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Two candidates are competing for Seat 4 on the North Collier Fire Control and Rescue District Board of Fire Commissioners in the Nov. 3, 2026, general election: incumbent Chris Lombardo, the board’s chairman, and challenger Matthew Boggan. The race is nonpartisan. The winner will serve a four-year term on the district’s five-member board, which is elected by district residents. Stephen Popper was unopposed for Seat 2 and does not appear on the ballot. (North Collier Fire Rescue; Sparker’s Soapbox; Collier County Supervisor of Elections) Learn about fire and emergency medical services in Collier County in my Sparker’s Civics primer post.
In this post, I summarize the backgrounds and stated priorities of the two candidates, along with their endorsements, recent news coverage, and campaign finance data, to help Collier County voters prepare to cast their ballots. I also include links where you can research each candidate further.
Chris Lombardo
Chris Lombardo is the Seat 4 incumbent and chairman of the district’s Board of Fire Commissioners. He has served on the board continuously since 1998, first on the North Naples Fire Control and Rescue District board, which he chaired, and then on the North Collier board formed when North Naples merged with the Big Corkscrew Island Fire Control and Rescue District in 2014. His current term expires in November 2026. (North Collier Fire Rescue)
Lombardo is a civil trial attorney with more than 30 years of experience in Naples. He is a partner at Woodward, Pires & Lombardo, P.A., and served as city attorney for Everglades City for two decades. (North Collier Fire Rescue)
He served eight years on the Friends of the Collier County Museum board, five of them as chair, and led a $2.5 million capital campaign to expand the museum. He now chairs the board of the Golisano Children’s Museum of Naples. As a volunteer auctioneer, he has helped raise more than $4 million for local charities, and a 2025 profile credits him with organizing the 2022 “Boots in the Sand” benefit concert, which raised $1.2 million for hurricane victims. He is an Eagle Scout and has held several positions with The Florida Bar, including member of its Board of Governors and chair of commissions on gender bias and equal opportunity. (North Collier Fire Rescue; Life in Naples Magazine)
Platform
Lombardo’s campaign website lists four priorities:
- Response Times
- Equipment Upgrades
- Community Trust
- Fiscal Transparency
On budget transparency, his website says, “We believe taxpayer dollars must be accounted for publicly and transparently. We plan to implement quarterly open-book financial reviews and establish an independent citizen oversight committee for major infrastructure spending.” (campaign website)
A 2025 profile credits Lombardo with championing the expansion of UCF RESTORES, a PTSD treatment program, to Collier’s first responders, which led to “The Resiliency Command Center, the nation’s first mobile behavioral health unit tailored specifically for first responders, born in Collier County, now funded by the state.” He told the magazine, “These men and women are trained to save lives. But they don’t always know when they need help. We wanted to change that.” The same profile lists other work for the district, including “implementing the beach marker location system for faster rescue response” and “writing legislation in Tallahassee for a more equitable approach for firefighters’ retirement, securing future sites for new stations, rehabbing emergency vehicles.” (Life in Naples Magazine)
The district’s board profile says Lombardo “played a key role in creating the opportunity for the District to merge with the Big Corkscrew Island Fire Control and Rescue District.” Before voters weighed in on the merger in 2014, he said, “A merger only works when it’s voluntary. When you have parity between the districts, when neither party is in financial straights [sic] or scrambling to stay alive.” (North Collier Fire Rescue; Naples Daily News)
In a 2018 guest commentary, he explained why fire engines and ladder trucks respond to medical calls: “When minutes matter, it’s crucial for the closest unit to respond.” In January 2019, he was one of two commissioners who voted to sell 9 acres on Yarberry Lane that had been slated for a fire station; the sale failed on a 2-2 vote. (Naples Daily News; Naples Daily News)
