still pushing and hoping for a swift vote, despite the shake-up on council, eager to move forward with the long-anticipated hospital expansion.

The city of Naples will hold a general election on Tuesday, March 19 (the same day as the Florida presidential preference primary). Along with the mayoral seat, three council seats will be on the ballot, and possibly a fourth if Petrunoff resigns her post.

Mayor Teresa Heitmann, who is running for reelection, is facing two opponents: current councilman Ted Blankenship, and former councilman Gary Price.

Five others are vying for three council seats: Berne Barton, Garey Cooper, William Kramer, Linda Penniman and Tony Perez-Benitoa. All of them are political newcomers in Naples, except Penniman, who has been elected to council twice. In 2019, she resigned from council, citing health concerns for her husband, during her second term.

There's still time for others to enter the mayoral and council races. The qualifying period starts Jan. 8 and ends Jan. 19.

Naples Daily News reporters Kendall Little and Liz Freeman contributed to this story.

This article originally appeared on Naples Daily News: NCH's hospital expansion to be determined by Naples council