When the fire broke out at the Seawalk Hotel, a secret of the Beaches community was brought to light. Jimbo Stockton, the owner of the hotel, had been operating an off the books homeless shelter.  We all knew that the days of the boutique hotel with live music in the courtyard had passed. The coffee shop sat empty, looking more like a storage unit than prime real estate. There were old realtor signs in the window and mysterious posters left over from when a church youth group took up residence, yet the current status was a mystery to all except a few. As business owners in the Jax Beach Downtown began to figure out what was happening nearby, the stories began to spread.  Delivery drivers told tales of drug addicts cooking over an open flame in the old hotel rooms.

The city tried to intervene, but were thwarted. While the zoning does not allow for a homeless shelter in that part of town, the Seawalk Hotel still has a license to operate as a hotel. What they charge and how it was paid was beyond the scope of the city.  Businesses, residents, and visitors grumble about the type of people now loitering around the hotel.  Drug addicts, alcoholics, and people down on their luck do not add to the family friendly environment the city was, until recently, trying to create in the area.  With the declining state of the building and the clientele being catered to, it seemed that a disaster was in the making.  That disaster was in the form of a fire.  Fortunately, the Jacksonville Beach Fire Department extinguished the flames before they spread to the adjacent Surfer the Bar or Campeche Bay. Stockton looked to the public for help and was clearly underwhelmed with the lack of support the community showed. Yet he still rebuilt. Which brings us to the real question, is what Stockton does wrong? 

The beach cities, as with communities across the country, have struggled with the homeless.  Our attitude as a society on how we treat these people is reflected in our vernacular, often calling it the “homeless problem.” When Mayor Curry announced his intent to turn The Landing into a riverfront park, cynics claimed it would only be a haven for the homeless.  A recent UNF poll listed the homeless as the second highest concern for Jax Beach voters behind crime. Being homeless is not a crime, but it might as well be. We push them out of society and they are treated as if they are just lazy, regardless of their circumstances or capacity.

Resources are available, but they are limited and those in need have to know where to look.  Mission House provides meals and services during regulated hours and circumstances. Well intentioned groups periodically hand out food, pat themselves on the back for the job well done, then return to their lives.

Many of the faces of the homeless are familiar.  The older man who dances in the ocean. The man who sleeps by the Seawalk Pavilion and yells at his inner demons. And the man who builds creative structures out of tree limbs in south Jax Beach. Just a few of many, but who of us really know their stories or even their names.  The Jax Beach Police Department has one officer dedicated to working with local homeless. Not to treat them like criminals, but to provide a pathway of communication and help.  Recently, a gofundme campaign was started to help John Ross, one of the homeless in Neptune Beach. He is frequently seen riding his bike or sleeping on the bench in front of North Beach Fish Camp.  He’s dealt with some serious health issues and concerned members of the public began providing him help.  When he needed more help than one person could provide, a local church stepped in. 

What if each church took under their wing one homeless person? Not to convert them or help them find religion.  Not to judge their addictions or mental health issues. Rather to provide the basic necessities. Food. Clothing. Shelter. Provide them the resources we all take for granted and pave a path to survival and independence.  An entire congregation with one purpose, one drive, to help one person.  It might fail.  It will fail at times. Failure is always better than not trying.

Which brings us back to the original issue of the Stockton’s shelter. By all measures, Stockton should be praised for what he was doing.  Very few of us would roll up our sleeves and help another human the way he does.  We must also praise the city staff for looking at the broader picture of whether a homeless shelter in the middle of a commercial area is good for the city as a whole.  I started writing this column over a month ago and I’ve been stuck because I’m conflicted. I don’t have an answer, but I believe we as a community should have the conversation and strive to do better. 

This column was originally published in The Beaches Leader/ The Ponte Vedra Leader on June 13, 2019

In my last column I quipped that the biggest issue being argued in Tallahassee is the use of plastic straws and that we should focus on what our local legislators are working on. Good (or bad) news for Ponte Vedra, Senator Travis Hutson is the sponsor of that bill. SB 588 prevents local municipalities from banning the use of plastic straws and it is flying through committees, which has environmental groups in an uproar.

While that bill is stirring up the most debate, his first bill filed was for a colleague.  Last October, State Senator Dorothy Hukill passed away of cancer.  Her top issue was mandating financial literacy in high school education curriculum.  With her passing, Hutson has picked up the torch with SB 114, titled the Dorothy L. Hukill Financial Literacy Act.

