Jacksonville Bold for 06.10.16 — Pass? Or Fail?

On Tuesday, in the atrium of Jacksonville’s City Hall, Mayor Lenny Curry held the first of 10 town hall meetings with city employees expected in coming months.

The aim of the meetings is to sell the pension tax referendum, which Curry called “one of the most important votes Jacksonville has faced in its consolidated history.”

Curry is not wasting time launching the employee education effort.

Four town hall meetings were scheduled this week, with the remaining six — audiences ranging from the Jacksonville Association of Firefighters June 16 to Solid Waste Aug. 15 — spread out.

Employees, in theory, should be the easiest to sell and mobilize in support of the plan; they have the most to gain.

They will have to chip in an extra 2 percent in employee contributions — a boost from 8 to 10 percent — and at least one of the three existing plans will have to be closed via collective bargaining (smart money is on the general employees’ fund, the pool of employees there is the most replaceable, when compared to police and fire).

Other than that, they are golden. They should support the referendum option. Many rank and file members have not received raises in this decade.

The referendum, for them, could mean that they are in a position to get those raises — eventually.

City officials, meanwhile, have the green light to message on this matter.

The Office of the General Counsel issued a ruling last month saying city officials have the right to “educate the community” on issues related to the referendum.

In other words, there are no such restrictions as there were in the 2015 mayoral campaign, where Alvin Brown walked a tightrope between “campaign time” and “city time.”

Republicans and Democrats alike can address this issue.

However, the sales job is not going to be with the employees: in the end, they will support more revenue.

It will be with a restive populace, who notices the infrastructural and public safety gaps that have widened along with the $2.7 billion unfunded actuarial liability, yet also notices that every year this century, they’ve worked harder and gotten less out of it.

They hear the word “pension” and don’t think “Blue Lives Matter.”

Instead, they think “well, I’m going to be working until I’m dead anyway, so what makes the guy running the speed trap better than me?”

Curry is in a position to appeal to the greater civic good, at a time when it’s less than certain that greater civic good matters all that much to the citizens.

Many of them moved here recently. They still cheer for back-home football teams, still miss favorite restaurants, and have no sense of the city’s history, much less how the pension got so jacked up.

We know that a bipartisan coalition is going to work as hard as possible to sell the tax, even if there are more variables, due to collective bargaining and where the financial markets are going and so forth, than fixed answers.

Curry says “this has to pass.”

But what if it doesn’t?

What does that say about the political capital of not just the mayor’s office, but the entire city’s political leadership?

Curry says this is arguably the most important vote in post-consolidation Jacksonville history.

He’s right — and for more reasons than the revenue influx.

“Tommy Hazouri among ‘bipartisan finance team’ for Jax pension-tax referendum sales pitch” via Florida Politics – Curry announced his “bipartisan finance team” for his “Yes for Jacksonville” political committee, designed to market the pension-tax referendum … Some members are to be expected, such as Marty Fiorentino of the Fiorentino Group, former General Counsel Fred Franklin, and stalwart Curry backers Tom Petway and John Rood. One member is surprising: Councilman Tommy Hazouri, who famously battled with Curry on the human rights ordinance expansion issue months back. Clearly, the former mayor and the current mayor have found a common political cause.

“Why randrr picked Jacksonville” via Jensen Werley of the Jacksonville Business Journal – Randrr’s CEO Terry Terhark says he knows the company’s plans are ambitious — to hire 200 tech developers and build a career opportunities platform in two years — but he’s in the right place to do so. “It’s an ambitious number of people,” Terhark said in an exclusive interview with the Business Journal. “But my experience thus far is the talent is available” … a big key to the talent comes from the person hired to run the entire tech side of the business, Chief Technology Officer Kurt Smith. A stalwart of the Jacksonville tech community, prior to randrr he worked for the startup Red Rocket Solutions starting in 2004. Over the past decade, he grew from senior software engineer to Vice President of Technology, and watched the company grow through acquisitions until itself was acquired recently.

