A.G. Gancarski
An ordinance appropriating $250,000 from Jacksonville City Council contingency funds to construct a stage at downtown’s Hemming Park was approved Tuesday by the Recreation, Community Development, Public Health and Safety (RCDPHS) committee, the second of two committees to mull the measure before the full council considers it Tuesday.
The allocation was approved Monday by a 6-to-1 vote of the Finance Committee after over an hour of discussion.
Much of the discussion ahead of the Tuesday vote in RCDPHS had to do with explanation of the Finance amendments, with a prolonged explanation from the Office of the General Counsel of the mechanics of the bill language.
Councilman Matt Schellenberg pressed Mike Weinstein, the city’s chief financial officer, about the mayor’s position regarding subsidies for Hemming Park.
Schellenberg noted that this would be a “flat” budget year, and Weinstein confirmed that he had conveyed that to department heads.
“Every increase that comes in in revenue will probably be devoted to pension costs,” Weinstein said.
The anticipated $24 million in ad valorem uptick will be consumed by an additional $20 million in pension costs, Weinstein said.
Schellenberg, a critic of Hemming Park, wondered where the million dollars allocated to Hemming has been spent, adding that money could be used for district council members’ needs.
Vince Cavin, representing the Friends of Hemming Park (FOHP), itemized the budget for Hemming Park operations to Schellenberg. Cavin noted that the $250,000 of stage sponsorship money from Community First would allow the FOHP to essentially stay afloat.
Councilman Al Ferraro was on the fence, saying that he wanted to see “private dollars” come into Hemming Park, especially given the uncertainty in the city’s next budget.
Councilman Garrett Dennis was likewise of two minds.
“I think something needs to be done; however, we do have to be accountable for every dollar we spend,” Dennis said, adding that it might be time to “wean organizations that we fund off so we can fund other things.”
Deferral or denial, Cavin said, could potentially impact any number of events going forward.
Cavin added that the urgency to “push capital projects in” was driven by sponsors looking to see the city’s long-term commitment.
“It’s typical in parks like ours that there is a contribution from the city on an ongoing basis,” Cavin added.
The questions continued.
Schellenberg wanted more details on the stage kit purchase, which Cavin says will cost “$115,000 signed, sealed, delivered.” Light and sound would be extra, Cavin said.
The stage would be ready early in 2017, and FOHP would be pushing to sell more sponsorships for concert series and the like, sales contingent on partners being comfortable with the stage operation.
Cavin noted that a fundraising event, which could have raised up to $75,000, was delayed because of “uncertainty.”
Councilman Reggie Brown noted that “we live in a hot climate,” and that people are heat-averse, before pushing for more evening events in the park to stave off the specter of heat exhaustion.
“We need to get something in Jacksonville that can accommodate the hot climate,” Brown added.
The bill was approved 6-1, with Schellenberg as the no vote. The full council will mull the measure Tuesday.
Beyond the Hemming Park issue, other matters of note:
— An ordinance appropriating $496,725 from the Pacific Institute to help the Jacksonville Sheriff’s Office implement strategies for enforcement of impaired motorcycle operation was surprisingly controversial, despite requiring no local match. A JSO representative noted that 87 percent of single-vehicle motorcycle crashes involve impaired drivers.
Councilwoman Katrina Brown noted much of the money goes to overtime for officers; 15 percent of the budget, said a JSO representative, goes to equipment. Brown wanted documentation of a marketing budget for the program from Pacific Institute. The JSO rep noted that they will take advantage of free media, but Councilwoman Brown was not mollified. The project is expected to run through the end of 2017. Council members spoke about a range of issues, including the feeling that motorcyclists have that they are being singled out, and the foolhardiness of riding motorcycles without helmets.
The ordinance was approved 7-0. The final decision will be made by the full council Tuesday.
— $250,000 was approved by the committee via ordinance 2016-298, which moves money from the Tourist Development Council fund balance to operations for TDC marketing efforts. Council President Greg Anderson noted that the money offers “flexibility” for marketing efforts, and that the fund is still in a positive position. The money will go toward event marketing; Anderson wants to ensure that money is available to market future events.
The measure was approved 7-0. The full council will have to approve this Tuesday.
One comment
Patrick
May 17, 2016 at 8:22 pm
We can not afford the pensions and we can not afford this STAGE.
Why can we not either stop the pensions all together or give everyone $10,000 a year pension? Theses people got paid in full to begin with,then,if that was not good enough,they expect a huge pension,and in many cases,they had a cinchy job to begin with.
When will the voters learn ?
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