His other bills include SB 350 which waves impact fees for affordable housing projects. Impact fees are paid to local municipalities to cover the expenses of roads and infrastructure for new development. This has been a hot button issue in St Johns County for a few years. 

Also addressing local fees, SB 868 significantly inhibits local municipalities ability to collect business taxes. Cities and counties collect significant annual fees for the “privilege” of conducting business. Those fees can get into the thousands of dollars for businesses the city deems less desirable like pawn shops and tattoo parlors.  This bill caps those fees at $25.

He is also expanding charter schools.  For a charter school to exist, it must be sponsored by the local school board or charter lab schools can be sponsored by a state college.  SB 1668 expands the state college sponsorships to include charter schools that meet “workforce demands” and offer career certifications.

If you buy concert or sporting event tickets on the secondary market, he has something for you as well. SB 736 bans nontransferable tickets and prevents venues from refusing admission because someone purchased the tickets through websites like Stubhub. This issue has evolved drastically over the past decade. At one point the Legislature passed a ban on scalping tickets within so many feet of a venue, but the tide has turned.

On the House side, State Representative Cindy Stevenson has quite a few interesting bills. HB 71 is titled the Vulnerable Road User Act.  The bill increases the penalties for auto accidents if the driver committed a moving violation and injured either a pedestrian; someone on a skateboard, mobility scooter, or wheelchair while in crosswalks or on the shoulder of the road; or a person lawfully operating a motorcycle or scooter. The penalty for causing serious bodily injury will be increased to 30 days house arrest, 30 days license suspension, and a $1,500 fine.  The penalty for causing death will be increased to 180 days house arrest, 1-year license suspension, and a $5,000 fine. 

Voter records like your name, address, birthdate, and how often you vote are public record, which is why campaigns know who to mail information too.  There has been a push to pre-register high school students starting at 16 so they are prepared to vote when they come of age.  HB 281 keeps that data protected from the public until they turn 18. 

In 2015, the Legislature passed a ban on “revenge porn” and in doing so attempted to prevent people from posting sexual pictures of someone online without their permission. HB 1043 expands the ban from websites to all electronic communications. 

Mental health reform is a top priority for Rep. Stevenson.  There is a mental health and substance abuse crisis in this country that we are struggling to address.  One of the major issues is lack of professionals to treat those who need help.  In HB 1187, she creates a new category of mental health provider known as peer specialists. This new category will allow those who have successfully completed their recovery program to work with those who are still struggling. The will also have relaxed background check standards as many of those who have gone through very difficult addictions have a criminal history from that period. Now for the money. Here is what the two have requested for local spending in the state budget.  $1.2 million for beach and dunes restoration for 9 miles along Ponte Vedra Beach.  $3,000,000 to improve busy intersections along A1A in Ponte Vedra.  The intersections are Mickler Rd., PGA Tour Blvd., L’Atrium Dr., Solano Rd., and Dolphin Blvd. Finally, $484,000 for preservation of the St Augustine Lighthouse plus a second request of $170,000 for them to create a WWII exhibit.  

This column was originally published in The Beaches Leader/ The Ponte Vedra Leader on March 21, 2019.

The months of speculation have come to an end. The race for Mayor of Jacksonville is set.  Despite the talks of a “blue wave” in Jacksonville and chants of “Bluval” from the local Democrat Party, not one Democrat filed to challenge Mayor Lenny Curry.  Voters will be given a choice between three Republicans and a No Party Affiliation (NPA) candidate. The Republicans are incumbent Mayor Curry, former Council President Anna Brosche, and Atlantic Beach’s Jimmy Hill.  The NPA rests with Omega Allen.  Because Jacksonville elections are unitary, party affiliation will show on the ballot, but anyone can vote for any candidate. This will be a brief, 60-day campaign. Let’s look at what we can expect out of each candidate in terms of message over the next two months.

While Hill and Allen have their own, small followings neither of them is a true contender. Allen ran for Mayor of Jacksonville in 2015, receiving just over 4,000 votes for 2.19%. Allen is highly involved in Northwest Jacksonville and seems to run simply to raise awareness of the issues of her community.