“Jacksonville resolves environmental documentation issues, pays $160K to HUD” via Florida Politics — In good news from HUD, Curry received written notice that monitoring issues from previous mayoral administrations’ reports in 2014 and 2015 had been resolved for Community Development Block Grants and the HOME Investment Partnerships Program. Four problems in total have been resolved. But here’s the bad news from HUD: one of them cost the city $160,625. The $127,000 problem: the city failed to complete compliance reviews for activities related to CDBG, HOME and Neighborhood Stabilization Program Grants. This required repayment of $160,625 for demolition of 13 properties, which incorrectly was paid with HUD funds. With $33,739 paid as the result of a previous monitoring visit, the balance of $126,886 had to be paid … and was.

“Hemming Park’s future being considered again by Jacksonville” via Florida Politics – A 90-minute public notice meeting in the Jacksonville City Council offices addressed the perilous future of Friends of Hemming Park … The nonprofit Friends of Hemming Park, designed to run the park, has enough funds to last until early August, after a $100,000 appropriation during a May meeting of the council … With money to tide them over for some weeks, the assembled representatives from Friends of Hemming Park, Downtown Vision, the Downtown Investment Authority, the Parks and Recreation Department, and the mayor’s office addressed some of the existential questions related to the park’s future … Friends of Hemming Park President Wayne Wood noted that “Hemming Park was a cesspool” three years ago … The idea was activity would move the “ne’er do wells” to the periphery of the “family-friendly park.” Noting that half of park visitors are female, Wood asserts their plan has paid off, in terms of the requirements of the request for proposal that brought the park under the purview of FOHP. “We’ve been frugal. We’ve spent our money wisely … and yet, we’ve been beat up a little bit,” Wood said, adding that he’d like some positive words from the city council.

Top talker – “Jacksonville needs more women in seats of power” via the Florida Times-Union editorial board – The inaugural EVE Women’s Summit began in fitting fashion when local business executive and equity advocate Donna Orender fired up the crowd with an upbeat yet resolute declaration: “We can’t be ‘good girls’ today,” the fiery Orender told the gathered women. “We have work to do!” Orender’s remark summed up the need for the EVE Women’s Summit, which was held in the Hyatt Regency before the annual EVE Awards luncheon. The summit laid out the challenges that still remain for too many women seeking equal economic, educational, occupational and decision-making opportunities in Jacksonville. And, equally important, the event emphasized the need to create sustainable plans of action to break down and through the walls and ceilings that still exist. Gender equity can and should play a leading role in elevating Jacksonville to new heights. And it’s a cause that all of Jacksonville’s citizens should take on, regardless of gender.

“Fewer Duval, First Coast students miss school, bucking national trend of growing absences” via Denise Smith Amos of the Florida Times-Union – The federal government says more than 13 percent of public school students were absent from school at least 15 days during the 2013-14 school year … Florida bucked the trend with the lowest chronic absentee rates in the country; only 4.5 percent of its students missed that much school. Duval County and other Northeast Florida districts did even better, averaging about 2 percent of students playing hooky on a regular basis. The just released data are part of the U.S. Department of Education’s Civil Rights Data Collection, a trove of education data collected every two years from districts and charter schools to measure through a variety of ways whether school conditions are equitable for students with disadvantages, such as ethnic minorities and those with language barriers or financial or disability status. This year the database also includes information about absenteeism. Of the 100 largest school districts, Detroit City schools had the highest rate of chronic absenteeism: nearly 58 percent. In Duval County, only 2.1 percent of students skipped school 15 days or more, less than the 2.6 percent overall average for First Coast school districts. St. Johns and Baker counties had the highest chronic absentee rates in the region, around 7 percent. Among Florida’s Big Seven school districts Duval was second lowest, below Palm Beach. On the other hand, Pinellas, Broward and Dade had absentee rates of about 7 percent of students.

“Lenny Curry wants Marco Rubio to run for re-election” via Florida Politics — Curry … thinks Rubio should run for re-election to the U.S. Senate … Rubio “stood by some of Jacksonville’s most vulnerable people” in his recent actions on behalf of the residents of Eureka Garden. And, notes Curry, Rubio took action on behalf of Eureka Garden residents “when running for president,” doing the “right thing by Jacksonville,” and not trying to exploit it for a “press hit” … Curry had told FloridaPolitics.com he was not pressuring Rubio to run again in May, yet after time for serious reflection, he was able to come to his current position.

