Organization's finger on the pulse of life in Jacksonville

News

Staff Writer

The whole thing started in 1974 when the late Fred Schultz, then the incoming chair of the Jacksonville Regional Chamber of Commerce, convened a 100-member committee of citizens. The group was charged with studying where the city stood in terms of development, growth management and social issues. They were also tasked with identifying issues government and businesses should monitor to ensure improvement in those areas where needed.

After the group adjourned, the initiative was divided into two new groups. One became Leadership Jacksonville and the other became Jacksonville Community Council Inc.

“Going all the way back to the yellow fever epidemic in the late 1800s and all the way through consolidation, there have always been small groups of citizens in Jacksonville who have led the way, then government followed with the necessary resources,” said JCCI Executive Director Skip Cramer.

Since JCCI was incorporated in 1975 more than 80 studies have been conducted by panels of citizens covering a full spectrum of issues and all facets of life facing the city and its people.

Some topics have been studied more than once. There have been eight studies focused on the educational needs of the community and four times, JCCI has considered violent crime and its effect on Jacksonville’s progress.

The longest-running study in the series, JCCI’s annual Quality of Life Report, celebrated its 25th anniversary when the 2010 edition was released last month. The latest data shows improvement in some areas and also identifies areas where work is still needed.

“It’s our way of evaluating the broad landscape of life in Jacksonville,” said Cramer. “It’s a way to look over the fence to other areas and then set our sights on where we want to go.”

The 2010 report shows progress in air quality and water conservation as well as volunteerism. The rate of violent crime has decreased and high school graduation rates have increased compared to 2009. Areas that still could be improved include low reading test scores and an increase in truancy in public schools. Financial support for the arts decreased compared to the 2009 numbers and the economy has led to an increase in unemployment.

The report has gained a reputation over the years as being a hard look at the issues and the community’s performance.

“We’ve made great progress in Jacksonville,” commented Mayor John Peyton when the 2010 report was distributed. “We are our worst critics.”

Cramer said this year’s report has undergone the most drastic changes since it was introduced a quarter of a century ago. Previously 115 specific indicators were studied to derive the final analysis, but for 2010 the number was reduced to 60 key areas.

The latest report is also available on JCCI’s Web site, www.jcci.org. It offers interactive features allowing Jacksonville’s data to be compared with other cities and counties in Florida.

“It’s nonprescriptive,” said Cramer. “The report simply puts issues out there for discussion.”

He pointed out that JCCI did not conduct a study in 2009 because of the time required to redesign the Quality of Life Report. Another factor was the complete loss of funding from the City for a report.

“The studies are at the core of what JCCI does,” said Cramer. “We need sponsors and we also need topics. We would like to study issues that are important to the business community and we are asking that community for its suggestions.”

Two possible topics, he added, could be how Jacksonville will recover from the global recession and move toward a knowledge-based economy and how the baby boomers’ needs will affect the community.

Cramer said a topic that should also be studied is how to provide mental health services for veterans returning from the Middle East and JCCI is taking the lead.

“We’re working on a curriculum to help the community understand what those men and women have been through and to find ways to help veterans reintegrate themselves into their families and the community,” said Cramer.

Another project JCCI is taking on is working with the mayor and City Council to support the public workshops on the City budget process.

“We think the meetings will be a great opportunity for people to gain a better understanding of how our City government functions. If nothing else comes out of this effort, we’re delighted the City is going to define the functions of its 11 departments. There will be more information, in plain English, than has ever been available to the citizens of Jacksonville,” Cramer predicted.

The history of JCCI reports

2009

• Our Money, Our City: Financing Jacksonville’s Future
• Community Engagement: Understanding the GLBT Community
• Experience with Discrimination

2008

• Infant Mortality

2007

• Air Quality
• Abandoned and Neglected Cemeteries
• Convention Center

2006

• Reducing Murder: A Community Response
• Attracting and Retaining Talent: People and Jobs for the 21st Century

2005

• River Dance: Putting the River in River City

2004

• Town & Gown: Building Successful University-Community Collaborations
• Public Education Reform: Eliminating the Achievement Gap

2003

• Neighborhoods at the Tipping Point
• Public Education Reform: Assessing Progress

2002

• Making Jacksonville a Clean City
• Indicators of Civic Health
• Beyond the Talk: Improving Race Relations

2001

• Services for Ex-Offenders
• Growth Management Revisited

2000

• Affordable Housing
• Improving Regional Cooperation

2000

• Sex Trade

1999

• Improving Adult Literacy
• Citizens Report on Needle Exchange
• Establishing Assertive Community Treatment in Jacksonville
• Arts, Recreation and Culture in Jack- sonville

1998

• The Role of Nonprofit Organizations
• Ribault Clubhouse
• Incentives for Economic Development

1997

• Improving Public Dialogue
• Transportation for the Disadvantaged
• Children with Special Needs

1996

• Creating a Community Agenda: Indicators for Health & Human Services
• Leadership: Meeting Community Needs

1995

• Teenage Single Parents and their Families
• JAXPORT: Improvement and Expansion

1994

• Reducing Violence in Jacksonville Schools
• Jacksonville Public Services: Meeting Neighborhood Needs
• Planning for Northeast Florida’s Uncertain Military Future

1993

• Public Education: The Cost of Quality 1992
• Long-Term Financial Health of the City of Jacksonville
• Young Black Males

1991

• Adequate Water Supply
• Positive Development of Jacksonville’s Children

1990

• Future Workforce Needs
• Philanthropy in Jacksonville

1989

• Reducing the Garbage Burden
• Independent Living for the Elderly

1988

• Local Election Process
• School Dropout Prevention

1987

• Child Day-Care Services
• Infrastructure