by Mike Sharkey
Staff Writer
If you’ve had to call the police and they arrived quickly, drop Walter Williams a note of thanks.
If you have ever needed the services of Jacksonville Fire & Rescue, thank Walter Williams next time you see him.
Thank Homer Humphries for your street lights.
Thank Don MacLean for your regular garbage service.
Thank Hans Tanzler for helping bring Jacksonville out of the stone age politically, socially and economically.
They — and many others — are known as the “White Hats.” And, without them and their foresight, persistence and perseverance, Jacksonville would likely be very different today.
There may be dozens of small cities within Duval County. Your kids may be going to unaccredited public schools. If you call the police, an officer may show up, shrug his shoulders and say, “You need to call the sheriff.”
The St. Johns River could be a cesspool of disease and if you think the recent scandals involving city government are bad, you need to visit the library.
Or, you could catch up to any of the White Hats, who met Friday at The River Club for their yearly gathering to mark the anniversary of Consolidation — the act that many believe is the single most important thing to happen to Jacksonville, ever.
“We were supposed to do this Aug. 8, but Hans was sick, Jake (Godbold, former mayor) was in the hospital and Walter (Williams) was in the islands,” said Homer Humphries, a lawyer and the third City Council president after Consolidation.
Today marks the 40th anniversary of Consolidation and while the White Hats may be getting on in years, their memories of both pre- and post-Consolidation are vivid.
Jessie-Lynne Kerr is a reporter for the Times-Union. Forty years ago, she was also with the T-U and she covered virtually every facet of the process — from the countless town hall meetings to the actual vote itself. She said she tells people Consolidation was the “best living history lesson.”
Kerr was one of several in the group that included Humphries, Tanzler (the first mayor after Consolidation), former Council members Walter Williams, Walter Dickinson and Don MacLean, former T-U staffers Lloyd Brown and Frank Young and former Ch. 12 general manager Clyde Montgomery.
The annual gathering isn’t just a social meeting, it’s a living, breathing history lesson on Jacksonville. There’s as much talk of the former scandal-ridden town as there is of friends and family. There are more, “Do you remembers ...” than you can count. If you think a no-bid contract is bad by today’s standards, ask Tanzler and the others how things used to be.
Brown explained that the ball got rolling thanks to Claude Yates. At the time, Yates worked for the telephone company and was asked to draft a document city leaders could base major policy changes on. That document became known as the “Yates Manifesto.” Out of that was borne the “Blueprint for Improvement” in 1966.
“Half the city government was going to jail and our schools were discredited,” explained Brown.
The new system of government was then put on the ballot in the form of a referendum. Amazingly, the voters approved it by a 2-1 margin. The local legislative delegation then secured approval from the state — but not after a battle that included the three beaches cities and Baldwin opting out.
“It was a knock down, drag out fight,” said Brown. “Those who were anti Consolidation were the ‘Black Hats.’ Those who were pro Consolidation were the White Hats.”
Humphries said the overwhelming support was surprising, especially given the climate of the city.
“It was worth it, very much so,” he said, adding he doesn’t like to think about what Jacksonville would be without Consolidation. “We’d be Atlanta.”
Tanzler was a judge when Consolidation was in its infancy. The more steam it gained, the more Tanzler was pushed to run for mayor.
“My friends told me I was the only who could win,” said Tanzler, who was only in office pre-Consolidation for about six months. “There was a lot of pride in all that had to be done. The City was fighting the county and the county was fighting the City.”
Tanzler was asked what he thought Jacksonville would be like without consolidation.
“I have thought about it a million times,” he said, explaining how dirty the river would be and how blighted the Downtown waterfront could be.
“Chances are there would be no Gator Bowl and no Jaguars,” he said. “Duval County would just be pockets of cities and they would never agree.”