Assignment editors – U.S. Senate candidate Carlos Beruff will speak at a Jacksonville Town Hall to introduce his “10 steps to end government greed.” Event begins 11:30 a.m. at the ADPEN Laboratories, Inc., 11757 Central Pkwy. in Jacksonville.

“Hans Tanzler ‘Rawhide’ ad authenticity questioned” via Florida Politics – The first TV ad in the race for Florida’s 4th Congressional District is taking a hit for being inauthentic. The ad in question is “Rawhide” by Tanzler. Operatives from opposing campaigns have suggested “Rawhide” was filmed at Tanzler’s Gainesville-area ranch rather than in CD 4 … Tanzler’s campaign fessed up. “You need a lot of space to film something like that … (It) did not seem to quite fit the script to be running a horse through downtown Jacksonville or Riverside,” wrote consultant Brett Doster in response to an inquiry from FloridaPolitics.com … Florida Times-Union columnist Ron Littlepage called Tanzler the “Ortega Cowboy,” suggesting his 30-second spot will be a contender for the worst ad of the campaign.

“Tanzler to hold grand opening of Nassau headquarters June 24” via press release – While the office is already operational, an official Grand Opening Pizza Party will be at 5:30 p.m. Friday, June 24, with the program beginning at 6 p.m. The office is at 524194 U.S. 1 in Callahan, next to Wells Fargo Bank in the same shopping center as Pizza Hut and Subway. The evening will include music, food, drinks, and volunteer training. “We are excited about the opportunity this office gives us to connect with the voters of Nassau County,” said Tanzler. “We believe our conservative message of more freedom, repealing Obamacare, and protecting our Second Amendment Rights resonates there.”

“The Publix question enters the CD 6 race” via Florida Politics – The race for the GOP nomination … finally has a Publix angle, with two Republican candidates sparring over the grocery chain. Fred Costello asserted that working as a “Publix bag boy” doesn’t really count as private sector experience. Brandon Patty, a military veteran of recent vintage, responded to Costello, calling him an “elitist” … “Fred Costello may have spent so many years in politics that he’s forgotten how valuable jobs like bagging groceries at Publix are, especially for folks like me who don’t come from wealth and are looking for that first opportunity. I got so much more than money from my Publix job. I learned invaluable lessons that have stuck with me throughout my other private sector jobs and my time in the military … elitists like Fred are contributing to these bad policies by being simply out of touch and dismissive toward the working class … I’ll happily accept the label ‘Publix bag boy’ and I suspect so would Publix President and CEO Todd Jones, because that’s where he got his start, and thousands and thousands of other Floridians too. Maybe Fred Costello needs to drive his Porsche out of Tallahassee more often.”

“Aaron Bean makes the rounds” via Melissa Ross of Florida politics – On Monday, Ross will address the Beaches Business Association Luncheon at the Jax Beach Golf Club, then meet with the Northside Business Leaders Luncheon Tuesday at the Jacksonville Zoo, both times to give a review of the 2016 Legislative Session.

“State attorney candidate Melissa Nelson tops $200,000 in first month as candidate” via Larry Hannan of the Florida Times-Union – A former assistant state attorney, Nelson’s donations came from many recognizable figures. People who donated to her include Jacksonville Chamber of Commerce Chairwoman Audrey Moran; Gary Chartrand, executive chairman of Acosta Sales and Marketing; Ashton Hudson, president of Rock Creek Capital; attorney and former Florida Bar President Hank Coxe; Orlando attorney Mark O’Mara, who faced off against Corey in the George Zimmerman trial over Trayvon Martin’s shooting death; former U.S. Attorney Paul Perez and former Jaguars Coach Tom Coughlin. Nelson’s PAC, First Coast Values, raised $108,500 in its first month and has bought significant advertising time. The PAC appears to be the first local campaign to buy TV ads … though a congressional campaign has also recently begun advertising. Spokesman Brian Hughessaid the financial figures show many in Northeast Florida believe the 4th Judicial Circuit can do better and that Nelson is the person who can bring change to the State Attorney’s Office.

