by Max Marbut
Staff Writer
After spending Monday morning accepting the findings of his 18 transition committees and then signing the first piece of legislation enacted in his first term, Mayor Alvin Brown was the guest speaker at the weekly meeting of the Rotary Club of Jacksonville.
Brown reiterated aspects of his campaign platform and shared with club members and guests how he plans to put into action some of his initiatives.
Brown said he’s particularly proud of presenting to City Council a balanced City budget. It reflects the times and a new way of doing business, he said.
“Money is tight. That’s as true for City Hall as it is for you and your families and businesses. We made the tough decisions to streamline government,” said Brown.
He pointed out making spending cut decisions to cover a budget deficit, reducing staff by, among others, 50 mayoral appointees and his personal salary reduction.
“Everyone has to sacrifice. That’s why I’m taking a 20 percent pay cut. I get it and I’m part of the team. It’s going to take tremendous effort among all of us to put Jacksonville back to work,” Brown said.
He also spoke of the partnerships that have already yielded results, including the recent $100 million investment by Keystone Terminals along Talleyrand Avenue.
“The private sector is the engine of economic development. When the private sector steps up to the plate, this city will go to the next level,” said Brown.
The mayor also talked about the creation of a new agency, the Downtown Community Empowerment Corp., that will “invest in Downtown, bring it back to life and allow it to grow.”
Brown said he wants Downtown to “become a destination and not a pass-through. I want to see full buildings and hear businesses complaining that they can’t handle the business.”
He talked about the recent campaign to preserve the Junior Reserve Officer Training Corps program in Duval County public high schools.
It was in jeopardy because of a lack of funds in the public school budget.
“There were 479 students in four schools that were going to be impacted by the elimination. I picked up the phone and reached out to the private sector and they delivered,” said Brown of the effort that raised $200,000 in contributions from businesses to preserve the program.
“It made good business sense. We have to work together to make sure we do the things that have value,” he said.
Brown said he is confident the City will be able, based on necessity, to reach an agreement with public safety employees concerning pension reform.
“It’s not sustainable, so it has to change,” he said.
In terms of how the City government and services funded by taxpayers will be evaluated for reorganization by his administration, Brown said he will take a “strategic approach to what we do.”
“Anything is on the table. If it’s not working or adding value, we’ll fix it or get rid of it,” he said.
“Reorganization will be real. A lot of people won’t be happy about it, but it has to happen,” said Brown.
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