The need to establish criteria to find a day-to-day operator for the St. Johns River Ferry during its transition from the Jacksonville Port Authority to the City needs to be done sooner rather than later, said a member of a ferry funding committee.
“It probably can’t wait until the third week of August,” said Aaron Bowman, an appointed member of the new City Council Ad Hoc Committee on Funding the St. Johns River Ferry.
The port plans to stop service Sept. 30. Bowman said someone is needed to continue daily tasks, such as ordering gas, paying
contractors, handling money
and ensuring a smooth operation.
“Someone needs to be in place no later than the middle of September,” said Bowman, a retired U.S. Navy captain and BAE Systems Southeast Shipyards director of business operations.
Whether that search will be through a Request for Proposal or sole-sourced is being researched. Bowman said the contract should be for up to six months “while we figure this out.”
He said a compensation package needs to be established and a memorandum of understanding between the port and City also needs to be created to help the transition.
Chaired by Council member John Crescimbeni, the group met Wednesday for the first time, although its members await Council confirmation.
Bowman, Elaine Brown, Carl Cannon, Richard Redick, Larry Williams and Marla Buchanan are scheduled to appear before the Council Rules Committee on Aug. 6 before a final Council vote Aug. 15.
All were present at the Wednesday meeting, which served to establish a tentative meeting schedule and introduce the Sunshine Law, which the group must follow.
The group tentatively decided to meet the second and fourth Mondays of each month.
Crescimbeni said he is scheduling a meeting with Chris Kauffmann, JaxPort chief operating officer, and Greg Dronkert, HMS Ferries Inc. president. He invited committee members to attend.
Funding from the Florida Department of Transportation and Gov. Rick Scott remains in question. Half of the $300,000 needed from the FDOT has not been committed.
“We are still having an internal discussion on the issue. We have not made a decision for or against support for the St. Johns River Ferry,” James Bennett, FDOT District 2 Urban Transportation Development manager, said at a Monday JaxPort meeting.
The ferry connects Florida A1A at Mayport and has been in operation since 1948. The Florida Department of Transportation was the first operator of the
0.9-mile service, followed by the City in 1997 and JaxPort in
2007.
356-2466