“Ethics panel finds probable cause against Public Defender Matt Shirk” via Daniel Ducassi of POLITICO Florida – The Florida Commission on Ethics last week found probable cause to believe 4th Circuit Public Defender Shirk violated state ethics laws. Most of the complaints revolve around his 2013 hiring, and soon-after firing, of three women, one allegedly as a favor to a political supporter, and two others who had worked at a Jacksonville nightclub. The arrangement attracted substantial attention from the press. The commission found probable cause to believe Shirk violated state ethics law by misusing his position to hire the three women contrary to normal hiring protocol, “engaging in workplace or work-related interactions with them of personal interest to him and unrelated or marginally related to the function of the Public Defender’s Office, and to terminating them … from their employment … for the benefit of himself, his wife and their marriage.”

“Is justice delayed ethical?” via John Burr – Here’s one reason why people are so disgusted with public officials and politics. They seem to be living in a parallel universe, with its own inscrutable rules and consequence for bad behavior.

Imagine this: You’re a mid-level department head at a prominent Jacksonville corporation, let’s say CSX, for example. You hire three young women: one is the girlfriend of a guy you want to have good relations with. The second works at a local bar, and you offer her a job after seeing her photo on social media, and you hire the third after asking the second young lady if she had any friends. Qualifications for working in your office: none.

As a bonding experience, you invite two of your new hires to take a shower with you, and, meanwhile, being the fabulous boss you are, you decided to serve them drinks in the office. So maybe they were qualified for some office duties, like mixing cocktails.

And there’s more: You send sexually provocative messages with your work cellphone to two of your new employees, which you later admit was “inappropriate.” Your wife finds out, destroys the cellphone and demands, in person, at your office, that two of the women be fired, and fired they are.

So how many milliseconds do you think you would be employed at CSX, or Black Knight or Baptist Medical Center, after acting in this fashion? Less than 10? Correct.

All this happened in 2013, in the office of Matt Shirk, the head Public Defender in Jacksonville. He’s still in the job, in fact, he’s up for re-election. This week, plodding along, the Florida Ethics Commission has found probable cause that Shirk misused his position. Next up is an administrative hearing.

Reality check: It’s been three years, people.

“Why is Sam Shiver on the Public Defender’s payroll?” via Florida Politics – The 4th Circuit Public Defender race, encompassing Duval, Clay and Nassau counties, is heating up, as challenger Charles Cofer charges Shirk is using state-paid public employees of the Office of Public Defender for his campaign … “Mr. Shirk has found it difficult to raise funds to support his campaign,” Cofer said … ‘his solution to this problem is to have taxpayers finance his campaign indirectly through his Public Defender’s Office budget. This is clearly illegal and unethical.” At issue: Shirk’s “public relations employee,” Shiver. A GOP political consultant, Shiver operates the campaign consulting firm S.O.S. Consulting while drawing $73,000 a year from the public payroll … ‘’The only role that a public relations employee can have at the Public Defender’s Office is to try and restore Mr. Shirk’s tarnished reputation within the community,” Cofer added.

“State ethics panel clears Flagler County administrator” via Matt Bruce of the Daytona Beach News-Journal – The Florida Commission on Ethics found there was not enough “legal sufficiency” in a complaint lodged against Flagler County Administrator Craig Coffey and dismissed the filing during its session in Tallahassee … Coffey, the county’s chief of staff since 2007, was named along with County Attorney Al Hadeedand all five members of the County Commission in a barrage of complaints filed with the ethics commission, as well as the Florida Elections Commission, earlier this year. It was the first and only ethics complaint filed against Coffey. That is not the case for Hadeed and the five commissioners, each of whom has been named in one or more of 26 ethics grievances lodged with various state agencies since November 2014. The ethics commission has now tossed nine of the 10 complaints it has reviewed.

