As Mayor Wayne Poston seeks a fifth term as Bradenton’s top elected official, he faces an old adversary, a new one and a recent employee. Former Mayor Bill Evers, who Poston challenged and defeated for the mayorship in 2000 has entered the race, while Millennial activist Eleuterio Salazar, Jr. argues the city needs a fresh face. Former Deputy Police Chief Warren Merriman has also filed. 

Poston, for what it’s worth, remains confident he will be re-elected. With such city successes as the opening of the Bradenton Riverwalk, the arrival of hotels, including a Hampton Inn and a soon-to-open Marriott Springfield Suites and significant other developments and improvements to Downtown Bradenton, he hopes citizens will want the city continuing on its current course. “The crime rate has been down 38 percent in the last 10 years,” he says. “You are safer in Bradenton than you are in Sarasota, and they have twice the officers we have.” 

Evers, though, feels Poston has built on successes laid by others. “Everything happening in the city today dates back to my administration,” says Evers, who led Bradenton City Hall for 20 years before Poston beat him. The creation of a reservoir, an insurance program for employees and the early steps to create the Bradenton Village and Riverwalk laid a foundation for success. What Poston has done, Evers says, is waste taxpayers' resources to offer incentives to hotels and other developers who benefit from taxpayer-funded services without contributing to the taxable. 

Salazar, for his part, also criticized Poston for representing special interests over citizens. “It’s time for a change,” Salazar says. “We need to get rid of establishment and career politicians.” Swiping at Poston and Evers, Salazar believes City Hall has focused on boosting downtown at the expense of less wealthy areas like Ward 5. Meanwhile, police lack accreditation and part of the city remains underserved by libraries, groceries and other amenities private and public alike. Poston did note McKechnie Field improvements benefited Ward 5, but Salazar feels that only high-profile projects that boost the mayor’s profile get attention at City Hall.

Also in running is Merriman, a former deputy police chief who feels Poston takes credit for work achieved by the City Council. "He's not in the public like he should be," Merriman says. "In East Bradenton, nobody knows who he is." And promises made long ago by the mayor, Merriman says, remain woefully incomplete, like selling the existing City Hall. Merriman served in a variety of positions through the decades at City Hall, including as accreditation manager. He was fired last year and had been serving probation regarding a for submitting unworked hours for off-duty work to the Pittsburgh Pirates. He was taken off probation early in April and adjudication was withheld in the case. "The people of Bradenton, my friends and family know the truth," he says of the scandal. "It's in the past." 

The Sunshine State’s eternal summer means that any time of year is ripe for cannonballing into the bathtub-warm Gulf of Mexico waters. While unplugging completely as you ride the waves would be ideal—not to mention safer for your smartphone—the constraints of time still bind us, surf swell or not. West Coast Surf Shop’s selection of waterproof watches allows you to enjoy the spray and also ensure you’ll make it home in time for dinner. Authentic, surf-ready gear lines the walls of this family-owned operation, Anna Maria’s go-to waterwear hub since 1964. The array of waterproof watches ranges from simple, get-the-job-done wristwatches, such as Nixon’s Small Time Teller—an analog dressed in eye-catching rainbow camouflage—to multifunctional timepieces that keep you up to speed on the tide at your preferred beach. The Brig by Vestal has a dual-tide function, so you can keep an eye on the waves at Venice’s North Jetty and chart your next surfing getaway to the Gold Coast, just with a glance at your wrist. 

Pictured, left to right: The Small Time Teller and The Unit, both by Nixon. Electric's ED01-T. Vestal's The Brig. Photo by Heidi Stone.

West Coast Surf Shop, 3902 Gulf Dr., Holmes Beach, 941-778-1001.

The Aesthetic and Wellness Center, established by Dr. Inda Mowett, moved into a much larger office space on May 31. The move expands the practice from 1,200 to 3,000 sq. ft., and will allow Mowett to offer a more comprehensive range of services to weight loss patients and other area residents. A fitness studio constructed in the Wellness Center will offer physician-supervised weight loss classes and individual instruction, as well as strength and conditioning training for seniors and other people with physical limitations.  

Aesthetic and Wellness Center

The Society of Cardiovascular Patient Care (SCPC) gave Manatee Memorial Hospital full Chest Pain Center with Primary PCI (Percutaneous Coronary Intervention) with Resuscitation Accreditation. In receiving SCPC CPC Accreditation, MMH demonstrated that they have achieved a higher level of expertise in dealing with patients who present symptoms of a heart attack. 

Society of Cardiovascular Patient Care

Sarasota native, Jeff Eslinger has been appointed as sales manager of Neal Signature Homes. Eslinger will manage sales teams in Sarasota, Manatee, Apollo Beach and Lakewood Ranch. With 40 years of experience in residential homebuilding, he is a certified new home specialist and has served as past president and life director of the Manatee-Sarasota Building Industry Association. 

Neal Signature Homes