I’ve been out in Fort Lauderdale meeting with voters, and, just like me, they see the upcoming election as an important moment for our city. The campaign is well on its way, and I’m so honored to have all of your support as I move ahead.

Recently, I attended the National Night Out, an evening dedicated to fostering community bonds and enhancing public safety. I also visited a forum with Residents for Resilience, a local group making waves by advocating for a sustainable future, clean drinking water, flood mitigation, coastal resilience, and waterway restoration. It’s clear that this is a really exciting time to be living in Fort Lauderdale.

Already, the job market is booming, we’re making moves to update our city-owned seawalls to protect our city from climate-related changes, and we’re launching a new initiative to tackle the challenges of homelessness. We have big jobs ahead and great plans in place to get them done.

• We worked with national financial rating analysts to raise the city bond rating to AAA, the highest possible rating to ensure the lowest cost for critical infrastructure projects.
• The city was inducted into the All-America City Hall of Fame for community collaborations, following our previous prestigious recognition by the National Civic League as an All-America City.
• We won LEED for Cities Gold certification, which recognizes the city’s efforts to protect our environment.
• We increased Fort Lauderdale’s rating on the Human Rights Campaign’s Municipal Equality Index to 100% for honoring our community’s diversity and embracing all who live here.
• We consistently made media lists of top places to live, vacation, work, and retire.
• We were a finalist in IDC’s 2023 Smart Cities North America Awards.
• Our Prospect Lake Water Treatment Plant Project won the prestigious Best P3 Utility Project of the Year. The project will lead to the delivery of resilient, innovative, critical infrastructure improvements through public and private partnerships.

These designations make me so proud of the work we’ve done together. Let’s continue to raise the bar here in our city.

Dean