After a WINK News investigation in March 2026 into the fire chief’s work hours and vacation payouts, Lombardo defended the chief: “As an exempt employee, he’s entitled to those benefits. That’s part of the deal. It’s contract, right? It’s just that simple.” In April, when the board unanimously approved a two-year extension of the chief’s contract, he said, “It’s virtually impossible to suggest that as of today, we could write a contract that’s going to last two, five, seven years that may not, in years in the future, create a gray area that we did not anticipate.” (WINK News; WINK News)
Endorsements
Lombardo’s campaign Facebook page lists endorsements from:
- Local leaders: Collier County Sheriff Kevin J. Rambosk and Collier County Commissioner Rick LoCastro
- State leaders: Rep. Yvette Benarroch, Florida House District 81
- Retired fire chiefs: John German, Michael Brown, Orly Stolts, James Cunningham, and James Webb
- Other: Allen West, U.S. Army lieutenant colonel (retired)
In the News
- Election 2014: North Naples, Big Corkscrew voters to weigh in on proposed fire merger. (Naples Daily News, 10/27/14)
- Guest commentary by Chris Lombardo: Why an ambulance and fire truck both respond. (Naples Daily News, 3/28/18)
- New fire station in North Naples still possible after commissioners reject land sale. (Naples Daily News, 1/9/19)
- Attorney Christopher Lombardo re-elected as North Collier fire commissioner. (Coastal Breeze News, 7/7/22)
- Where commitment meets community: Chris Lombardo’s impact. (Life in Naples Magazine, 8/1/25)
- Questions raised about North Collier fire chief’s work hours, pay. (WINK News, 3/25/26)
- Commissioners address ‘gray areas’ in fire chief benefits after WINK investigation. (WINK News, 4/8/26)
Further Research
- Campaign website
- North Collier Fire Rescue board profile
- Sparker’s Soapbox Candidate Questionnaire: not received
Matthew Boggan
Matthew Boggan is challenging Lombardo for Seat 4. A Naples business executive and community board member, he is making his first run for elected office. (campaign website)
Boggan earned a Bachelor of Science in Business Management, magna cum laude, from the Florida Gulf Coast University Honors College, and later a Master of Business Administration from Florida Gulf Coast University. He founded his first company, a web design business called Design MNB, at 15, and opened Stix Sushi & Seafood in Naples at 20. In 2018, he founded Gulf Coast Agency, a marketing and consulting firm where he is chief executive officer. He is also founder of Zen Fusion Restaurant Group. (campaign website; Gulf Coast Agency)
He serves on the boards of East Naples Civic & Commerce, the Autism Collier Resource Center, and Naples Better Government. He was named a Gulfshore Business 40 Under 40 honoree in 2024 and a Business Observer 40 Under 40 honoree in 2025, and has been recognized as a Best Buddies Champion of the Year. (campaign website)
Boggan is vice president of the Naples Reagan Club and a precinct committeeman for the Collier County Republican Executive Committee. While at FGCU, he served two years as president of the College Republicans/Conservatives. Through Gulf Coast Agency’s political consulting practice, he has worked on political campaigns in Collier County, and his X profile lists “SWFL Political Consulting” among his current roles. (campaign website; Right Men’s Club of Collier County; X)
Platform
Boggan’s campaign website lists three priorities:
- Plan for the Future
- Protect Taxpayer Dollars
- Support Our First Responders
On taxpayer dollars, his website says, “North Collier Fire Rescue manages a budget of more than $70 million. I believe every taxpayer dollar should be spent wisely, transparently, and with accountability.” (campaign website)
Endorsements
His campaign website says he “has earned the support and confidence of our local first responders,” but does not name individuals or organizations.
In the News
- Gulfshore Business 40 Under 40 class of 2024. (Gulfshore Business, 9/1/24)
- Matt Boggan, 23. (Business Observer, 10/9/25)
Further Research
- Campaign website
- Facebook | Instagram | X
- Candidate’s Statement
- Gulf Coast Agency profile
- Sparker’s Soapbox Candidate Questionnaire: not received
Campaign Finances
Chris Lombardo raised $13,875 from 23 outside donors, 21 of whom were from Collier County, including the maximum of $1,000 from Collier County Commissioner Burt Saunders. The address of one of his donors is exempt from public disclosure.
Matthew Boggan raised no contributions from outside donors; his $100 in total funds is entirely a personal loan he made to his own campaign.
Campaign finance data is from the Collier County Supervisor of Elections’ VoterFocus campaign finance system, downloaded Sept. 27, 2026.
This post was researched and drafted with the assistance of Claude (Anthropic AI). The content was reviewed, edited, and fact-checked by the author. Both humans and AI can make mistakes. Please let us know if you spot one.
