Rules Committee - Apr 20, 2026

Good afternoon, everyone. Welcome to the Monday, April 20th, 2026, 2 p.m. Rules Committee meeting. We'll get started with Mr. Dennis with introductions, please. Good afternoon, Garrett Dennis, Administration. Colleen Hampsey, Council Research. Carla Schell, Office of General Counsel. Trista Carraher, Council Auditor's Office. Kenna Morris, City Council, District 1. Randy White, District 12. Terrence Freeman, at-large, Group 1. Chris Miller, at-large, Group 5. Mont-Salem, Group 2 at-large. Mike Gay, District 2. And last but not least, Councilman Michael Boylan, District 6. All righty, thank you. I see we do have a couple public comment cards. Is there another one there, or no? Okay, we have, I'm not sure, we have, excuse me. Okay, we have two people here, actually, who wish to speak. We'll start out with Latavia Harris, please, followed by Lisa Manners, I believe. Ms. Harris? Okay, we'll start with Ms. Manners, I believe it is. Lisa Manners? If you would please, ma'am, state your name and address for the record, please. Yes, my name is, my name is Lisa Manners. I reside at 1230 East, 7th Street, Apartment 20. I'm an Eastside resident. Okay, thank you. Please, go ahead. Oh, okay. Okay, I have a lot of concerns that's going on out there in our apartment. I spoke with Mr. Jamison, Rudy Jamison, about months after they completed the renovation out there, but half of the apartments are still not renovated yet. We still have the condition of the mold, mices. Some of our apartments have not been done yet. Want to know, you know, when are we going to get our apartment? Because I'm one of the ones that spoke a couple of years ago about the situation, about the mildew, when it first came about, was the one that called the news and talked to, you know, a couple of news media about the situation. But we have not, some of the old parts, old units, we have not got our apartment fixed yet. And want to know, you know, are we going to get our apartment fixed? With the funds they had received, that was enough to have our apartment fixed. They told the news we was going to be the first ones to get our apartment fixed. But we have not seen, got our apartment done at all. And we still, like I say, living with mold, mices, still is the situation. Even though they renovated some of the units at 1st and 7th Street apartment, but it's still a problem with the mold and the mices. And like I said, I'm one of the old tenants that have not had their apartment done fixed as of yet. Okay, thank you. Anything else to share? I just want to know, are we going to get our apartment fixed? Okay. Because we was the first one there. Do you know who your council member is, ma'am? No, I do not. Yeah, I think it is Jimmy Peluso. Jimmy Peluso. Okay, I'll make sure he gets your information, okay? Yes, because that's important to us as well, to have our unit. Because Cedar is getting done. Because we was the first ones, you know, in there, but they put in new people over us. Okay, thank you, ma'am. I'll make sure Council Member Peluso gets your information. Okay, thank you. Thank you. Next is Ms. Harris back in, Latavia Harris. Okay, well, there is one more that's just come in. Mr. Dennis Sanchez, I see he's here. If you would come up, please. Please state your name and your address for the record, please. My name is Dennis Sanchez, and my address is on file. And this would be, I guess, our second time coming in regarding the, with the Together Eastside Coalition Incorporated. We came here last, with the last meeting, discussing the discrepancies and the issues with the process of choosing the board members. So that's where we're here again. We were, I guess, in the last meeting, we had some representatives that said that it's important to, I guess, take a look at how the process was done to make sure that the community was involved instead of it just being a handpicking type of situation, which is what it seems what was done. So we're hoping, together, our team is here again to make sure that at least we could coordinate and work together with the Rules Committee to make sure that this is a community-engaged type of situation, considering that we've been following this since back with the ordinance days, and we know how tiresome that was. So we're just hoping to work together with you guys to make sure that this gets done. Thank you. Thank you. Next is Mr. James Matchett, please. James Matchett, address on file. Good evening. This has been tough because it makes it seem like it's just a group of people fighting, can't get along. And that's, nothing can be farther from the truth. We're fighting for the community. We're not fighting particularly against anybody. We're fighting for the community. We're fighting for their voice, for their opportunity to speak out and to be involved in this process and reshaping their community. We were led to believe that these nominations was going to cover that, was going to allow community people to have a voice. I said from the beginning, transparency, accountability, and community involvement is what I was fighting for. I don't really have a dog in this fight. I'm not an East Sider. But I see the wrongs that was done here. I sat in the rooms. I've been a part of the conversations. And what we came up with, a breach of contract, a breach of confidence. We gave up that fight. We simply tried to tell you about these people that they want to put in charge. All the allegations that we was made, that was for your benefit to do your research. We made the allegation. I gave documents to support it. Every one of you got an email from me as to how they were conducting their business. All we wanted was somebody else outside of us to look at it and see what we saw. We wasn't trying to besmirch nobody. We wasn't trying to engage in a battle with any one entity. It was about what was going to be best for the community. I hope by now I have earned the credibility to say that I want to do what is right. I want to do what is fair. And I want to do what is in the best interest of the community. None of this is about a personal vendetta as some people framed it. The mere fact that this other entity went on, PR worked, instead of simply sitting down with the community and saying, how can we make this better, should tell you all you need to know about this opposing group. They'd rather tell small lies about incomplete projects than to tell the truth and say, how can we solve this problem? I don't come in here looking for confrontation. I come in here looking for collaboration. How can I help make people's life better? Not miserable. Not fighting just because of the sake of fighting. But fighting what is right for the community. So as you go forward with these nominations, please hear what we're saying. They are good people. They're just not right people for the east side. Thank you, sir. Is Ms. Harris here? Yes, sir. Okay. You're next. Well, thank you. Latavia Harris, address on file. Thank you. I'm coming to you guys today in reference to the appointees. First, we're going to start with Dr. Rudy Jamison. I wasn't here when Lisa had a chance to speak, but I actually have the sign-in sheet where he took these girls to lunch, sat with them, told them he was going to correct their living conditions, which still haven't been corrected. You know, we still have the same issue, did nothing about it. Close to a year passed. Even after talking to the apartment manager, which is Ms. Suzanne Pickett, the case manager for the apartments, who's also affiliated with Lift Jacks, nothing was done. But James Matchett had to come along, go up the stream to get code enforcement to come write some, you know, a whole bunch of citations, you know, just like Peluso told us he was going to have it fixed. It's not. So I understand that he works with some of you guys, and that's fine. But your character is the things you're doing when nobody else is paying you any attention. So the fact that you left those children and those women in that condition and you're the director of human rights, I have an issue with that. Next of all, you have Mr. Cleve Warren. When we say people in the community, we're talking about we understand the business professionals. We don't need a bunch of professional board members. Cleve Warren sits on the same boards as Travis Williams. He's also on the board for FAMS, which is affiliated and associated with Lift Jacks. So when it comes to these type of things, these are the type of things we wanted this to be, was community-led. We have a bunch of no disrespect, know-it-alls, everybody who thinks they know and done everything sitting on this board. But you have to have the lived experience. Please keep in mind, Mr. Warren was also on the original 501c3. So all they did was pass them through. When I had a chance to speak with someone in the mayor's office, he explained to me some of these applications was just handed over. They didn't even go through the same process. The process was to get online, do your application, submit your resume, not use your bases and your friendships to walk in the door and say, hey, I want to be on the board. You know, that's not how this shit worked. Everybody should have had their fair chance. Everybody should be able to sign their name and do the same thing. Ms. Kim Black, yes, she lives in her daughter's house in the community, but you don't affiliate yourself with the community. And I understand we're doing a whole lot of Lift Jacks, but these developers are getting beyond theyself because, again, it's the checks and balances. They're making the framework for what we're setting this board to be. And that's why we fought for this, to have your everyday people, our people who engage in the community, be on this board. And your models are