Jacksonville Bold for 1.29.25: Win some, lose some

Jacksonville, Florida, USA downtown city skyline at dusk.

Good news; bad news.

The bad news is that former state Sen. Audrey Gibson of Jacksonville, a former Chair of the Duval County Democrats, did not prevail in her challenge to Nikki Fried to lead the Florida Democrats.

With connections to Jacksonville, Fried secured the election victory by receiving 296 votes compared to 83.

Gibson argued that any gains the party made in nonpartisan down-ballot races mattered little as Democratic lawmakers became further marginalized in Tallahassee.

She said the party drastically needs an economic message that resonates with voters, but her message ultimately didn’t resonate with the people who will decide the next Chair.

“We have to be attentive to diverse voices, to have multicultural communities, multiple multicultural partners, and take messages that they understand,” Gibson said. “Social issues don’t carry the day.”

When asked about her next move, Gibson said there would be no second try for the Mayor’s Office or anything else in City Hall.

“I’m bigger than that. We need legislative seats. We need congressional seats. That’s what we need for policy — the City’s good. I don’t even think I’d run for City Council. It’s interesting,” she told Jacob Ogles in Orlando.

Given the current maps, Gibson added that a congressional run would be tricky. However, she noted that some former legislators have recently returned to Tallahassee. Her plans will be worth watching as seats open up later this decade.

But here’s a positive in the present tense: Current Duval Democrats Chair Daniel Henry defeated three others and received a majority vote in his election as vice-Chair of the state party.

Congratulations to him as his party looks to come back from recent difficulties.

POTUS props

The President of the United States is again extolling the “most powerful woman in the world,” who is also a friend to many in Northeast Florida and far beyond.

During Monday’s comments to congressional Republicans in Doral, Donald Trump praised Susie Wiles, lauding her campaign record and ability to run for President. He also noted her legendary father, Pat Summerall, and how he managed longtime broadcast partner John Madden.

Some highlights from Trump’s remarks about the Northeast Florida political legend now known, improbably, as “the ice maiden” due to the President’s comments in past speeches:

“When I came to Florida, Florida was a Democrat state. They had a Democrat Governor. They had one Democrat Senator. It was largely a Democrat state,” Trump said. “And (for) various reasons, I ended up with Susie running the campaign and she was unbelievable.”

“We won in a landslide, and then the second time, we won in an even bigger landslide. And when it came time to choose somebody to run the campaign, the whole campaign, I said, ‘What about Susie from Florida? She never lost. I won every Primary. I didn’t lose anything.’ And again, it was a Democrat state, and it was a landslide both times and all of the Republican stuff, it was almost like it didn’t even exist. It was amazing,” Trump said, discussing how Wiles rose in the ranks.

“Do you know that there has never been a woman Chief of Staff, but there is now,” Trump said. “I’m so surprised. I’m very surprised, but it came time to run the campaign and I said, ‘Well, I’ve never had a loss with Susie. She comes from great stock, you know, Pat Summerall is her father.’

“Pat Summerall was a football player, a great football player, but a really great announcer and the voice of the NFL for 27 years or something. He was great and a leader; he worked with John Madden. And he was able to get John Madden to do things that nobody else could do. They’d call him and say, ‘Pat, John is really difficult,'” Trump related.

“John was a difficult guy, but he got big ratings, and he was good. And Pat would go up, ‘Come on, John, let’s get this done. Come on. I know you don’t like the heads of the company, just that they’re paying you a lot of money. Come on, John, let’s get it done,’ and he’d go and do it. And this went on for what, 27 years, right? But he was a leader. Her father and this is somebody that has the gene,” Trump added.

Our understanding of the Summerall-Madden dynamic gleaned from informed parties was that they were a team, and while Summerall played the straight man to Madden’s at times comic foil, saying Summerall “managed” Madden may be a bit hyperbolic.

But what’s clear is the President has tremendous respect for his Chief of Staff and longtime friend.

ICE ICE Baby

In the Special Session, lawmakers are still looking to tighten immigration law, as evidenced by a Jacksonville Republican’s bill.

