Transparency, Integrity and Accountability

City Council Had a Food Fight Last Night

November 20, 2020

Dear OurJax Members:

There continues to be no shortage of news regarding the proposed Lot J deal.

OurJax, along with other organizations, has urged the City Council to take the time needed to thoroughly review the proposal submitted by Mayor Lenny Curry.

Thursday evening, the City Council held what was supposed to be a special meeting that included considering a bill by Matt Carlucci to submit the proposal to the Downtown Investment Authority (DIA) for a complete review. Instead, the meeting erupted into a food fight as various council members made accusations against each other. Below is a link to a report on the meeting by WJXT Channel 4.

Special meeting on Lot J project filled with finger-pointing, name-calling

In addition, a new report says that it will take as long as three years to mitigate the environmental contamination under Lot J.

Cleaning contamination from Lot J could take up to three years

Finally, Florida Times-Union columnist Nate Monroe wrote in his Thursday column that if the City Council is not going to allow the DIA to review the Lot J deal, it should abolish the DIA.

Nate Monroe: Use the Downtown Investment Authority — or get rid of it

OurJax continues to urge you to contact members of the City Council and ask them, why the rush? Tell them to do the right thing for taxpayers and make sure the Lot J proposal is fair to everyone.

Sincerely,

Michael J. Ward
President

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Transparency, Integrity and Accountability

Formed by concerned citizens to restore Integrity, Transparency, Accountability, and Local Control in Jacksonville’s government, OurJax operates as a 501(c)(4) social welfare organization.

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