like your Larry Schrank, Mr. James Edwards, who I spoke with people in the 21st community, and they agreed with him being on the board. Thank you, ma'am. Yes, sir. And the last person to speak is Ms. Kay Pryor, please. Oh, Kim Pryor. Excuse me, Kim Pryor. Sorry, I didn't realize my handwriting was that bad. I think it's my eyesight. Yeah, please state your name and address for the record. Thank you. My name is Kim Pryor. I live at 245 West Fifth Street. And I'm here, as other members have already spoken, to encourage you to rethink some of the board appointments to the CBA. There are a couple of them that I personally think are good. I don't recall their names, but there's one that owns the Berman Brothers scrapyard. They've been in the neighborhood for years. And so they are, you know, she is one that I believe would be a good candidate for the board. She's had a significant economic interest in the neighborhood for decades. There is another gentleman, and again, I'm sorry, I was rushing to get here, but who has also been in the neighborhood for a long time. But there are others who don't live in the neighborhood. They don't have a significant business interest in the neighborhood. And what is a significant business interest? That is not really defined in the ordinance. And, you know, someone that has just come in and set up a business two years ago, is that significant? Or is five years significant? Or is 20 years significant? What is significant? We need people that are going to sit on this board that are in tune with the residents of the neighborhood. The people who live there, who walk the streets there, who possibly work there. They're the ones that know best what OutEast needs. And so, I don't know if we just didn't do a good job of putting it out there that, hey, we've got these board positions available. And maybe we didn't do a good job of describing what type of qualifications that that person should have. I don't know what it is. But it didn't seem to me that you had very many applicants. And when I put in a public records request for copies of everything that was sent in, including the application that was filled out, the only thing returned to me were the resumes. Well, there's an application that they're supposed to fill out. Did those people fill out the applications? Because if they did, I didn't get what I asked for in the public records request. So, again, it's, this is so very important. And I know a lot of you have seen me as well as other folks that have spoken up. You've seen us here for months talking about how very important this is. And I really do think that we need to take a step back and more thoroughly vet the people that have said that they live in the neighborhood. Do they really? Do they have a business in the neighborhood? Do they really? Let's just do some more checking. Thank you. Thank you, ma'am. We're now going to go to our agenda. But before we do that, we had a presentation, an ADA presentation by Teresa Eichner. However, I just wanted to ask, is there anything new from the neighborhood's time when you gave your presentation this morning? Because I will tell you, the only person who wasn't there was Council, past President Freeman, and he said he watched and listened to your presentation. So, I just, I want to give you an opportunity if there's something more you wanted to say or something you wanted to add. No, Teresa Eichner, City Council. There's nothing additional. Same presentation. I don't know. Or if there's, you know, my members, I kind of ask over here, but I didn't ask over this way. If there's something you think we need, she needs to cover for others, yeah, please go ahead. I just worry that members of the public may have watched neighborhoods but are not, are now watching rules for the first time. And I think we have an obligation to, for Teresa, it's very brief. I mean, it's not very long, but I wouldn't want the public to get shortchanged because she didn't give the presentation here. Okay, that's fair. Please go ahead. I mean, it's a good point. I just didn't want you to have to give it twice if we had all heard it, but that's a good point. So, please go ahead. Thank you. Through the chair to the committee. I get three more bites at this apple, so I appreciate that. So, as part of an ongoing lesson in ADA requirements, the Department of Justice gave us an additional year. So, there is a little bit of new information that I'll share with this committee that we didn't have earlier. But we're going to continue on to meet that deadline that was this Friday. So, as part of that, Wednesday of this week, we will be taking down our legislative gateway from our website so that legislation and exhibits attached to that will need to be records requested for members of the public. That is going to be down for four to six weeks. We expect over that time that we'll be able to get those documents. I'm not remediated, but portions of that with our vendor archived so that once it comes back up, we'll be compliant with the new regulations coming from the Department of Justice. And we will have a vendor in place that I'm working with the IT department on so that screen readers will find those documents and when they click on them, we'll open them in a compliant manner. And so, the portions of the website that we control internally now are compliant. There are a couple of pages and links that we're finishing today and tomorrow. But for the most part, our website, council's website, is compliant. But that legislative services, legislative gateway that you see on our website will come down likely Wednesday morning. Internally for staff, we'll have a username and password where they will be able to access that. But the most significant challenge that I find will be with our public having to request that legislation and any exhibits attached to that. Agendas and minutes will be available on the website. Thank you very much for the update. When do you believe then things will be back up to, you know, the level for everyone's use? I said four to six weeks. I'm giving myself a little leeway in there. I'm hoping I'll get it up sooner than that. Okay. Thank you. And we have one person in the queue that's Council Member Amaro. Please. Thank you, Mr. Chair. Just two quick questions for Ms. Teresa. You said the documents are going down or the legislative gate was going down on Wednesday. And I thought I heard you say at the same time there will be some access internally for staff. Does that include us as well if we wanted to look at certain documents? It does. It does. So all council staff, ECAs, department staff, I'm going to circulate a kind of an SOP for how to access that, auditors, OGC. A bunch of us internally use that kind of for research and other reasons, right? And so I'll be providing that information so that everybody can access that. Thank you. Second question through the chair. Out of curiosity, what makes these documents ADA compliant? So that when someone with a disability, either blind or otherwise, uses a device to read those documents, it can read it on their behalf and in an order and picks up all of the alternative text for pictures and those kinds of things. So we have documents, for instance, land use and zoning has surveys, pictures of property, those kinds of things. And if the information behind that is not available, it will not read that information to someone with a disability who's trying to access the information. Thank you. Pastor President Salem, would you like to comment? Okay. No, that was good information there. Thank you for the question, actually. I think that helped give a little more insight into what's transpiring here. And thank you for all your efforts. Anyone else? All right. Thank you very much. Thanks. We'll next go to the order of agenda items, the extra two-pager that was given out, and we'll go over the appointments. And we will start on page four, and I'll turn there myself, page four, item number seven, the motion is second on the amendment. Ms. Kerher, would you please explain the amendment? Through the chairs of the committee, the amendment will remove the emergency language from the bill. In fact, I should have stated the actual bill, 2026-0206. Okay, thank you for that. May I have a, let's see, we have any comments on the amendment? If not, all those in favor of the amendment, please signify by saying yes. All those opposed, no. The amendment passes. We have motion and second on the bill as amended. No one in the queue. We would, I guess, is Mr. Mashney here? Cody? Yeah, if you would please come up. If you'd state your name and address for the record, please. And then tell us a little bit about why you believe this is a good fit for you to be on this Five Points Dependent Special District Board of Supervisors. I'm Cody Mashney. 