At a rally filled with the area business leaders and city officials, JAX Chamber President and CEO Daniel Davis on Sept. 8 officially kicked off his run for Jacksonville mayor.
Introduced by his wife, Rebekah Davis, the 49-year-old Republican took to the podium in a vehicle bay at Tom Nehl Truck Co. and emphasized his history growing up on Jacksonville’s Westside and his experience running JAX Chamber.
Davis told the crowd of nearly 350 people that the city should be able to have a successful seaport and environmentally protect the St. Johns River; strengthen public schools and “still give students the opportunity for choice;” and “love our people in our neighborhoods and fight crime at the same time.”
He said Jacksonville’s critics say the city is “stuck in a holding pattern trying to achieve greatness.”
“Let me tell you something, that ends tonight,” Davis said. “I don’t believe that at all. The time is now for Jacksonville to step up and we need to seize the greatness that we know we’re destined for.”
Davis, a former two-term City Council member and former Florida House representative, filed paperwork Sept. 1 with the Duval County Supervisor of Elections Office and became the ninth candidate to replace term-limited GOP Mayor Lenny Curry in the nonpartisan office.
He enters the race with three Republicans already in the field — City Council members LeAnna Cumber and Al Ferraro along with Frank Keasler Jr.
Democrats Donna Deegan, former First Coast News journalist and The DONNA Foundation CEO, term-limited State Sen. Audrey Gibson and Theresa Ann Richardson are running.
Nonparty affiliated candidate Omega Allen and independent Darcy G. Richardson also are in the race.
Davis’ childhood friend and Jacksonville Sheriff’s Office Lt. Andre Ayoub was among the introductory speakers. He said he promised to “protect (first responders) every day.”
Also backing the nine-year Chamber chief executive were business leaders.
Speakers included Chamber member and Global Freight & Commerce LLC CEO Jesus Garay and 2019 JAX Chamber Small Business Leader of the Year Meskel & Associates Engineering founder Tina Meskel.
Running while CEO
After his speech, Davis was asked by a reporter if he can successfully remain JAX Chamber CEO and campaign for mayor, Davis said that question was nothing more than an attack line by his opponents.
“We have excelled at the chamber. We’re having a record-breaking year. I plan on continuing this record-breaking success of new jobs to the community, job growth in the community, workforce development in the community,” Davis said.
“I’m going to keep doing that until I can’t do it any more.”
The issue also was raised in an Aug. 22 report by Florida Politics that cited an anonymous chamber board member that feared the nonprofit’s S 501(c) 6 tax-exempt status could be in jeopardy if it continued to pay Davis’ salary during a mayoral run.
The chamber receives an annual monetary contribution from the city, which City Council Auditor Kim Taylor said in an Aug. 24 email is intended to cover marketing and advertising costs.
A city accounting document from Nov. 9, 2021, shows the city provided $500,000 last year to the chamber’s economic development arm, JAXUSA Partnership.
Two of his opponents, Cumber and Ferraro, voted for that appropriation as part of the city budget.
That number is up to $750,000 in Curry’s proposed 2022-23 fiscal year budget expected to be taken up for final approval by Council this month.
JAX Chamber FY 2019 federal tax documents published by ProPublica show Davis’ salary was $461,458, the latest available by the nonprofit news and information website.
Davis also confirmed he would be making JAX Chamber’s annual business recruitment trip to Europe during the campaign. The chamber trip usually coincides with the Jacksonville Jaguars’ London game, scheduled this year for Oct. 30.
Asked if he has the chamber board of directors’ full support to remain as CEO while campaigning, Davis said:
“I’ve already talked about this. That is a desperate attempt by some of my opponents to cast shade on me, and it’s ridiculous. I’m not even going to respond to that.”
Affordable housing
Davis told reporters that getting more affordable housing in Jacksonville is a “day one activity” and said he’d subsidize developers willing to build more.
It’s an issue he’s discussed with business groups as recently as a July 8 speech to the Northeast Florida Builders Association Sales & Marketing Council, an organization he formerly led.
Davis said the city should be proactive on affordable housing, “take immediate action” and provide money for it in the city budget’s annual Capital Improvement Plan.
Davis suggested conducting a survey of properties owned by the city and its independent authorities and assisting developers with financing to use it for workforce housing.
This is a similar model proposed by the nonprofit Jacksonville Community Land Trust announced in July and backed by the Curry administration.
“Developers aren’t able to develop (affordable housing) because it doesn’t make sense for them financially,” Davis said. “What we can do is help developers with their finance stack to make workforce housing make sense. That’s something I think the city of Jacksonville should be involved in.
“Because if we can’t have nurses and police officers and teachers be able to afford a house, what are we doing?”
‘Fight my fight’
In the August primary election, Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis endorsed school board candidates in the nonpartisan races including eventual Duval County School Board winner April Carney.
Davis told reporters he doesn’t know if he’ll gain the GOP governor’s nod.
“I love (Gov.) DeSantis and what he’s done for Florida, but who knows what’s going to happen. I’m just going to fight my fight and, hopefully, he comes along because I believe in what he’s doing. Same policies,” Davis said.
