A Mayor for His Time

Former Bradenton Mayor Bill Evers passed away peacefully at his home on March 14.

I first met Bill in 2010, the same year I came to The Bradenton Times. His late wife, Jane, a former beat reporter herself, wanted to pitch me a story on a project she had started called Feeding Empty Little Tummies to provide local food insecure students with a backpack of weekend sustenance. I was happy to do so, and when she organized it into a non-profit organization shortly after, she gave me the honor of being a founding member of its board.

Jane would host regular meetings at the Evers home, a beautiful kelly-green spread near the Manatee River, and it was then that I got to know Bill, who had served as Mayor of Bradenton from 1980-2000. We hit it off immediately and often had long conversations about politics in his “Gator” room after the meeting when he’d always offer me a beer.

I noticed immediately that he bore a striking resemblance to Teddy Kennedy, aided by his giant smile and New England-ish accent. Although his family moved to Cortez as a child, he still held just a touch of their native Rhode Island in his voice. We were both Army veterans who loved politics at all levels, so we never lacked subject matter to mull over. More than anything, I loved seeing him with Jane—a small pistol of a woman that he clearly adored. Their relationship always called to mind that of my grandparents.

Bill was a Republican back in the party’s “chamber of commerce” days, when small government, fiscal conservatism, and free markets were pillars of the party. That didn’t stop him from crossing party lines to endorse Democrat Richard O’Brien over Republicans Wayne Poston and Marianne Barnebey in the 2012 mayoral race when he felt developer influence had gotten out of hand.

Evers' two-decade run as mayor included many pivotal moments in the city’s history. In 1980, Bradenton still had many dirt roads to pave and needed serious infrastructure upgrades for stormwater and sewage. Bill had a particular talent for finding grant money to fund projects, including Rossi Park. When a drought threatened a water shortage in the early ‘80s, he pushed for a significant expansion of the city’s reservoir, which now bears his name. By the time he left office, the city had been impressively transformed under his leadership.

Bill also controversially pushed to build a new city hall and police station on the Bradenton Riverfront, a decision he felt cost him his reelection bid in 2000. “They’re still crucifying me over that one,” I remember him telling me more than a decade later. He explained that while it might not seem wise to have a big chunk of waterfront property off the tax rolls, I should understand that the downtown Bradenton of that time was very different. The idea was to create an environment in which it could transform into more of a business district.

It did, and now that it has served its purpose, the property will return to the tax rolls, and a new city hall can hopefully be the same sort of catalyst for another neighborhood. I suppose sometimes you don’t live to see your ideas vindicated, but true visionary leadership means playing the long game to put the overall good ahead of an immediate return. That was Bill's style, and I recall him poking fun at the frequent press conferences announcing a downtown supermarket right before an election, never to come to fruition after the votes were counted. 

I’ve written more than a couple of these send-offs over the years, and the term “last of a breed” often comes to mind. In today’s world, the kind of selfless dedication to a community that civic leaders like Evers displayed is almost quaint. The same could be said for the character and integrity that both Bill and Jane always displayed. Bill Evers was a good man who loved his wife and family and served a pivotal role in the Bradenton we enjoy today. I was privileged to have known him.

Godspeed, my friend.

Dennis "Mitch" Maley is an editor and columnist for The Bradenton Times and the host of our weekly podcast. With over two decades of experience as a journalist, he has covered Manatee County government since 2010. He is a graduate of Shippensburg University and later served as a Captain in the U.S. Army. Click here for his bio. Mitch is also the author of three novels and a short story collection available here.