3342 Roselle Street is my address. I've had the opportunity to be the general manager at Birdie's Bar and Five Points Liquor Lounge for the last several years. And now find myself in a position as director of beverage operations for those bars and Hoptinger in Five Points as well. I've been an intricate part of the community for all of that time, attending meetings at the Five Points Merchants Association. I've been vocal about increasing security and beautification efforts in the neighborhood and have operated heavily with JSO as well to kind of make sure that we're getting the support that we need in the neighborhood. I'm super excited about the Business Improvement District, very thankful to the mayor for the appointment. And I believe that we can make Five Points a really great place to live and to visit for years to come. Okay, great. Thank you very much. Thank you. Seeing no one else, no one in the queue, please open the ballot and record your vote. Seven yays, zero nays. By your action, you've approved 2026-0206 as amended. We'll now go to page six, item number 10, 2026-0-221. May I have a motion on the amendment? I have a motion and second on the amendment. Ms. Cahar, could you please explain the amendment? Yes, through the chair to the committee. The amendment will strike the appointment for the first full term ending June 30th, 2031. And instead, it will just be for the partial term ending June 30th, 2027. We'll add a waiver of the requirement in Code Section 5102 that the appointee maintains a substantial business or philanthropic interest in Duval County. You may recall at the last Rules Committee meeting, this was discussed and it was determined that the appointee did not meet those requirements. So we'll add that waiver. Also, lastly, we'll correct a Code Section reference within the bill. Thank you very much. Is Ms. Nazworth here? Yes, if you would please come forward and state your name and address to the record, please. Hi, Shannon Nazworth, address on file. Okay, thank you. Would you please share with us a little bit about why you believe this is the right fit for you to be on the JHFA? Absolutely. So several of you are familiar with me. I retired at the end of last year as the CEO of Ability Housing, an affordable housing developer that works around the state that is headquartered here in Jacksonville. I have spent well over 30 years of my life advancing affordable housing, first with Habitat for Humanity and then through Ability Housing. I've been actively involved with the city of Jacksonville, its myriad of special committees on homelessness and affordable housing over the years, been very active on other commissions and special committees, both for the council and the mayor's office over the years. While I have retired from Ability Housing, I did spend, again, over 30 years working diligently in Jacksonville on this topic. I think my experience with the technicalities of the decisions JHFA has to make will help. I won't have as high of a learning curve, but I also bring a lot of knowledge about the broad scope of need in the city, and I'm really looking forward to helping the JHFA help the city meet its needs with regards to affordable housing. Okay, thank you. We'll first go to past president Freeman, please. Oh, it's not? I'm sorry? Oh, anybody first have questions for Ms. Nasworth? You do? Okay, we'll go to past president Salem, please. Thank you, Chair. I had the pleasure of working with Ms. Nasworth when she was at Ability Housing. She's terrific, had a great knowledge base of the realities of homelessness and what can be done in that sphere, and I think I'm just excited you've come out of retirement to serve this community, and you'll do great. Thank you. Thank you, Chair. Thank you. Yes, I've got things a little bit out of order here. I'm sorry about that. Let's want to vote on the amendment before we go forward. All those in favor of the amendment, please signify by saying yes. All those opposed, no. The amendment passes. Motion second on the bill as amended. We'll go, let's see. Do you have any questions, Councilman Boylan, for Ms. Nasworth? Okay, yes, please. Thank you, Mr. Chair. First of all, could I be added as a co-sponsor, please? And Shannon, I just echo everything that Councilman Salem said. You're well versed in this. As you said, you've got a leg up in the conversation. I think you're going to be a great asset to this entity. Thank you. Thank you very much. Okay, we'll go next to Councilmember Amaro. You're recognized. Thank you, Mr. Chair. I just want to do a ditto on what's already been stated. I know the work of Shannon and what she's done over the years at Ability Housing, and I think the knowledge and wisdom that she will bring to this capacity will also help to increase and address the concerns about affordable housing. And so thank you for stepping forward and having a desire to continue serving this community. Thank you very much. We'll go next to Pastor President Freeman, please. Thank you, Mr. Chair. Ms. Nasworth, I'm good. Thank you so much for your service and putting yourself forward. Just a few comments to the body. You don't have to stand up there anymore. You're fine. Thank you very much. And I've met Ms. Nasworth. I've been on, I'll call it Nasworth. I'm sorry, not Nasworth. Ms. Nasworth, been over there, been through many things for my last 10 years on here. Never a doubt about her experience. Never a doubt about the value she would bring this board. So I wanted to make sure, I wanted others to give her her praise and her roses while she could smell it, because I do agree with them. However, yet again, I'm put in a situation where my principles are going to have to rise above all of the compliments. We had a young lady that was from Rock, what's the name of the group? Rock something. They had significant interest businesses in downtown, but she resided in Alachua. And I met with her and had to share with her that I would not be supporting her. And then I passed legislation that removed that portion of the code. Well, when I asked, is this something, a scenario I could do it here, they said it's a slippery slope, because this is for all boards and commissions. That was solely for DIA the first time. So now this is for all boards and commissions. And so, waiving codes, doing those things, that's fine. I'm going to stay principled. I voted against another person that was phenomenal. And here's another one that is. And I'm grateful that you all are supporting her. But I will not be, for that reason, sad. Thank you. No one else in the queue. I will make one comment. I mean, there's no doubt that Ms. Nasworth is beyond qualified to do a great job here. I guess the question does always come to, when we have to grant a waiver, in this case, I believe it would be a two-part waiver, then it must be an exceptional situation, in my mind, to make that exception. And hopefully, we take that seriously going forward to grant what is, in effect, a double waiver, a residency waiver, but also the business interest, even though there recently just was, that recently was the case. But in this case, I will say, I'm going to support this because of the years of experience, direct experience. And it was very recent. And so, for me, I get where Pastor President Freeman is coming from. And I'm in that same place. But in this case, I am willing to entertain the exception, the waiver, if you will, and support this appointment. So, no one else in the queue. Please open the ballot and record your vote. Five yays, two nays. By your action, you've approved 2026-0221, as amended. We'll next go to page 8, item number 15, 2026-0236. We have a motion and second on the bill. Is Chief Stronko here? Yes, please come forward. Would you please state your name and address for the record? Good afternoon, members of council. It's acting chief, J.D. Stronko, 23-year employee of the Jacksonville Sheriff's Office. Okay. And it's probably on file, right? Address on file? Yes, sir. I believe in your situation. Yes, sir. Yes, thank you. And if you just tell us a little bit about yourself, same kind of thing, even though it's a different type of situation here. But it just gives everybody a good feel for your qualifications. Yes, sir. Absolutely. Served in multiple areas of agency, as anybody with my time on wood. But some of the more notable positions were the commander of the homicide unit. After that, I was appointed under Sheriff Williams to the assistant chief of what was then Zone 5. That's now District 5. After that, under Sheriff Waters, I was appointed to the commander of the major case section over homicide, robbery, violent crime, special assault unit, until my recent appointment to the chief of the patrol support division. All right. Thank you very much. We have Pastor President White in the queue. You recognize, sir? Yes, sir. Through the chair. Please add me as a co-sponsor. We have both Pastor President White, Pastor President Freeman. We'd like to be a co-sponsor. Also, Pastor President Salem. Anyone else? Council Member Amaro and Gay. We're almost going down the line. I think I was already added. So we have the full committee being added, please. Okay. Please open the ballot and record your vote. Seven yays, zero nays. By reaction, you've approved 2026-0236. Thanks, Chief. Appreciate it. Thank you, gentlemen. We'll next go to page 9, item number 17, 2026-0239. We have a motion and a second on the bill. Is Ms. Stoddard here, please? If you would, please come forward. If you would, please state your name and address for the record, please. Yes, sir. Through the chair, my name is Rochelle Stoddard. Forgive me. I'm nervous. I've never done this before. It's okay. My address is 1346 Holmesdale Road. Okay. And would you please just tell us a little bit about yourself and why you believe being on the Eastside Grants Committee is a good and proper fit for you? I am the third generation owner and operator of an 81-year-old scrapyard and metal recycling facility on Evergreen Avenue. My family has been in the neighborhood since 1933, both living and working. And I recognize that this is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to preserve the culture and help the residents of the communities maintain their legacy. Thank you, ma'am. We have past President Freeman in the queue. You're recognized. Thank you, Mr. Chair. Through the chair to Ms. Stoddard. Thank you so much for coming. You say you have a business in it. Is it in the district or does it abut the district? We're above. We're a neighbor in the Phoenix area neighborhood. Okay. So you're near that. Thank you so much for that. And through the chair to Ms. Schell. When we're looking at codes, is this yet again a scenario where we're going to have to