by Bradley Parsons
Staff Writer
The mayor’s office opened up an offensive on two fronts Wednesday in the battle to gain support for plans to build a $268 million Duval County Courthouse.
Continuing a theme from Mayor John Peyton’s Tuesday address to the City Council, the mayor and members of his staff told the Jacksonville Bar Association and the Council that the City could either pay now to build an acceptable courthouse, or bring the building up to standards later, sticking future taxpayers with the bill.
Peyton earlier pledged to keep the budget at $232 million. But he told the JBA at the organization’s noon luncheon that he was now convinced that number could only pay for a substandard courthouse. He asked the members to lobby the Council to accept the more expensive building. Starting the project over, as some Council members have suggested, would be a waste of time and money, he said.
“There’s a proposal before Council to throw that (current plans) out and start over. Keep in mind, $40 million to date has been spent on this project, and we don’t have one brick in the ground,” said Peyton. “I’m not proud of that. That’s the reality we’re functioning in. The reality is it would be terribly wasteful of time and money.”
Peyton asked for the JBA’s influence to help offset a vocal group of citizen activists committed to keeping the project at $232 million. Peyton referred to this crowd as “a radical fringe that would have you riding on dirt roads to save money.”
“People are waging war against this. You see them on the street corners with their signs, I call on everyone here to help in this battle.” he said. “They stand up (in Council meetings) every week and talk about not spending more than $190, or $211. They talk about conspiracy, they talk about fraud, they talk about corruption.”
Noting that his opponents had eased their demand from a $190 million courthouse to $232 million, Peyton jokingly suggested that they might accept a $268 million building if he set the budget at $400 million.
The tone was more serious in City Hall later Wednesday afternoon as Peyton’s staff began a series of meetings with the Council. His policy chief and chief operating officer explained to the full Council how the project had evolved from a $190 million development to a $268 million building sitting on seven blocks in downtown’s west end.
The cost to buy that land was the major driver of the price increase, they said. Peyton has said moving the building off valuable riverfront land was the right move, but it cost the City an unexpected $25 million. Also cited as surprise costs were increased security requirements in the wake of Sept. 11; a need for extra capacity due to a county growing faster than expected; and the rising cost of raw materials, particularly steel.
The meeting was intended to be the start of a long conversation between the administration and the Council, but several Council members were frustrated by the presentation, which focused largely on the project’s background.
“I’ve had enough history. Let’s get into this thing and stop beating around the bush,” said Council member Daniel Davis.
The mayor’s policy chief, Steve Diebenow, agreed, saying “It’s time to get it on,” but many of the Council questions were deferred to later meetings.
At those meetings, Council member Lake Ray said he wants a line-by-line breakdown of what the extra money will pay for. And he wants the mayor’s office to document its claim that starting over would cost the City around $40 million. Council member Jerry Holland questioned how much the City owes to consultants on the project.
Several Council members and Diebenow agreed that the debate would eventually boil down to whether the City builds the courthouse for $268 million or scraps the current design and starts from near scratch.
Prodded by the Council, COO Dan Kleman stopped short of guaranteeing the $268 million price tag, but he said he was comfortable with the number and said he “personally believes,” the City could keep that budget.
Peyton was burned by his own promise not to exceed $232 million. He told the JBA that he regretted making that guarantee, but he said the City shouldn’t compound past mistakes.
“I can make a decision for political expediency. I can build the wrong building and shift the cost to the future and apologize for it forever. Or we can do it right,” he said.
Daily Record staffers Richard Prior and
Fred Seely contributed to this story.