Rep. Jessica Baker’s HB 245 mandates that “each law enforcement agency operating a detention facility must enter into a written agreement with the United States Immigration and Customs Enforcement to participate in the immigration program established under s. 287(g).”

287(g) allows federal officials to delegate authority for enforcement to state law enforcement.

“Each law enforcement agency operating a county detention facility not in compliance with this section must notify the Department of Law Enforcement quarterly of the status of the required such written agreement and any reason for noncompliance with this section, if applicable,” stipulates Baker’s bill, which would take effect in July if passed by the Senate and House and signed into law.

Gov. Ron DeSantis sought in his call for a Special Session to mandate “maximum participation in the 287(g)-deportation program, with penalties for non-compliance, including suspension of officials” for “each state and county law enforcement agency and any other law enforcement agency with more than 25 sworn law enforcement officers.”

However, the timing of Baker’s bill is a little more in keeping with the regular legislative calendar.

Dashboard Confessional

Mayor Donna Deegan wants you to see how the city spends taxpayer money.

Her office touts the FY24-25 Budget Transparency Dashboard as “groundbreaking” and “designed to revolutionize” municipal finance’s often opaque landscape.

“This dashboard is more than a tool — it’s a commitment to letting the light in,” said Deegan. “We believe that when residents have access to clear and timely information, trust grows, collaboration strengthens and accountability thrives.”

It might not tell you what the multibillion-dollar obligation on legacy pension debt is, of course, but if you want to know top-line items like how much is being spent on homeless camping ban enforcement ($1M) or how many positions the Sheriff’s Office has (3,390), you’ll find what you’re looking for.

Crunch the numbers

Despite all this transparency, a former Florida Times-Union editor says Jacksonville’s books need an audit.

“The city needs a respected, independent evaluation of future finances, the equivalent of a financial counseling session — tough love. Isn’t this the job of City Council? Yes, but politicians usually don’t look beyond the next election, especially if there are unpopular costs involved,” observes Mike Clark in Jacksonville Today.

Clark suggests a couple of ways forward to that end.

One path: to revive the “Jacksonville Community Council for a one-time study of city finances … an independent no-holds-barred review of the bill Jacksonville must face to avert a quality-of-life catastrophe.”

An alternative could be to bring in Florida TaxWatch for the same role, which has precedent. The Tallahassee-based group discovered Jacksonville’s pension problems in 2008, which led to reforms under successive Mayors.

Restoration commendation

The Florida Municipal Electric Association (FMEA) awarded JEA a “Restoring Communities Award” for its work after Hurricanes Debby, Helene and Milton.

Here and elsewhere, JEA satisfied mutual aid agreements by helping with power restoration efforts in Georgia, Tallahassee and Lakeland.

“We are honored to receive this recognition after a hard-hitting storm season. JEA’s electric, water and vegetation management crews work through challenging conditions to restore services for our community – and our neighbors in need — during severe weather,” JEA CEO and Managing Director Vickie Cavey said. “Knowing that our public power network is ready to support us as well is reassuring for JEA and our customers.”

Carrico honored

An influential Jacksonville business group is enthusiastic toward Jacksonville City Council Vice President Kevin Carrico, naming him Legislator of the Year for what a press release calls “his dedication to policies that both protect residents and support housing accessibility across Jacksonville.”

“I’m deeply humbled,” Carrico said. “Every family deserves a home. Housing security allows children to thrive. This award highlights the power of partnership between the building community and government. Together, we build stronger communities.”

Carrico chairs the Land Use and Zoning committee, uniquely positioning him to do this work.

As the (very likely) Council President next year, he can propose even more advancements for these priority policies.

Tweet, tweet:

New name

Visitors to the University of North Florida might notice something different.

The Silverfield College of Education and Human Services is a fresh name for a familiar building after a “transformational gift” supporting several funds from Gary and Laine Silverfield, their sons and their spouses, Leed and Becky Silverfield, Ryan and Katie Silverfield.