potentially waive a code? Or I know, I believe, I believe that there's ambiguity in the language of how this committee is written where it is kind of an if or shall as opposed to may. But can you help me understand when we say business interest, if they're not in it and they're across the street from it, how is that a business interest? Sure. Through the chair to Council Member Freeman and the committee. So I think you're thinking of a different bill where you're going with that. But the language in the code is that to the extent feasible, appointees shall either reside in or have a substantial business or philanthropic interest in the neighborhood. And my understanding is this appointee does, her business is within the boundary of the Eastside community. Perfect. And just teed it up for something later. And so I think where I'm at with this, and I may be the only one sitting up here, but many times we hear the voice of the people. We don't hear the voices of the people. And now we've repeatedly, you're going to have a seat, ma'am. Thank you so much for coming and starting. Thank you so much for bringing yourself forward as well. Thank you, ma'am. Many times we hear the voices of people coming. And now this is one of the first times where there's a divide. And a divide is not between us. And a divide is not a Republican or a Democrat issue. This is a people who are of the community and from the community. And then a board that we're being asked to form that's going to oversee that said community. I'm not in a place where I want to take a vote on anybody right now until I fully understand how we're getting here. And that's even on our picks. I'm not saying this is just the picks from the other side until I fully understand. And I've actually signed on as a co-sponsor somehow for one of them because I think they're amazing people, just like I did for Ms. Nashworth, who was here earlier. But there's a conflict going on here, and I don't understand why. So I'm going to hold here and see what the rest of you all say about it. I hate to vote against good people, but I see people here that have been here consistently. And I haven't seen anyone put up from that group yet. And I'd be interested to see you understand why. Thank you. And I'll just go to Council Member Boylan, please, to recognize. Thank you, Mr. Chair. At the last meeting, I suggest we hear from the administration as well as the council president as to the rationale or criteria they use to identify their nominees. And so I'm going to turn to Mr. Dennis, and I asked Ms. Norris this morning for you to be prepared to speak to the rationale why each of the appointments that the administration has made has picked those persons. I do have a question for Ms. Stoddard once you get finished. Through the chair, to Council Member Boylan, or to the entire committee, the first thing we did, of course, was look at the legislation. And one of the things that the mayor was committed of nominating individuals who actually live in the east side boundary. There's definitely a difference, and we've heard, and the mayor's heard over and over and over, there's a difference between an 8 to 5 out east and an after 5 out east. And so her stance was to find individuals who actually lived out there. Now, Ms. Stoddard is our nominee, but her family's business has been there, like she said, 81 years. And so she's the only outlier of our four appointees. As you'll see over the next couple weeks, our four appointees. One, that I think the chairman, we emailed the chairman today, is going to be withdrawn because of conflict. But the other two appointees, they actually live and reside in the out east boundary based upon the legislation requirements. So again, the mayor's, you know, her number one thing is to have individuals who actually live and reside on the east side based on the criterias in the legislation. Thank you. Mr. Chair, if I might then follow up. Yes, please. Ms. Stoddard, would you mind coming back up for a minute, please? You know, as a longtime member of a nonprofit who often sought out money, I can tell you for a fact, it's a lot harder to give out money than to get money. Do you have any experience in the grant making process setting? One of the biggest challenges this committee is going to have is setting the criterion. There's an awful lot of legwork this committee is going to have to do in order to set the table and be prepared to provide credible criteria in order for people to know what they're looking for or what they're going to be asking for and why they qualify for it. So do you have any experience with that kind of critical creation, if you will? Not specifically in grant writing, but I do have 15 years of hard decision making as both a general board member and executive board member on a nonprofit. I was the board chair during COVID and had to make some unpopular decisions at that time. So I believe that gives me board experience that might be a perfect fit for this opportunity. I appreciate your answer. Thank you very much. And I just, I'm making the point for all of us concerned in this process, sometimes you need some subject matter experts, people who have the ability to understand what it takes to create, you know, the criteria for grants and who qualifies for it and who doesn't in that process. And the difficult challenges, you know, and saying no to entities and say, you don't meet the standard that we have set in order to be awarded funding through this process. We need to make sure we're living inside or outside, to me, is important, no doubt about it, some balance in that process. Well, I think we do need to have some subject matter experts. And that's why I asked the question with respect to your ability to understand how the nonprofit sector works and the difficult challenges that you and others will have in setting the criteria and the standards for the awarding of grants through this process. Thank you, Mr. Chair. Thank you. We'll go next to President Salem. Please, you're recognized. Thank you, Chair. First of all, Ms. Starter will be an excellent choice. I spent a half hour talking to her and I think she's terrific. The other point I'm going to make, and I may disappoint some of my friends up here on the left, I was on the committee that worked months to get this legislation to the point to where we could have appointments. And we went from the opioid model to the, with the public service grant model. I was very much a lone ranger with the opioid model. But finally, at the end, we got it passed after months of debate. And I'm just concerned about the time that we are sitting here now. We're getting to the end of this budget year and not, in the not too distant future. And we don't even have a board in place. And I, I, I would not have made all the appointments, whether that be by the mayor or by the council president. It was their prerogative. They picked four people a piece and it's, it's, and this may be distasteful to some of my friends out here, but I think we need to move forward and, and accept these appointments. And I've encouraged those that might be disappointed in some of the appointments to attend the meetings, have input just like you are today and be a part of the process. But I think to, to start this process over and look at other appointments, we're another two or three months down the road. And so, um, Mr. Dennis, um, I don't agree with all the mayor's appointments, but at this point we have got to bite this bullet and move forward. So I would, I will, I'm going to vote for all of them just because I want this process to start $40 million in seven years. There's, I think $4 million in this year that we're sitting on. And now we're about ready to add another four to 6 million for next year. And it's, and nothing's happening. So I hear, uh, Council Member Freemus, I don't disagree with you, but I just feel like the, the, the better approach now is just to approve them all, move forward. And, uh, they'll, they serve a certain period of time. There'll be other appointments, other council presidents, other mayors potentially, and have a chance to have other appointments is what I would say. So, um, but, but I will be voting for this one and all the others. Thank you. Next go to Council Member Gay. You're recognized. Thank you, Mr. Chair. Um, I concur with past president Freeman that, as I said before, that I think we're, we're doing a board that's not really connected like the, was the desire, the spirit of it originally. And so that, that's where my hesitation, reluctance to move forward with this. I understand fully about this is sitting here and it's just, we need to get moving forward with the funding. Uh, but it's, we're being put in a bad situation to where, you know, the, the community has repeatedly come and, and showed up and said, this is not what we, we want. This is not what we desire, uh, to, to move forward with. So it's, um, through the chair to Ms. Studdard, uh, uh, with you sitting on the board, um, do you see how the community is trying to, uh, uh, cry out that they, that they really want to make sure their voices are heard? Is this something that, that you will be tuned into? One hundred percent. I, this is a community that deserves respect. I'm happy to hear any voice. I'm grateful to be given the opportunity to represent this part of our history in Jacksonville. And I want to make sure the residents get to stay in their home. Okay. All right. Thank, thank you. So, you know, back to the, the community or the, the committee here. It, this is what I'm, I'm wanting all the members to be able, that's coming before us to commit to us that they are going to be dialed into not, not just what the, the, this new board wants, but what the community wants. And that's where, uh, I really