A member of the Golden Gate community, Jim Coletta moved to Naples in 1984 from upstate New York. He served in the Military from 1963-1969 as a member of the U.S. Army Reserves. He graduated from Notre Dame High School in Elmira, N.Y., and attended Corning Community College in Corning, N.Y. He married his wife, Mary Ann, in 1965 and together they have 4 children and 5 grandchildren.
He has been an active volunteer and member in community organizations, including Immokalee Development Services, the Golden Gate Business Association, the AARP, and the Golden Gate Rotary Club. From 1987 to 2001 he was the owner/manager of Golden Gate Rent-All and Sales. Since taking office in 2000, Jim Coletta’s focus has been on healthcare, transportation infrastructure, FEMA flood maps, mosquito control, affordable housing, and red tide. He is a strong advocate for more public lands and more beach and boating access. In 2002 he served as the chairman of the Board of County Commissioners, the Tourist Development Council and The Southwest Florida Regional Planning Council’s (RPC) Legislative Sub-Committee.
Commissioner Coletta was the ‘04-‘05 chair of RPC’S Transportation Sub-Committee, and was elected by the council to the position of Secretary in 2006. Commissioner Coletta was the Co-Chair of the Red Tide Committee in ‘03-‘04. He serves on many other boards, including the MPO Advisory Council Governing Board and the Regional Advisory Committee on Trauma Care. He is a member of the Southwest Florida Expressway Authority for ‘06-‘08.
In 2002 he was elected as Commissioner for District 5 and ran unopposed in 2004 for re-election. He served as vice-chairman to the Board of County Commissioners and liaison to the Board on the County Government Productivity Committee in 2001 and 2006. He was chairman of the Board and the Tourist Development Council in 2002.
Other Personal Accomplishments
Refuge Sponsor
The Coletta family sponsored a Vietnamese Family in 1973 that lived with them for six months. In 1976 their extended family moved from Elmira, New York to Golden Gate, Fl. It was through their yearly visit to the Nguyen family that Jim and his family came to settle in Collier County. The Nguyen family still lives in Golden Gate. In June of 1999 Mary Ann and Jim were guests of the Nguyen’s relatives in Vietnam after they attended a Rotary convention in Singapore.
Golden Gate Gazette
In 1989, along with Max Hasse, Bob Mast, and Brigid Soldavini, Jim helped to establish a local newspaper entitled, “The Golden Gate Gazette”, to help keep local residents informed about local issues. The Gazette was successfully operated under its new owner, Tuff Publications until 2005. At that time, the Tuff’s moved on to operate the Collier Citizen, a Scripps publication.
Citizen of the Year
In 1989 the Golden Gate Presidents Council named Jim citizen of the year.
Leadership Collier
With the sponsorship of Golden Gate Chamber of Commerce, Jim was accepted into Leadership Collier Class of 1995-96. He has helped with their charity fundraisers and has taken an active role in their on going programs.
The Golden Gate Master Plan
In 1991, Jim was named Chairperson of the First Golden Gate Master Plan committee. Through numerous public meetings the committee was successful in laying out the future land use for the Golden Gate area. Among its successes was the elimination of provisional use in residential area, the laying out of the Golden Gate business district and the strengthening on the restrictions on commercial ventures in Golden Gate Estates. This plan has been the main reason why Golden Gate Estates has been able to preserve its country setting.
The Chokoloskee Actors Guild
In December of 1997 at the 50th anniversary celebration of the opening of Everglades Park, Jim was instrumental in a theatrical production. Being a local history buff he had taken a particular interest in the 1910 story of “Killing Mr. Watson," a Chokoloskee legend based on the best-selling book of the same name by author Peter Matthiesen. The actors were the local residents some of whom had relatives that took part in the actual event in 1910. The Guild was formed by Jim to honor the efforts of the cast. Jim continued to play the lead role of Mr. Watson in again in 1998 and 2000.