“Event organizers cry foul over new rules” via Sheldon Gardner of the St. Augustine Record – Some event organizers say St. Augustine’s new position on events – more restrictions and requirements, plus higher fees – has forced one event to relocate and is a concern to others. The St. Augustine Pirate Gathering, which has brought flocks of pirate re-enactors annually to downtown St. Augustine since at least 2008, will instead be held at Interstate 95 and State Road 207 near the St. Augustine Flea Market when it returns in November.

Appointed – Mark Miner to the St. Augustine-St. Johns County Airport Authority.

“Michael Dunn wants a new trial” via The Associated Press – A man convicted of killing a teenage boy after an argument over loud music outside a gas station wants a third trial. The Florida Times-Union reports an attorney for 49-year-old Michael Dunn of Satellite Beach asked an appeals court to throw out his murder conviction and life sentence … Dunn was convicted in September 2014 of fatally shooting 17-year-old Jordan Davis of Marietta, Georgia, in November 2012 after a confrontation sparked over loud music coming from the SUV in which Davis was riding. He had been convicted of three counts of second-degree murder at his initial trial in February 2014, but jurors were deadlocked on the first-degree murder charge. Attorney Terry Roberts argued for a new trial, saying prosecutors didn’t refute Dunn’s claim that Davis had threatened to kill him before the shooting.

“Former Jax officer accused of punching handcuffed woman will not face felony charges” via John Bachman of Action News Jax – The former Jacksonville Sheriff’s officer seen on video punching a handcuffed woman at the Duval County Jail will not face felony charges. The State Attorney’s Office released a seven-page disposition statement or its investigation report … Former officer Akinyemi Borisade was fired after JSO made the violent video public. The State Attorney’s Office released its findings after deciding not to charge Borisade with felony battery … The report outlines several accounts of the woman in the video, Mayra Martinez, being under the influence of at least alcohol and possibly drugs.

“Rescue mission leaders meet” via Beth Reese Cravey of the Florida Times-Union – The heartbreaking moment was not watching the long line of women who were arriving at the rescue mission, seeking shelter from domestic abuse. It was not looking at each of those homeless women, some of whom were injured and one was holding the shards of her broken eyeglasses in her hand, said John Ashmen, president of the Association of Gospel Rescue Missions. The heartbreaking moment came when the mission manager counted “73, 74, 75” and had to tell the women still waiting in line that there was no more room … The association’s 300 members in the United States, Canada, Mexico and the Caribbean provide meals, shelter and housing, employment services, clothing and addiction recovery programs. The convention gave information, education, encouragement and inspiration to their leaders, who Ashmen said are ‘on the front lines of the fight against homelessness and poverty.’ Among the inspirations were four local association members — City Rescue Mission and Trinity Rescue Mission in Jacksonville, Mercy Support Services in Clay County and Adventures in God’s Creation in Jacksonville Beach — who shared their work.

“Liking that younger audience and local programming at CW-17” via John Burr – Here’s a follow-up on the news that Graham Media, longtime owners of the top-rated local Jacksonville television station WJXT-TV4, has purchased the CW affiliate, WCWJ-17.

Emily Barr, president and CEO of Graham Media, said her company was drawn to CW-17 by the different (meaning younger) audience than the one that tunes in to TV-4.

“We find the audience that they attract appealing, we are interested in and curious about the CW affiliation, this will be our fist CW affiliate,” Barr said, “and we like the fact that they do a lot of local programming because we know from our own experience that’s the way to truly connect with the community.”

Barr demurred when asked if the top-rated WJXT local news programs would be brought over to CW-17 viewers.

“I think we first need to examine what the audience makeup of CW 17 before we make any decision,” Barr said, “as to whether we produce a special newscast for that audience or whether we take a newscast that’s already airing on WJXT and repurpose it for over there.”

It’s common for media companies with two television stations in one market to combine operations under one roof to save money on staff and real estate costs. That’s the model being followed in Jacksonville, where the CBS and Fox affiliates are run by Cox Media and the NBC and ABC affiliates are owned by Tegna, formerly Gannett.

Again, Barr said it was too soon to say if Graham Media would follow suit by consolidating both stations at WJXT headquarters in San Marco, while adding that Graham would be looking for more efficient ways to conduct its business.

