Meet Harvey
I’m proud of the work we’ve done during my time on the commission. My door has always been open, and I’ve met with hundreds of neighbors – at City Hall, in churches and union halls, in businesses and community centers, on front porches and sidewalks, on social media and on Zoom, on city buses and on the streets of our city.
Sometimes I agreed with the folks I talked with and sometimes we weren’t able to see eye-to-eye, but I always made time to listen, and I always learned something.
I spent countless hours reading thousands of pages of information provided by neighbors and staff for every issue that has come before us, and I never forgot that showing up at commission meetings is a privilege and an honor. That my chair in those meetings is a public trust. I am humbled every single time I walk up the steps to City Hall, and I treasure the opportunity to do the people’s business.
About Harvey
Like many of you, I was born at Alachua General Hospital, back when it was a community-owned resource. I grew up in east Gainesville – “Out East,” as we call it today – and I never lived west of Waldo Road until after college. I attended Howard Bishop Middle School, Eastside High and Santa Fe (Community) College before earning my Bachelor’s Degree in Public Relations from UF.
I’ve spent most of my professional career helping non-profit organizations in our community raise the money they need to deliver services to our neighbors. I worked for nearly a decade raising money for WUFT TV and FM on the UF campus. I met my wife Gillian there when she volunteered for one of our pledge drives. Following that I worked for my church, Holy Trinity Episcopal, managing their foundation.
Gillian and I have three daughters, Resli, Lela and Kennedy, who all attend Alachua County Public Schools, just like I did. You might have heard me talk about them once or twice.
I was first elected to the Gainesville City Commission in 2017, was re-elected in 2020, and have served as the commissioner for District 2 since then. On the commission, I’ve served as Mayor Pro-Tem and chaired the CRA, the Digital Access committee and the Joint City/County Water Policy Board. I’ve served on multiple commission committees, including the Metropolitan Transportation Planning Organization (MTPO), the Alachua County Library Governing Board, the Racial Equity committee and Zero-Waste Committee.
I led the fight to move city elections to the same election cycle as all our other local elections, to remove RTS fares for our community’s seniors and youth, and to designate a portion of NW 8th Avenue as “Memorial Mile” to commemorate the service of our neighbors who lost their lives serving in Afghanistan and Iraq. I created the My Neighborhood and Heirs Property programs that support neighborhood stability and have worked hard to create a process for turning city-owned vacant lots into affordable housing. For my work on Memorial Mile, our local Veterans for Peace Chapter awarded me their Peace Helmet designation. I’ve also been honored by the Alachua County Democratic Executive Committee with their Harry Truman “The Buck Stops Here” award.
I’m proud of the work we’ve done during my time on the commission. My door has always been open, and I’ve met with hundreds of neighbors – at City Hall, in churches and union halls, in businesses and community centers, on front porches and sidewalks, on social media and on Zoom, on city buses and on the streets of our city. Sometimes I agreed with the folks I talked with and sometimes we weren’t able to see eye-to-eye, but I always made time to listen, and I always learned something.
I spent countless hours reading thousands of pages of information provided by neighbors and staff for every issue that has come before us, and I never forgot that showing up at commission meetings is a privilege and an honor. That my chair in those meetings is a public trust. I am humbled every single time I walk up the steps to City Hall, and I treasure the opportunity to do the people’s business.
I’m asking you to extend that confidence, that trust, once again and elect me Mayor of the City of Gainesville. You have my word that my door will remain open, and that I will continue to make the people’s business my absolute priority.