feel that the, the communities wanting a sense of security that this will be going in the right direction. This will have their, uh, you know, their thoughts and their desires and, and will represent their desires for the community. So that, that's, that's my biggest, biggest concern is that, yes, move it forward, but it's, we, we're on track with the community. And so that, that's where I'm still torn to support these or not, but that, that's my desire to each one of these, uh, candidates that are coming before us, that they commit that they are going to be tuned in and cognizant of the community. Thank you. Thank you, Mr. Chair. Thank you. We'll, we'll go next, uh, again to pass President Freeman. Uh, thank you, uh, Mr. Chair, you, do you want to go to Councilman Mars, your first time speaking? Yeah. Okay. Councilman Mars for his first time. All right. Please. Thank you, Mr. Chair. I, uh, I'm going to support this. I, I share some of the same sentiments of, uh, Mr. Salem. Um, we were not privileged to be part of the selection process. Uh, when it comes to choosing, sometimes you feel left out that you're not part of the process. And, and that happens in just about every avenue of life when choices are made. Um, I'm going to trust the process. Um, I believe the selection process began with one fundamental thought. What is in the best interest of this community? And don't know how many applicants were there, but these are the ones that were, were chosen. This is where the lots were cast. And, um, I have to assume and believe that these were great choices and therefore I'm going to trust the process and I'm going to support the names that were brought forth. Um, some of them are residents, um, some have vested interests like Berman has been in the community for, for 80 years, you said. Those are vested interests and we can't ignore that, um, because of all the, the, the calamity and I know that there are two of the, uh, names that have been put forth have now withdrawn. They don't want to be a part of the, uh, the mess. They don't want to be part of the confusion, but we got to trust the process. All we've been asked to do is approve the nomination. They have vetted the nominees and we move forward. Thank you. Thank you. President Freeman, please. Thank you, Mr. Chair. And I'll, I'll just simply close with this one. I'm still going to take each on a case by case basis. I don't believe in blanket supporting on the rules committee of any of them. Uh, government is slow. We understand that. Um, I do believe the difference between what was done in the past that, uh, Councilman Gulliver started and Councilmember Salem, past president picked up was such a niche area when it comes to that opioid and the trust fund and the lawsuit, the skill that it took, the, the, the educational background that it took as well as the experience of dealing and treating patients. It automatically created a, it narrowed the scope here. And as always, Councilmember Boylan really kind of landed a plane a little bit was talking more about tough decisions and nonprofits. Well, that's relative tough decisions for some families living in the community is different than a tough decision for someone that's running a business or sitting on the board. It's still a tough decision. Um, what I'm saying is this, why was it delayed this long? Like I hear it's been delayed so long. Is it because of the council? And can someone answer that question for me through the chair to anyone, to Mr. Dennis, are we the cause for this to be delayed until this point? Because I hear it's been going so long and now there's this sense of urgency. Uh, through the chair to Councilman, uh, Freeman, um, I hate to point the fingers. So, uh, you know, it was a legislative process, you know, the, the sausage was, was made up here. Uh, but, but, you know, now we're at a point to, to start, you know, executing. Okay. That, that works. Thank you. So he's saying that it is, it is incumbent on us that we have taken this long to get to this point. Um, although it's not our appointment. So now there is a cause, a call for action. To me, through, through the chair to, to OGC, if one of these, uh, amazing individuals sitting in that front row wanted to be put forward, how long is the legislative process if we wanted to bring someone new to it starting next Tuesday? If we did an in and out emergency, I already know the answer, but I'm just going to just try to ask you, like, if we're, if we, if there's a code or something that requires if we're appointing people to boards, they must go through a process for 20 days or 30 days. How quickly could we get someone turned around? Through the chair to council member Freeman. So there were a lot of ifs in that sentence. Um, but let me just say this. So you could do an in and out emergency. You could introduce that on Tuesday night and you need to waive the code provision that requires appearance at the rules committee. If you did not, if you did not interview them, um, you'd have to waive that. Uh, but that could be done very quickly. So the regular cycle is six weeks and that doesn't factor in the application and interview process that before the legislation is drafted. So you just mentioned, and one, I wouldn't be in favor of waiving, coming and being confirmed by rules. So we're saying a two week cycle, one cycle, they'd have to at least go through a cycle once. But you just said something about interviewing through the chair to Ms. Shell. What do you mean when you say interviewing? Are you saying all of these people that are here before us now have been interviewed by somebody? And if so, can we get dates of when they were first interviewed? Because I've been told it's the policy making process that has dragged it out to this point. I didn't interview anybody up here. I don't know if anybody up over here interviewed them. Which one did you interview? Once, once they were put forward. Is that what you're talking about when you say interview? So through the chair to council member Freeman, I'm referring to the council rule that requires that all appointees appear here before rules committee. And you are right now interviewing Ms. Stoddard and you have the opportunity to ask her questions. Fair enough. But not interviewed or vetted. Because I heard the term vetted earlier. They would have been vetted and we were going to trust that they were being vetted. So I was trying to figure out if you were saying that was a part of the process, them being vetted to get to the point where they're confirmed. So that is part of the process. The appointed, whoever's doing the appointee, whether it's the mayoral administration or council president, looks through applications and has the opportunity to contact them and decide who they are going to put forward. And that's before any legislation is drafted. Yes, ma'am. So if I'm hearing it correctly, in the sausage making process, the vetting part from not our side, but from the administration side, that delay would be on their side then, not us. Through the chair, that is correct. Okay. So I wanted to make sure those sitting in the front know, because we get our fair share of blame sitting on this council. And so I want to make sure that there's a complete and clear understanding. And we have our picks coming up next. So, Ms. Starter, thank you for putting yourself forward. I'm probably going to be voting against everyone right now, even my friends. And I'm sorry, Mr. Warren back there. And I'm sorry, Dr. Jameson, who's a really good friend, because I hear them. I don't know the story. I know Ms. Pickett well. I would love to talk with people. Yes, I have time to do it. I had time to do it. And I still have time. I'm not going to feel urgency for spending taxpayer dollars, $40 million. I'm not going to feel that any urgency to spend taxpayer dollars if I don't think that there's confidence in the community where it's going to be spent, that it's going to be spent effectively. And whenever I hear people pressing me to hurry and do something, I oftentimes wonder then who's benefiting. I'm sorry, but that's just the frame of reference that I work from. So, I'm going to thank you for coming. I'm probably, if I have to vote today, will probably be no and then have a right to change my mind at a later period, which will probably be next Tuesday. And in the meantime, between now and then, I would love to meet with Ms. Pickett. And I'd love to meet with whoever your leader is from this group and get an understanding of did you have an opportunity to apply? Did anyone apply? And if so, how many of your people were even put forward to get a chance to stand up here? Access is always the biggest barrier. I understand that. Thank you. All right. I'm sorry, Ms. Stoddard. A lot of this discussion hasn't been about you. It's been more about the process. So, thank you very much for your patience here. We will address your nomination specifically, but I wanted to make some comments because there were some overall comments made about the process. As the Rules Chair, I take the process very seriously. I've spent a lot of time looking into the process, looking into our legislation, how it's worded, and what criteria we have established, as well as looking into all of the nominees and whether or not they match up with that criteria. I must tell you, even though there was a tremendous amount of wonderful work that went into all of this, putting all this together, I still believe going forward we have some adjustments to make on our criteria for selection. That doesn't mean we can't go forward with the qualified people now. So, we can get the process started. That's going to be up to our body as a whole to entertain that. However, and I'll go through these two whereas clauses because I