Hill also has seen ballot time; here at the beach.  In 2013, he successfully ran for the Atlantic Beach City Commission, but was unseated when he ran for re-election in 2017. Hill jumped into the Mayoral race to enact revenge on Curry for what he perceived as a personal slight.  Hill ran the Jacksonville Boat Show for 20 years, but ran into trouble in 2017.  According to the City, Hill had an outstanding balance from the previous show and, despite the City’s best efforts to give him the chance to pay, he didn’t successfully pay off the balance in either the original timeframe or the multiple extensions. Public records show that he had multiple meetings with city leadership on this issue and they tried to save the event, but he couldn’t pay what he owed before another promoter secured the venue.  When he showed up on the advertised dates of the boat show to a locked facility, he went to the media blaming Curry. The loss of the business caused him to file bankruptcy in March and a lawsuit against the City in July. Expect his limited campaign to focus on this fight and accusations that stem from it.

Brosche and Curry have been locked in battle since she won an upset election for Jacksonville City Council President in 2017. She skipped ahead of the traditional progression of Vice President to President, defeating Councilman John Crescimbeni. Beaches councilman Bill Gulliford was an ardent supporter of Crescimbeni.  In retribution, Brosche refused to place Gulliford on any committees. The fight only escalated from there. This ongoing feud will be the main topic over the next two months. She frequently accuses the Mayor and his staff of bullying and heavy-handed tactics, expect that to be repeated.  Brosche’s campaign is also going to lean heavily on gender in an attempt to link her candidacy with the national women’s movement.  When pressed on the issues, she appears to have homed in on crime.  This was the campaign issue of Curry in 2015 and was one of the main reasons he was able to defeat incumbent Alvin Brown. 

Insiders have known for a while that Curry wanted Brosche to run against him.  Not only does it give him an opportunity to run an aggressive campaign to reconnect with voters, but it allows him to put this feud to bed once and for all.  Curry was on the offense against Brosche even before she filed, with the Jeopardy theme attack ads starting weeks ago.  It is clear that Curry’s political committee will be focused on Brosche’s decisions during her time as President.  The campaign side will be about his accomplishments as Mayor.  While Brosche will be focused on the tactics used to win, Curry will be focused on the wins. When it comes to the crime issue, don’t expect him to shy away.  Ads are already running that focus on anti-crime initiatives and a fulfilled promise to increase the number of police officers.  The Mayor will also receive support from State Attorney Melissa Nelson and Sheriff Mike Williams on the progress that has been made.  This is Curry’s race to lose.  Even Brosche’s most ardent supporters admit both privately and publicly she stands very little chance of victory.  She will be vastly outmatched in money and resources. Don’t write her off completely though.  Brosche won her council seat against an incumbent and the council presidency against the favorite.  The only fights Brosche knows how to fight are from behind.

This column was originally published in The Beaches Leader/ The Ponte Vedra Leader on January 31, 2019

Every legislative session there is a phrase that serves as a rallying cry for local elected officials around Florida: Home Rule.  Local municipalities want the ability to regulate as they wish within their cities without interference from the State, yet every year there are a handful of bills that threaten that ability. Of the proposals moving through the Legislature this year that impact Home Rule, a few stand out for the Beach communities. 

For 28 years, Jacksonville Beach has earned a Tree City USA designation, a legacy of the late Bennie Furlong. Atlantic Beach and Neptune Beach have had it inconsistently and lost it in recent years, most recently for forgetting to do an Arbor Day celebration (it’s April 27 this year if anyone is taking notes).  179 cities throughout Florida meet the requirements for the Tree City USA award, which includes a tree care ordinance. Senator Greg Steube has introduced SB 574 that would preempt those cities’ ability to regulate when someone can cut down or trim a healthy tree on private property and put that control exclusively with the Legislature. As 60% of trees sit on private land, this has become a hotly debated topic.  Steube is a diehard Republican who thinks you should be able to do what you want with trees on your property.  Environmentalists believe that a tree canopy is a community resource that must be protected.  Local governments want the ability to make that decision in their own community.  While the debate is ongoing, signs are pointing towards this passing. 

Another Steube bill that seems to be gaining interest this week addresses vacation rentals.  Again in the private property rights debate, Steube wants to take away local government’s ability to regulate vacation rentals in private homes.  The state has dabbled with this off and on for a decade, but the rise of AirBnB, which is heavily used by Legislators during committee weeks, has returned it back to the forefront.  Steube has introduced a 35 page bill addressing the issue, the house version introduced by Rep. LaRosa is a single page with a single paragraph that simply states local municipalities must treat vacation home rentals the same as all other residential property. This is the realtors vs the hotel industry. When two bills differ so much in language, it typically means there is not a united front and one of the two die. My guess is it falters in the Senate, but there’s still a lot of game left and Steube is good.