“Since 1972, UNF’s College of Education and Human Services has graduated more than 22,000 students with bachelor’s degrees or higher, who have gone on to educate, mentor and counsel future generations of students in our region,” said UNF President Moez Limayem. “We are incredibly grateful to the Silverfields for their generosity and for their passion for education.”

Dr. Stephen Dittmore, dean of the Silverfield College of Education and Human Services, says the gift “validates the dedication and passion of our faculty in delivering quality education to undergraduate and graduate students.”

Pickleball palace

ESPN commentator and former Bartram Trail and Florida Gators hoops hero Steffi Sorensen is bringing access to a hot new game to St. Johns County, where she grew up.

And the name — Dark Horse – is no coincidence.

“As an ESPN college basketball analyst, Steffi and her colleagues often chose a “dark horse” team or player that you might not expect to upset a game or ranked team. Or someone that isn’t being talked about. Steffi felt that the name encapsulated her career – being a walk-on at Florida for example and then graduating as team captain and having started every game. Nobody ever expected that she could do that,” a spokesperson shared with the Jacksonville Daily Record.

The construction will be off Greenbriar Road near SR 13. Sorenson’s father Chris is best known for co-founding Firehouse Subs, one of the most beloved local exports in recent decades.

Khan & Coen

Liam Coen promised a new direction for the Jacksonville Jaguars on Monday afternoon in a room with as many local politicians as reporters.

The eighth head coaching hire in franchise history — and the sixth under current team owner Shad Khan — said his job was all about leadership.

Of course, it’s also about winning football games, which no Jaguars coach has consistently done since Khan purchased the team in 2012.

“We talk about fast. We want to be fundamentally sound, attacking, situational masters and tough, both mentally and physically,” Coen said. “And that’s the product that we want to put on the field.”

Those are all fine and good, but before he can implement changes on the field, he has to change the Jaguars’ culture. Coen differentiated the approach to “not lose” games from “winning” games. But that is only part of the issue that exists within the Jaguars organization.

There are some leaders. Trevor Lawrence, Foye Oluokun, and Christian Kirk were among the veterans who attended Monday’s announcement. Others, like Josh Hines-Allen and Evan Engram, can also help lead.

Coen will begin molding the culture in his image with conversations with players (some of those conversations have already started). And they will continue as he hires his coaching staff.

“It starts with communication,” Coen said. “It starts with the alignment and communication at every level. Building, first and foremost, the best staff that we can build because, (as) I mentioned, it’s about these guys. So, how do we put the best coaches in place to help these players reach their full abilities? Now, with the front office, how do we continue to build there and get this thing fully in alignment so that then when we go into the offseason program, we’re all on the same page.”

On the coaching staff search, Coen will not be looking for a play caller. He said on Monday that he would handle calling the plays.

One of the intriguing storylines in Coen’s hiring was the abrupt 180 he did after pulling his name from consideration, only to backtrack after Khan fired general manager Trent Baalke. Khan ducked questions about the belated move on Monday. It was not a confident look. When asked if he had learned anything during this offseason cycle, Khan dodged the question, saying: “If you aren’t learning, you are dying.”

It’s not a very convincing response for a man who has said in three consecutive introductory news conferences for coaches, “We got our guy.”

There have been calls for Khan to hire a trusted NFL veteran to advise him on football matters. Hall of Fame tackle Tony Boselli appears destined for this role.

“We are going to have a position,” Khan said when asked about Boselli. “We’re checking with the league (on) what the rules are, what we have to follow. And, you know, and then we’ll take it from there.”

Khan and perhaps Boselli, will also have to decide on the general manager’s role. By league rule, the Jaguars must have someone in the position by Feb. 28.

“I think our priority is obviously to get Liam settled in and, you know, have him build his staff and then, you know, start the search,” Khan said. “But you know, we’re hoping to be done by that date.”

Again, Khan did not provide much of an answer, as he has been short on specifics the last two times he spoke with reporters on record. If Coen is the right hire and can turn the Jaguars’ culture around and help Trevor Lawrence live up to his potential, then Khan’s questions will be fewer and much easier to answer than those he faced on Monday.

If Coen produces similar results as his predecessors, then Khan will return to the same spot again.