think it's important for us to understand. Other nominations for other boards, these aren't options. Some of these criteria, they're required. And we have to get waivers if they don't meet those requirements. However, the way this has been worded for this particular board, its committee rather, Eastside Grants Committee, both of the main sets of criteria aren't required. So, I'm going to read through this just so we make sure we understand. And I'm doing that only because if we as a body have input into changes, we can do that. Great start. Like I said, a lot of great work. But I think these two paragraphs, we need to get further scrutiny going forward after this process. And the one states, whereas to the extent feasible, the mayor and city council president, council president rather, shall endeavor to appoint members who reside in or have a substantial economic business interest in each of the five neighborhoods that comprise the east side as follows, Campbell's addition, Fairfield, Long Branch, Oakland, Phoenix. And whereas in addition, the mayor and council president are encouraged to appoint members who also have experience or expertise in one of the following areas, economic development, economic development or workforce development, affordable housing and or workforce housing and mitigation and prevention of homelessness, which may include, but is not limited to experience and home repairs, tax relief, heirs, property or related matters. Those two areas say, I believe, a lot of wonderful criteria, but in neither case are they required. So the mayor and the city council president may put forth nominees that don't fit any of those criteria, actually. And they would be perfectly within their authority to do that. So I'm just saying long term, I would like to see some of your input on those two paragraphs specifically. I think most of what I've read and the rest of what's been done, again, wonderful work. But there's some fine tuning that needs to be done. And I would say, Mr. Dennis, with the administration, there are a couple of people you mentioned who have been withdrawn or are being withdrawn from consideration. There may be a perfect opportunity to take a look at some of the other folks that have put in resumes. Some of them, I heard, went in after this selection process occurred. Maybe there's a perfect opportunity to get a couple more people that actually fit this criteria that would be amenable to all concern. I'm just suggesting that may be a good way to look at this. And so I thank everyone for your part in this process. And again, past president Salem and the others that did all this wonderful work, it's wonderful work. A lot of people from out east gave a lot of great input, and it was incorporated into what was done. So I'm not, please hear me correctly, I'm not condemning the process or saying it's all messed up. Every new program, every new process can always be improved upon. And so for me, this is an example, and it's great we voice all of this, the residents and our colleagues. So I'm going to leave it there for now. I do, getting back to you again, thank you so much for your patience and everyone else as well. I believe your significant long-term family business interest speaks loudly, and I've heard a couple people mention you who came forward numerous times. And I think, in my opinion, that is a good enough, you know, very substantial credibility and interest in out east. So I will, I personally will be supporting your nomination here today. So that was a lot of talk, but that was about everything. So I think going forward, we won't have as much conversation on each one of the people who comes forward, I believe. So anyone else before we open the ballot and record your votes? Okay, please open the ballot and record your vote. Six yays, one abstention. Okay, by your actions, you've approved 2026-0239. Again, Ms. Stoddard, thank you very much, and thank you for your patience. Thank you. We have past President Freeman who would like to comment on his vote. Thank you, you can have him. Thank you, Mr. Chair. If you all can recall during the budgetary process or session, anything involving with the CBA, I recused myself or abstained out of an abundance of caution, because my employee, Miller Electric, does work with the Jaguars. I just thought of it as I was sitting here going through it. Probably would have never said anything had I not, but I went and talked to the attorneys, and they're waiting to hear back. So just wanted to give everybody an understanding of why I'm going to be abstaining moving forward, and as I did before. So thank you. Now, I was allowed to speak during the CBA, so it was not any type of an ethics issue with me speaking. It's just only on the vote. Okay, thank you. Well, next, also on page 9 to item 18, 2026, 0240. We have motion and second on the bill. Is Dr. Jameson here, please? Good afternoon. Rudy Jameson, 1402 Florida Avenue. Okay. Dr. Jameson, would you give us a little bit about your background and tell us a little bit about why you believe this is the right fit for you for Eastside Grants Committee? Absolutely. I'm from out east. I was born and raised out there. I had the opportunity to grow up in the same home that my mother and all of her siblings grew up in. My father and my mother graduated from Matthew W. Gilbert, which was a junior-senior high school out there. So there's a lived experience there. I'm a former educator. I currently serve as the executive director for the Jacksonville Human Rights Commission. I live out east, and I love out east. And I think I bring a unique perspective as it relates to the community benefits agreement in that I've lived my life out there. I spend my time, my treasure, and my talents out there. I have an understanding of the history of out east. And I work in the fair housing. So I understand fair housing and equal employment opportunity. And I think those are the things that I bring to the table to help steward this incredible opportunity of revitalizing out east. Okay. Thank you. Anyone in the queue? Anyone like to? Oh, yes. Councilmember Amar, are you recognized? Please. Thank you, Mr. Chair. Rudy? Can I call you Rudy? Yeah. Thank you for stepping forward. I have no question about your commitment and your conviction to the community that you call your home. There have been some questions raised about your service on Jax, Lift Jax. Are you still associated with that entity and what's going on there? I have resigned from the Lift Jax board. All right. Thank you. We'll go next to Councilmember Gay to recognize. Thank you, Mr. Chair. Thank you. And as I did with the last candidate, through the chair to Mr. Jameson, you've heard all the comments and concerns from the community. And I just implore you to keep them in focus, their desires, and what the community wants to have done. Keep their voices pertinent to this board and to the best that can be. But I just want that commitment as we move forward that their voices will not go unheard. Thank you, Mr. Chair. So through the chair to Councilman Gay, I absolutely agree with the concerns that you heard earlier. You heard Garrett Dennis talk about an after five out east and an eight to five out east, so to speak. And I think there has been an under-representation of an after five voice. And I use after five as a metaphor, right? Because when you come out east, leadership looks different and politics looks different after five, right? I live out there. I spend all of my time out there. So I'm a 24-7 out east, right? So to your concerns about that, I share those concerns, and I'm committed to involving those voices. Absolutely. Past President Freeman, you're recognized. Thank you, Mr. Chair. And I just want to go on record and say again, I'll be abstaining. Dr. Jameson, good to see you. I know you bleed out east. And never a doubt in my mind when it comes to names like this. Definitely a concern. But again, to your point of the 24-7, you hearing them, I trust and I lead with trust. And I do believe that situations that were mentioned earlier, you will resolve them. So I want to thank you for resigning from the board. That was the itch that needed to be scratched in that conflict. So you removed that conflict. And that was the issue that I had, per se, as well. And so I wish you the best as you move forward. But I'll be abstaining, obviously, until I hear from our attorneys if I'm able to vote or not. Thank you. Thank you. And I'll close this out before we take our vote, Dr. Jameson. This is not part of the process, but as you heard, someone made some direct comments, some direct claims. If you'd like to address any of those things at this time, feel free to do that. If not, we'll move forward to the vote. Absolutely. So the young lady who mentioned that I had lunch with her regarding her apartment, I had lunch with her. And I let her know that that wasn't within the jurisdiction of the Jacksonville Human Rights Commission because it was nonjurisdictional and there wasn't any discriminatory practices associated with that. I did report her issues to Lift Jacks, to that organization, although they are not the sole owner of that property. I think they do some case management for that property. So I think that's a landlord-tenant issue that absolutely needs to be addressed. Thank you, Mr. Mayor, sir. And I'm hoping the right people are listening, or if not, someone will go and let them know very clearly what the concerns are. So having said that, please open the vote and record your vote. Six yays, zero nays, one abstention. By your action, you approve 2026-0240. Thank you, Dr. Jameson. And for all the appointments, I should have said this earlier, for those who have gone through the system, you are welcome next Tuesday night at the full council