by David Chapman
Staff Writer
After a testy round of City Council committee meetings Monday, among the most prominent bills that emerged unscathed were those to move 1,000 EverBank jobs Downtown with City assistance.
Another proposal by Mayor John Peyton in his final days in office met resistance.
Peyton proposed giving land to the Jacksonville Transportation Authority for a regional hub. After that discussion, four members of the Council Rules Committee walked out.
With the goal of seeing legislation enacted before his term ends June 30, Peyton introduced bills to Council on May 24 that included an economic development agreement between the City and EverBank to relocate 1,000 jobs Downtown from the Southside and create 200 new full-time jobs.
The City would provide $420,000 in a Qualified Target Industry Tax Refund program rebate and, in separate legislation, $2.75 million to offset moving costs.
Other legislation Peyton introduced included a 14-parcel land donation to the JTA around the Osborn Center that the agency would use toward developing a regional transportation center in lieu of a City fiscal contribution of $5 million for the project.
Legislation also included an agreement with Parador Partners to construct a new 500-parking space Downtown garage that would provide 200 short-term retail parking spaces near the Landing.
Three Council committees met Monday to take up some or all of the bills.
The Recreation and Community Development Committee, chaired by Council member Clay Yarborough, approved the EverBank measures and the parking garage with relative ease.
The EverBank deals passed 5-1, with Yarborough the lone dissenting vote. Council member Glorious Johnson was excused for the meeting. The parking garage legislation passed unanimously, 6-0.
The Rules Committee, chaired by Council member Denise Lee, was set to vote on all the measures until controversy resulted in an early adjournment as the quorum disappeared.
The JTA legislation, first on the list, was under debate with several Rules Committee members, including Council members John Crescimbeni, Bill Bishop and Yarborough, voicing concerns that there hasn’t been enough time for questions and concerns to be addressed.
Bishop said he had spoken with people regarding the measure, but wasn’t finished and was uncomfortable with it.
“It’s too big and too complex to take up the bill in its current fashion,” he said.
Crescimbeni agreed and said he wanted to further delve into the measure’s details and said it, along with other bills proposed by the mayor, have been rushed.
Lee defended its introduction for vote, saying the JTA measure has passed through a normal Council cycle and the administration was requesting action to move it from the committee level.
The committee then voted and the JTA measure failed, with a vote of 5-1 against it, with Lee the only supporting vote.
Crescimbeni then sought to reconsider the motion, which Bishop seconded but Lee denied. Bishop then tried to overrule Lee, but as chair, Lee overruled. Crescimbeni, Bishop, Yarborough and Council member Richard Clark then walked out, leaving the committee with just Lee and Council member Art Shad.
Lee was forced to adjourn the meeting due to lack of a quorum.
Several pieces of legislation, including the EverBank and parking garage measures, were left on the agenda.
Following a Transportation, Energy and Utilities Committee meeting Monday afternoon, Crescimbeni said he sought to reconsider the JTA vote to change his vote from no to yes to make it easier to reintroduce, discuss and modify the measure later instead of leaving it dead with a 1-5 vote.
Bishop, chair of the Transportation Committee, deferred the JTA legislation during the afternoon committee meeting.
Speaking after that meeting, Bishop said he had never seen nor been a part of such events that transpired in the Rules Committee.
“No,” he said. “Never.”
Interviewed following the Recreation Committee, Lee called her colleagues’ actions during the Rules Committee meeting “inappropriate and very unprofessional” and said she was disappointed but not deterred.
Regarding the legislation that the committee wasn’t able to vote on, including the EverBank and the parking garage legislation, Lee said she would ask Council President Jack Webb to discharge the items from the Rules Committee agenda for discussion and vote at Tuesday’s full Council meeting.
Such action would require a positive two-thirds vote by Council members.
The Finance Committee is slated to vote on all of the mayor’s legislation at 10 a.m. today at City Hall.
Meanwhile, the Public Health and Safety and the Land Use and Zoning committees also are schedule to meet today, but the mayor items are not on their agendas.
The full Council meets Tuesday in its last meeting of the current Council year.
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