Florida Politics - Campaigns & Elections. Lobbying & Government.

A.G. GancarskiMay 24, 2016

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After a fractious public notice meeting between Jacksonville City Council members and Friends of Hemming Park earlier on Tuesday, council Vice President Lori Boyer proposed that an appropriation approved by the Finance Committee for $250,000 for the construction of a new stage be changed to an appropriation granting Friends of Hemming Park $100,000 to cover operating […]

A.G. GancarskiMay 17, 2016

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 […]

A.G. GancarskiMay 3, 2016

On Tuesday, the Jacksonville City Council Recreation, Community Development, Public Health and Safety Committee tackled two unusual bills. The first bill requires “public awareness signs for human trafficking” to be displayed in “adult entertainment and massage/bodywork establishments.” The bill had gotten workshopped in a couple of public notice meetings, before making its way to committees […]

A.G. GancarskiApril 5, 2016

Republicans and Democrats alike will tell you the same thing. In Jacksonville’s City Hall, there are few nicer or more personable people than Doyle Carter. The Republican Councilman lives and breathes Jacksonville. So does his latest backer in the Jacksonville City Council vice presidential race, Al Ferraro. Carter scheduled an open meeting for 8 a.m. Tuesday to […]

A.G. GancarskiFebruary 17, 2016

In recent months, a bill designed to increase the value of property that can be donated to non-profits and for-profits from $25,000 to $50,000 has been moving through Jacksonville’s City Council. The goal of the bill: to spur development in areas prone to blight. The bill moved through Finance Monday, and had Recreation, Community Development, […]

A.G. GancarskiFebruary 2, 2016

Votes have consequences. The decision during September’s budget night vote to move $330,799 from stormwater budgets to the Jacksonville Fire and Rescue Department to fund safety officers had big consequences. A lawsuit from the Concerned Taxpayers of Duval County resulted in a settlement, which required cure legislation to affirm the budget night decision. The wrinkle in […]

A.G. GancarskiFebruary 2, 2016

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An interesting development out of Jacksonville’s Recreation, Community Development, Public Health, and Safety committee: Reggie Brown going off on the Public Service Grants council criteria, and then (more interestingly) addressing the removal of people from volunteer boards, which was a big part of the early days of the Lenny Curry administration as he removed Alvin Brown appointees and […]

A.G. GancarskiFebruary 1, 2016

One of the most hot-button issues before Jacksonville’s City Council is the decision whether to increase the number of terms city officials can serve. On Monday, it cleared its fourth and final committee. The Matt Schellenberg bill seeks to boost consecutive terms for the Jacksonville mayor, City Council, and Duval County constitutional officers from two to […]

A.G. GancarskiJanuary 28, 2016

Could a Gullah Geechee museum be coming to Jacksonville? A public-private partnership may make it so, in what was formerly the settlement of Cosmo. In the phrasing of the National Park Service, “the Gullah Geechee Cultural Heritage Corridor extends from Wilmington, North Carolina in the north to Jacksonville, Florida in the south. It is home to […]

A.G. GancarskiJanuary 5, 2016

Jacksonville City Council’s Tuesday Recreation, Community Development, Public Health, and Safety (RCDPHS) committee meeting was highlighted by Pension Tax and Public Health talk, and an extended discussion of a controversial Fire and Rescue salary allocation from September’s budget hearings. The Health Department’s Kelly Wells announced new initiatives, such as the 60 Days to Better Health challenge […]

Tag: Al Ferraro

After extended inquisition, Jax Council approves more Hemming Park funding

Second Jax Council committee approves $250K for Hemming Park stage

Jax Council committee tackles human trafficking, sexual predator bills

Al Ferraro all in behind Doyle Carter for Jax Council VP

NW Jax pushback stalls housing donation bill in Council committee

Safety officer cure legislation spurs spirited Jax Council committee budget debate

Reggie Brown attacks removal of people from Jacksonville volunteer boards

Jax term limit extension bill clears final committee

Jax considers Gullah Geechee museum

Jax rec committee talks public health, pension tax plan, JFRD budget