to come. And at the beginning of the council meeting, you will all be recognized for stepping up to serve your community. We will go through, person by person, each name and ask you to stand and be recognized. So with that, we'll also go to page number 10, item number 21, 2026-0243. We have a motion and second on the bill. Is Ms. Breeding here, please? Good afternoon. Hello. Would you please state your name and address for the record? And tell us a little bit about why you think the Mobility System Working Group is a good fit for you. Beth Breeding, 1368 Birmingham Road South, Jacksonville 32207. I've been a developer, a real estate developer, for more than 36 years. I've done probably more than 100 projects, and on every single one, we had to do a traffic study. I've been part of development orders. I've been in charge of widening major collector roadways. So I've had quite a bit of experience of seeing how the community is affected by traffic from development and how the community can benefit from developers doing the job in the right way. And so I believe a lot of people, I think, with as many traffic studies and projects that I've been a part of, I can lend a different perspective to the mobility fees. Thank you very much. Anyone in the queue? Would you like to ask any questions? No? I see no one, but I'm going to make a comment because I've had the pleasure of being around many meetings where Ms. Breeding has participated and she brings a wealth of experience. I've been to many NEPA, different meetings, different challenges they've had with different counties that they've had to work through in Northeast Florida, and she has led the way on many of those issues to get things resolved between the different parties. I just wanted to put that on the record. You are way more than qualified for this position and we thank you for stepping up and serving. Would you please open them out and record your votes? Seven yays, zero nays. By your action, you've approved 2026-0243. Thank you. We'll now go to page 11, item number 23, 2026-0245. We have a motion and second on the bill. Is Ms. Pierce here, please? If you would introduce yourself and state your address for the record as well. Good afternoon. Emily Pierce, 1301 River Place Boulevard. Thank you. If you could also tell us a little bit about your background and why the Mobility System Working Group is a good fit for you. Gladly. I've been practicing law in the city of Jacksonville for 35 years. I practice exclusively in land use, zoning, and entitlements. I have dealt with mobility issues both in Jacksonville and in other jurisdictions. I have both defended them for cities and counties and challenged them for people like NFPA. I believe that I bring a unique perspective because I know what it takes from the legal side to make a mobility fee that is fair and equitable for everyone. Thank you very much. Thank you. Seeing no one in the queue, please open the ballot and record your vote. Seven yays, zero nays. By reaction, you've approved 2026-0245 and thank you as well. We'll next go to item number 24, 2026-0247. We have a motion and second on the bill. Is Ms. Reed here, please? Good afternoon. Kristen Reed. My address is 12740 Grand Bay Parkway West, Suite 2350, Jacksonville, Florida, 32258. Thank you. Would you also give us a little bit about your background as well? Certainly. I have 26 years of planning experience in the city of Jacksonville. 24 of those were actually with the planning and development department. I was with the department when we did the initial transition from transportation concurrency to the mobility system and helped draft the initial mobility plan. And over the years, working with the planning department, had many interactions with people on mobility. And now that I'm in the private sector, I have the opportunity to see that from the other side. Okay. Thank you very much. No one in the queue, please open the ballot and record your vote. Seven yays, zero nays. By reaction, you approve 2026-0247. We'll now go to page 12, item number 25, 2026-0250. We have a motion and second on the bill. Is Mr. Small here, please? Yes, he's already there. Hi there. Good afternoon. Brian Small, address on file. Thank you. Would you also tell us a little bit about your background and how that's a good fit for the mobility system working group? Absolutely. I'm a 20-year resident of Jacksonville. The first five years were with the planning and development department. The next 10 were with private and public home builders. And the last six, the last five have been with my company, Bird Dog. I've seen mobility fees on both sides of the aisle. And I'd like to be a part of coming up with a fair and equitable fee for the future. Thank you, sir. If there's no one in the queue, please open the ballot and record your vote. Seven yays, zero nays. By your action, you've approved 2026-0250. We'll next go to item number 26, 2026-0251. May I have a motion? We have a motion and second on the bill. Mr. Hertzberg, are you here? Yes, please come forward. Good afternoon, Mr. Chairman. Mike Hertzberg, 12483 Aladdin Road, Jacksonville, Florida. Thank you for the opportunity. I really just want to work with all my former planning department friends. But no, I've actually been planning in the city of Jacksonville for the past three plus decades. I started off as a transportation planner in this city. I've worked with the mobility program, not only as a developer, but as with a consultant to others. I would like to use my experience and time spent with the city and its programs to try and further and bring about a better mobility program, one that's both fair to the industry of which I work, the commercial industry, as well as the city and its citizens. Okay. Thank you very much. Thank you. Please open the ballot and record your vote. Seven yays, zero nays. By reaction, you've approved 2026-0251. We'll next go to page 13, item number 27, 2026-0252. We have a motion and second on the bill. Anyone in the queue, this is your chance. Councilman Johnson is not here, so you have an opportunity. Okay, open the ballot and record your vote. Seven yays, zero nays. By reaction, you've approved 2026-0252. We'll next go to item number 28, 2026-0254. We have a motion and second on the bill. Is Mr. Warren here, please? Would you please come forward and introduce yourself? Thank you, Mr. Chair. My name is Cleve Warren. I'm a resident of Jacksonville. I live at 3061 Sunset Landing Drive. Our zip code is 322-0. I'm sorry, 322-26. Thank you. Would you please tell us a little bit about your background that seems to be, in your mind, a really good fit for the East Side Grants Committee? Well, I don't live on the East Side. I was born there. My family settled in a church that's still there. It's been there 146 years as the First Baptist Church of Oakland. My grandmother and two older sisters moved to Jacksonville in 1924 and settled in that church, and we've been worshiping there as a family ever since. At the corner of A. Phillip Randolph and 3rd Street is Deb's Groceries. There's an apartment upstairs. Now I think it's ViStar. But my grandmother married, three of her daughters were married in that apartment when Cleve was in kindergarten. In the city, I've served in Mayor Austin's administration in the 90s as chief of economic development. And on leaving city government, I went to work for Governor Martinez in the state of Florida as executive director of the Florida Black Business Investment Board. Professionally, I've grown up primarily in the city of Jacksonville as a banker. I worked for the old Barnett Bank System as a commercial lender and employed those skills lending money to some very large businesses in our community. Later settled into being executive director of a small business lending firm that did SBA 504 lending. And in fact, that entity, we partnered with the city to do small business lending and something called Essential Capital was the name of the company. The city made a grant to the entity for about a million and a half dollars, and we closed the program down with the exception of one loan loss. All of the proceeds were returned to the city. That church I mentioned, First Baptist Church of Oakland, owned the first CDC in this area. And by way of that CDC and the CHOTO license that we got in 1991, I believe, we built some 52 houses in the Eastside community by way of our church. That same church started a credit union in the early 60s that we ran for more than 30 years. That same church built a 60-unit apartment at the corner of Jesse Street and Van Buren that exists today. It was then called Oakland Terrace. I'm not sure what the name of it is now. But our church has been intimately engaged in affordable housing and construction and economic development as an entity housed in the community and Cleve being a member of it and a member of the leadership of that church involved in that economic development activity as well. So a personal experience as a family. Growing up with my family in the Eastside, I didn't finish high school from Jackson or Matthew Gilbert. By the time I graduated, it was still Matthew Gilbert. A Reigns graduate. We moved to the Northside, but we stayed in touch with the community that we settled into in 1924. And as I said earlier, I still worship there. All right. Thank you, sir. Anyone in the queue? Yes, we have Councilmember Gay, you recognize. Thank you, Mr. Chair. Through the chair to Warren here. The question that I've posed to all the candidates that's come forward, and your credentials are outstanding, but in fairness, I want to ask you the same. Are you committed to the community that you'll hear their voice and work with them throughout your tenure on this board? And that's what I want to make sure is that the