The final major issue that is being watched closely by Jacksonville Beach is HB 17/ SB 432 dealing with Community Redevelopment Agencies (CRA).  When used effectively, CRAs are a tool for local governments to put money into revitalizing an area.  When a CRA is created, it sets a marker with the current tax revenue.  As the values of the area go up and tax revenues increases, any property tax revenues above that marker goes into the Tax Increment Trust Fund (TIF) which can only be used on improving that area. It is primarily used on infrastructure like roads, drainage, buying blighted property, and beautification.   

Jacksonville Beach has used this well in the Downtown and South Beach Parkway areas; unfortunately other cities don’t have George Forbes keeping a watchful eye on spending.  There are 224 CRAs in Florida and of course there are a few bad apples. South Florida CRAs are a mess with CRA board members selling properties to their CRA and TIF money going to parties and concerts.  In Palm Shores, the Mayor was appointed chair of the CRA then paid herself $84,000 over three years.  The big one is in Tallahassee where their CRA is currently under an FBI investigation for corruption.  This one garners particular focus politically not only because it’s the state capital, but because Tallahassee Mayor Gillum is running for Governor in the Democrat primary.

These and other recent instances piled up and House Speaker Richard Corcoran has made disbanding CRAs a priority. He attempted to do it with a much harsher bill last year without success, but a watered down version got through this year when the House version passed 72-32 two weeks ago with Rep. Cord Byrd voting in favor.  It still has to make it through the Senate, but all signs are that a similar bill will pass.  Unless there are significant changes in conference, as it looks now the bill makes four major proposals.  1. CRA members will have to take ethics training. 2. CRA contracts for goods and services must go through the same system and standards as the city which created the CRA. 3. CRAs must publish a detailed annual report available to the public. 4. All current CRAs must be phased out by September 30, 2038 and any future CRAs can only be created by the Legislature.

Ethics training of appointed boards is something I’ve pushed for locally and in the Legislature over the past year, so that is a welcome change in my book. For Jacksonville Beach, Forbes already has their CRA ahead of the curve on reporting and procurement.  The real question for them is what happens with the phasing out of the CRA and how does that impact the budget going forward. 

This column was originally published in The Beaches Leader/ The Ponte Vedra Leader on January 25, 2018

I fully support the efforts of the Downtown Investment Authority to build a new convention center.  I firmly believe that the pathway to downtown revitalization is in convention business, so much so that I invested tens of thousands of my own dollars and nearly went bankrupt attempting to put on a national/ regional convention here in Jacksonville. I still believe it is good for this city and will try again. While I admire the efforts of the Jax Sports Council to continue to bring new and unique sporting events to our community, the reality is the economic impact of sporting events here is maxed out.  For us to move to the next level, we need to add to their efforts with an aggressive plan to become a convention destination and that plan starts with a real convention center. Jacksonville currently has 74,000 sq ft of convention space at the Prime F. Osborn III Convention Center.  To put that into perspective, Miami has 500,000 sq ft and Orlando has 2,100,000 sq ft.  Tallahassee, a city with a population of 190,000, has a convention center of 54,000 sq ft.  This weekend, the Orlando Convention Center will host the PGA Merchandise show which brings golfers from around the world. The PGA Tour is based here in Ponte Vedra and that event should be in Jacksonville, but they need 650,000 sq ft of convention space.  We’re drastically behind the curve.  The new proposal will increase the size of our center to 240,000 sq ft, still well below what I think we need, but at least it brings us up to the point that we no longer have an over glorified community center and can compete for midsized events.  In 2015, I met a Hematologist from London who was attending a convention in Orlando with 30,000 other doctors from that field. You cannot convince me that a doctor would rather hang around Disney than sneak in a few rounds of golf at TPC Sawgrass, but Jacksonville wasn’t an option.  That’s roughly 120,000 room nights, food, and transportation that should have been here, but we just don’t have the space to host it. If you want downtown development, that sort of weekly impact would drive new restaurants, hotels, and entertainment. The future of downtown starts with a larger convention center.  For this change to happen, it needs the full support of everyone involved including the Chamber of Commerce, the Mayor, the City Council, and even the Times Union editorial board. This must be a shared vision where we put our personal feelings aside and look for what is best in the long term for Jacksonville. 

The column was originally published in The Florida Times Union on January 17, 2018