by Bailey White
Staff Writer
Five candidates are vying for the City Council Dist. 14 seat currently held by Jim Overton, who is prevented from running again because of term limits. (Overton is running for property appraiser.)
Michael Corrigan Jr.
A life-long resident of Dist. 14, Michael Corrigan Jr. decided to run for Council after serving the community through various leadership roles.
“I’ve spent the last 22 years trying to build my family’s small business and being a community leader,” said Corrigan, president of Nu-Trends Plastics, a plastics manufacturing company. “I want to take my experience to City Council.”
The past chair of Riverside Avondale Preservation and president of Rotary Club of West Jacksonville, Corrigan said he wants to continue the work he started through those organizations to improve the district.
“I want to keep supporting economic development that promotes our heritage,” he said.
His plan includes improving commercial and retail opportunities in Dist. 14 while keeping in mind the character of its neighborhoods.
“For Jacksonville in general, we need to continue to attract the biggest and best business that we can,” he said. “With the Super Bowl coming, we have a great opportunity to accelerate our attraction to international and national businesses.
“We need to make a collective effort to help create the atmosphere and physical capabilities for businesses to come in and for an educated work force.”
His efforts to improve education in Jacksonville include working with the Big Brothers, Big Sisters program. As past chair, Corrigan started a mentor program called “Bigs in Schools,” which matches adults with children in Duval County schools.
“I want to continue to form partnerships between the School Board and businesses to help Jacksonville improve its educational system,” he said.
Corrigan is a third generation Jacksonvillian and will continue to run his business if elected to Council.
“The advantage I have is that I’ve already been running my business and serving a number of community organizations at the same time,” he said. “Going to work at City Council will be like combining those positions into one.”
Richard Darby
A firefighter for 32 years, Richard Darby, a Republican, sees a seat on Council as an opportunity to continue public service.
“It’s a natural continuation,” he said.
Darby served on the Mayor’s Growth Management Task Force and said he is a proponent of “smart growth.”
“I want to address the growth and work with developers while not forgetting our established and historic neighborhoods. I want them to maintain their character. And you can’t have growth without good transportation,” he said, adding he plans to improve transportation in the district through improved infrastructure and a mass transit system.
“Our roads need to be maintained and improved to meet capacity,” he said. “We need to look at a good mass transit system that people will use. Fifty seven percent of Clay County residents commute to Jacksonville and cut right through the middle of our district.”
Darby’s economic plan includes developing the Cecil Commerce Center “to its fullest capacity,” and he wants to form a partnership with the School Board to improve the education system.
“We also need to make sure our police and fire departments are properly funded and trained to meet growing security needs,” he said.
Darby believes serving on various community boards for 11 years has given him the experience he needs to serve Dist. 14 residents.
He’s a member of the Better Jacksonville Plan’s Citizen’s Oversight Committee and is a member and past chair of the Southwest Citizen’s Advisory Committee.
“Also, I was the first homeowner president of the Chimney Lakes Owners Association and sat on the board for six years,” he said. “At that time, we had 1,400 members and a budget of a half million dollars.”
If elected, Darby will retire from the fire department so he can devote full-time hours to the Council.
John Draper
John Draper served on the Council in the early 1990s, representing Dist. 13. He was defeated in his reelection bid, and now, thanks to reapportionment, resides in Dist. 14.
If elected, Draper wants to address what he sees as excessive spending by the City.
“I think our government has tendencies to spend way too much money. We need to get that under control,” said Draper. “Our priorities are wrong. We’re focusing a huge amount of money on downtown and neglecting the neighborhood issues.”
Draper said two examples of the government’s overspending are the proposed gym at City Hall and homeowners having to pay for sidewalk repairs.
A graduate of Stetson University and a former Navy supply officer, Draper also wants to improve the parks and infrastructure in the area and will address public safety issues.
“If we can improve the quality of life and get back to those basic services, we can increase property values and our overall economic development in the district,” he said.
He also said he wants to focus on programs which will help both small and large businesses grow in the community.
“I think that giving business incentives, which I call corporate welfare, is a mistake,” said Draper. “I think if we emphasize tax reductions, overall, then we encourage small businesses to expand and we improve the economic development for everyone.”
Draper owns a small business called Signs & Stuff, a sign and promotional product company. He plans to continue with his business if elected.
Despite the large number of candidates in what Draper calls a “close race,” he believes he has a solid chance.
“I haven’t raised as much money as some of my competitors,” he said, “but I have been able to mount a competitive race myself.”
Paul Linville
Political newcomer Paul Linville says he is running because he wants to give back to the community.
“Our district has the lowest level of public service,” he said. “I’m interested in serving the community and making it a better place to live.”
Linville wants to address some of the Better Jacksonville Plan work that he views as substandard.
“Some of the roads are already crumbling,” he said, “and taxpayers are being fleeced out of money.”
Linville also believes it is unfair for residents to be responsible for funding sidewalk repairs.
“Some of these sidewalks are 80 years old,” he said.
To improve the quality of life in Jacksonville, Linville would like to see twice-weekly garbage pickup and competition for cable service in town.
“The recent cable refund went into the general fund and not to actual customers,” he said.
Linville works for his family business, Linville Management Services, a hospital building insurance consultant. His hours there will allow him to work full-time on the Council should he be elected.
“I didn’t realize before what a huge job this would be,” he said. “But now that I do, I have decided that I’m going to commit full-time hours to the job. I don’t see how you could fully take on City Council duties if you weren’t working full-time.”
Linville is a life-long resident and said he believes his chances at winning the Dist. 14 seat are fairly solid.
“It’s difficult to tell now,” he said. “Because of reapportionment, many people don’t realize who their candidates are. But I have as good a chance as anyone.”
Cebil Riley
The only Democrat in the race, Cebil Riley said his reason to run for Council is simple.
“I believe that decisions made at City Hall should benefit the residents,” said Riley, a senior analyst for Fidelity Information Services, the company that recently purchased Alltel. “As a resident, I’ve been frustrated by some of the government’s decisions, and instead of sitting by and idly watching things happen, I decided to run.”
Originally from Chicago, Riley came to Jacksonville in 2000 from Houston, and said he brings a new vision for Jacksonville that someone who has lived here all of his life may not have.
“I’ve lived in other places and I have new ideas for the city,” he said. “I think I’m appealing to a voter that [John] Peyton also appeals to, a constituency that is willing to put its trust in a younger candidate.
“When I first moved here I took a look at how I could improve the city, and with the direct impact City Council has on day-to-day life, I realized it was the best job for me.”
Riley wants to address economic development by focusing on job creation.
“We have to actively lobby companies and corporations to bring their business here,” he said. “We can’t sit by and let Orlando and other cities take business away from Jacksonville.”
Education, he said, is also a major factor in his campaign.
“We need to improve our education,” said Riley. “City Council can be an active voice to lobby for additional funding and to support the School Board. A good education system creates stability and helps bring jobs into the area.”
Riley wants to work on the beautification of the district by enhancing and developing the existing parks and by cleaning up residential areas.
“And we need to look at managed growth so that urban sprawl doesn’t take over,” he said.