by Mike Sharkey
Staff Writer
At last week’s Downtown Development Review Board meeting, JTA made yet another pitch to start installing new bus shelters by the dozens all over Jacksonville. While the presentation was well-received and makes financial sense, there is still plenty of opposition to the concept.
Much of the opposition centers on unanswered questions: Where will the shelters be located and who will advertise on the them?
However, the biggest hold up is the City’s sign ordinance. Two years ago, City Council member Art Shad sponsored legislation seeking a waiver of the City’s sign ordinance. That waiver would allow JTA to sell advertising on the new shelters — a key component to having them paid for, built and maintained by a private company as opposed to using tax dollars that don’t currently exist.
According to JTA spokesman Mike Miller, the bill was passed by the Council’s Transportation, Energy & Utilities Committee but has been deferred for two years by the Council’s Rules and Land Use & Zoning (LUZ) committees.
“Of course,” said Miller, when asked if JTA was frustrated by the process.
Miller’s frustration may be warranted. He said since it was passed, the Council has waived sections of the sign ordinance 16 times. One of those waivers is for the entire Sports Complex which allows the large advertising on Jacksonville Municipal Stadium. Another waiver allows the City itself to hang banners on Downtown street poles promoting events such as the Gate River Run, the Konica Minolta Gator Bowl and others.
“If people want new shelters, the funding will come from one of two sources: the taxpayers or the private sector,” said Miller. “You choose.”
Shad said he sponsored the bill because JTA can’t, and due to Sunshine Laws he’s limited on the amount of lobbying he can do on behalf of the legislation.
“It’s a powerful lobby,” said Shad of those who are opposed to allowing advertising on the shelters. “JaxPride feels very strongly about it.”
Shad said opponents of the bill make “valid points,” adding the easiest way to avoid passing a bill is to continuously defer the legislation.
“A longstanding political strategy is to filibuster and it’s all perfectly legal,” said Shad. “The next best thing to opposing a bill is to take no action.”
Former Council President Michael Corrigan is the current chair of LUZ. Corrigan said he is in favor of the shelters and appreciates the need. However, he’s against the bill as it’s written.
“I’m opposed to it because there are no parameters at all,” he said, adding the current bill, if passed, would allow JTA to place shelters all over town with proper advertising with no regard to what the community thinks of the necessity of a shelter in particular areas of town.
“They (JTA) don’t define shelter or where they want to place them,” he added. “I am not opposed to shelters and I support adding bus shelters in town. They have still not convinced me of the need to put advertising all over them to be effective.”
Miller says the shelters are an opportunity for JTA to cover several areas of concern without dipping into the public coffers. He said rising gas prices — and he expects the nation will see $4-a-gallon gas by late spring or early summer — will drive commuters to mass transit. New shelters, Miller contends, will be comfortable, clean and informative — three things that will make the commute more pleasant.
Also, he said, since the shelters will be paid for, built and maintained by private companies, he said construction will start the day they get approval and the taxpayers won’t be burdened by any of the costs. Also, as in other major cities where private companies have built shelters with advertising revenue, the companies will be required to respond to any complaint within 48 hours.
“It’s a very, very good program,” said Miller. “The advertisers do not want their ads at dirty shelters. There’s pressure from both sides.”
Miller said if the waiver is ever approved and JTA can put out a request for proposals and come to terms with a company, new shelters could pop up within six months. He also said the shelters will be designed differently depending on in what part of town they will be located.
Miller said from what he understands, a majority of those opposed to the waiver don’t use public transportation.