by Max Marbut
Staff Writer
Fewer than 24 hours after he was on the steps of City Hall celebrating his victory in last week’s runoff election, Mayor-elect Alvin Brown was back on the campaign trail.
He wasn’t asking for votes. Brown was asking for support for the programs he plans to put into action after he takes office July 1.
After being greeted by a standing ovation when he walked into the breakfast meeting of the Downtown Council of the Jacksonville Regional Chamber of Commerce Friday, Brown laid out some of his objectives for the city in general and for Downtown in particular.
He reiterated his campaign platform of fiscal responsibility, ensuring quality public education and public safety and creating jobs through public-private partnerships.
His remarks to the group of about 50 business people put some details concerning methodology behind those concepts.
On education, Brown said he will call on chamber members to create summer jobs for youth, who will live on local college campuses during their temporary employment in order to “get a feel for what it’s like to go to college.”
He also will ask businesses to fund the hiring of retired teachers to serve as tutors and intends to appoint a chief education officer who will be “paid by a foundation to work with the school board,” said Brown.
“I want people to know Jacksonville is a place where you can launch a business. Education is what will make us competitive,” he said.
Brown said in order to create a vibrant, thriving Downtown, government will work with the private sector to leverage tax credits and incentives to bring more business Downtown. Brown advocates for a “Downtown Community Empowerment Corporation” that will not be funded with tax dollars.
He said his goals for Downtown include having “the best restaurants, a movie theater, a state-of-the-art convention center” and 10,000-15,000 residents.
Downtown accounts for only 3 percent of the county’s ad valorem tax revenue, “and we need to change that,” said Brown.
“We’re going to make Downtown a destination and market it.”
Summing up his first few days as mayor-elect, Brown said, “I’m very proud of our city. I’m very proud the voters decided to put partisan politics aside.”
He described himself as the “chief marketing officer for the private sector.”
“The private sector is the engine; government can be the catalyst to create jobs,” he said.
Downtown Council President Pat Geer said three months ago that all the mayoral candidates were invited to speak to the group at the meeting, three days after the general election, pending the results.
“We feel it’s important for the new mayor to go out of the gate with input from the Downtown Council. There’s no doubt the mayor will have a great impact on Downtown,” said Geer.
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