“Jacksonville ‘Moxie’ author, 8, headed to White House” via Letisha Bereola of Action News Jax – Natalie McGriff, 8, was invited to the White House for the “United state of Women” summit. “We know that Oprah is going to be there,” said her mother, Angie Nixon. “She really wants to see Michelle Obama.” Natalie is also being honored for her for her efforts to empower and promote literacy amongst girls of color. It’s a mission so close to her heart, she wrote a comic about it. The comic is inspired by Natalie, who used to hate her natural hair, the color of her skin … reading. it’s important for little girls to love themselves and love to read and write,” Natalie said. Natalie’s book is also being produced into an animated series by a team in Los Angeles and is expected to be released in late 2016.

Congrats to former Clay star Dane Dunning for being selected 29th overall by the @Nationals in the 2016 @MLBDraft! pic.twitter.com/balIs3WlyE

— FHSAA (@FHSAA) June 10, 2016

“Fore! Eisenhower Center reportedly eyeing TPC Sawgrass for its Jax expansion site” via Melissa Ross of Florida Politics – Back in January, we told you about the renowned Eisenhower Center, one of the premier facilities in the nation treating veterans and NFL players for traumatic brain injury and PTSD, choosing Jacksonville as its location for expansion into the Southeast.

The Michigan-based center settled on North Florida in part because of the region’s international recognition as a medical tourism destination and large veteran population.

Former Jaguars quarterback and ESPN commentator Mark Brunell has been tapped as the public face of this effort.

Eisenhower is planning to announce relatively soon its formal expansion plans here on the First Coast, but the early word is that the organization may be looking to set up shop in Ponte Vedra near TPC Sawgrass.

The issue of traumatic brain injury (TBI) or concussion as pro players leave the field, often to have severe behavioral and relationship problems, sometimes including suicide, has been brought to a wide audience via the Will Smith film “Concussion.” At the same time, veterans leaving the actual battlefields of the Middle East also suffer from traumatic brain injuries, and the psychological wounds of war known as post-traumatic stress disorder or PTSD. Eisenhower is renowned for treating those as well.

“Allen Hurns is allergic to grass” via Michael DiRocco of ESPN – No matter how hot it is on the practice field, Jacksonville Jaguars wide receiver Allen Hurns is usually wearing long tights and a long-sleeve shirt. They provide him protection from the sun’s damaging ultraviolet rays, but that’s not why he wears them. He’s trying to keep from spending the next couple of hours scratching. Hurns is allergic to grass … Hurns said he found out about his grass allergy by accident in high school. He was diagnosed with a seafood allergy and underwent skin testing from an allergist to see if he was allergic to anything else. Grass popped up, which explained why he would have rashes on his arms, legs and sometimes his neck after practices and games. Hurns said he doesn’t experience breathing problems. His nose doesn’t get stuffy or runny either. He has skin breakouts that vary in degrees. Some days they’re barely there. Other days he said he has to take a Benadryl after practice or games if it’s a particularly severe breakout. Hurns said it’s more of a nuisance than a problem, and it obviously hasn’t affected him on the field. He recently signed a four-year contract extension worth $40 million after catching 115 passes for 1,708 yards and 16 touchdowns in his first two seasons. The yards and touchdown catches are the most by an undrafted player in his first two seasons since the 1970 merger.

We love this team — “Jaguars skip practice, visit children’s facilities” via Mike Kaye of WTLV – Instead of participating in the team’s ninth organized team activities practice, players took part in a “community day” and spending time at four different children’s facilities in the Jacksonville area. Players were split up and sent to Wolfson Children’s Hospital, Ronald McDonald House, Brooks Rehabilitation and Nemuors Children’s Specialty Care. Head Coach Gus Bradley surprised the players with the news just before the squad was set to hit the road. “Coach Bradley shared a quote with us this morning,” said tight end Julius Thomas. “He said ‘when you have the opportunity to do good, you do good’ and that’s something that his mom impressed upon him and something that I thought was a very inspiring quote because how many other times in life do you get the opportunity to help someone out?”