voice of the community is going to be recognized. To the chair, to Councilmember Gay, absolutely. That would be my response. It's hard to, for me anyway, to make a distinction between my family's history in the Eastside and for somebody who lives there today. I drive to it three times a week, so worship, to Bible study, to some youth program. And my wife, quite frankly, is an assistant pastor at the First Baptist Church of Oakland. So our engagement in the neighborhood is constant. It's active. We see what's going on in it, and our church still remains actively involved in it. And by way of my membership in that church, I stay involved. So I would say to you, have no doubt that we would give the time and energy that's needed to do a productive job for our community, and more particularly for the Eastside. All right. Thank you, sir. We'll go next to Councilmember Amaro. You recognize. Thank you, Mr. Chair. Cleve, you spoke of yourself in the third person a second ago, and I thought that was interesting. Through the chair, what I'd like to hear you explain is in your role as a member of First Baptist Church of Oakland, in the development of these 52 houses and 60 apartment units, just how instrumental you were in achieving that. I'd like you to expound on that as a picture of your commitment to the community. Through the chair, through Councilmember Amaro, the apartments were built when Cleve was in high school, so I was not involved in it, but just saw it come up, built on the spot where Borland Haven Girls School used to be, and I have family members who are graduates of Borland Haven. The houses, however, was a horse of a different hue. Reverend Daly, CB Daly, was pastor of the church at the time. He had a history in the community as being entrepreneurial. It was his idea to start the credit union. It was his idea to acquire the CHOTO. It was his idea to build the houses. As we looked around the neighborhood to see what the housing stock looked like, we needed and felt like as a church we needed to be involved. And I had a personal role in that. Reverend Daly was president and chair of everything we did at our church. But there were folks that he employed, not financially, but assigned in our church to be responsible for, and the housing project was one of those for me. The credit union was one of those for me, in addition to serving as a deacon in our church. Thank you. We'll go next to Pastor President Freeman. You're recognized. Thank you, Mr. Chair. Through the chair to Mr. Warren. Again, thank you for putting yourself forward. One, I'll tell you, you have the right temperament. You have the right connectivity. And I know you have the right heart for it. And that was one of the reasons why, and I know in the beginning it sounded like I was against everybody, which is unfortunately how this slate's kind of been drawn. It's more the process that I'm upset with. I have to abstain, but I think every watching the body language of those who might not have known you prior to coming up here, I see a shift even in the body language. You're someone that's going to add value to it. You're someone that's going to listen. You're someone that is still engaged. You choose to come back to the community three days a week, as you say, and worship in it. Listen, I'm the son of a pastor. I get it. And as a small church and a small community, that was an hour away from my house. And no less than four days a week we were going into that community and serving it. I know your heart's going to be in the right place for this one. So, again, this was not an indictment on the slate that started in the back. It was more of a process. And so thank you for putting yourself forward. I'll be abstaining until I hear back from the attorneys, but this would be one that I would truly enjoy supporting. Thank you. Thank you. Before we go to the vote, I just want to also add, you hadn't mentioned this, but no one had asked. I just want to thank you as a 30-year Army guy for your Army and your Air Force service for our country. I appreciate that. And this is continued service. So I thank you for continuing to have that selfless service attitude that is needed, especially in this community that needs the help to be able to get to the place they deserve to be. So thank you very much. Thank you very much, Councilor. With that, please open the ballot and record your vote. Six yays, zero nays, one abstention. By action, you've approved 2026-0254. Next, we'll go to item number 29, 2026-0255. We have a motion and second on the bill. Is Mr. Edwards here, please? If you'll come forward and introduce yourself. James C. Edwards, address 2515 Parris Mill Road. Okay, sir, if you could give us a little bit about your background and why you're a good fit for the East Side Grants Committee. I'm a lifetime member of at least 21st Street in the outflow of the Avenue area. My family has been out there since 1883. I went to every high school on the East Side, Andrew Jackson. Me and Councilman Gay played high school football together. And I've been a fireman, retired captain for the Jacksonville Fire Rescue Department. I've been 27 years there. I still go to church out of the East. I own my mom's house out of East 12, 480 East 24th Street. I'm the president of the Jacksonville Brother Hill of Firefighters. I'm over the Andrew Jackson Alumni Association. I love our East. I don't actually physically live on the East Side, but I'm out there 45 times a day on 21st Street side. So not Florida Avenue side. So that's why I think I'm a good fit for it. Okay. Thank you, sir. We'll go next to past president White. You recognize? Yes, sir. Through the chair, I don't have any questions for James. I just can confirm, and I'd like to be added as a co-sponsor. I watched him for 27 years, or he watched me. He is a man that compromises. He's a man of character, and he's a man of doing the right thing. And congratulations, hopefully, James. Thank you, Chief. Thank you. We'll next go to Councilmember Gay. Thank you, Mr. Chair. And thank you, Mr. Edwards, for coming forward for this role. As all the other candidates that's come forward, I just want to get that commitment that you're going to listen to the community and let their voice be heard and that resonate with your performance on this board. And as I know you will, because that's where you come from, and so I just want to get that commitment. And I'd also like to be added as a co-sponsor to one of my fellow Tiger football players. Thank you. All right. Thank you. We'll next go to Councilmember Amaro. You recognize? Thank you, Mr. Chair. Mr. Edwards, I thank you for putting yourself forward and having a desire to give back to the community. I just got one question, just a little bit of levity. What kind of player was Mr. Gay? Did he hit hard? Yeah. Councilman Gay was two years older than me, so I played with him for about five games. I was on the JV, and I got moved up to the Boston. He played center for us. Yeah, Councilman Gay was a player. He's a player. All right. With that light moment, please open about and record your vote. Six yays, zero nays, one abstention. By reaction, you've approved 2026-0255. We'll now go to page 31, excuse me, page 14, item 31, 2026-0257. Looking for a motion on the amendment, please. We have a motion and second on amendment. Ms. Kerr, would you please explain the amendment? Yes, through the chair to the committee. The amendment will strike the reference to the appointee's substantial business interest in the Fairfield neighborhood. This appointee owns a business that's located just outside of the boundary of the Fairfield neighborhood that was identified through the legislation that established this committee. So technically, that qualification is not met, so we'll strike that and we'll correct some scrivener's errors within the bill. Thank you. All those in favor of the amendment, please signify by saying yes. All those opposed, no. The amendment passes. We have a motion and second on the bill as amended. Mr. Swink, would you please come forward and introduce yourself? Good afternoon. My name is Larry Swink. As stated, I run a business at Jackson Electric Supply, 1502 Jesse Street in the out-east neighborhood. I apologize. I did think until a moment ago that I was in the Fairfield district. So I'm here because, well, I'll let you ask the question. I'm sorry. And then my address is, yeah, 1502 Jesse Street. Well, you are in that district. However, when the district was created for this legislation, it didn't include the industrial section. I believe you were right across the road, actually. Right. So it isn't a matter of you aren't in that neighborhood. That area of the neighborhood industrial wasn't included in the original map. So, yes. And if you just tell us a little bit about your background, please. Sure, absolutely. So I've been in electrical distribution for almost 30 years. A good portion of that was actually in the out-east neighborhood. I started with GE Supply, and we were located on 4th Street and just across from Dan's Auto Air. And then in 2013, I was fortunate to start my own business. And then in 2020, we needed a bigger building, and I was able to move out east. And so we purchased a building there on Jesse Street. So I spent most of the time really just trying to grow my business and keep our doors open, and that's what my focus was. A couple of years ago, I had some things in my business that shook me a little bit and let me know that it was time to find things to be focused on other than the bottom line. I started to get involved in things happening in our neighborhood and out east with all the different groups that are doing fantastic work there. And I found more than something to give to, we found something we really believe in. I think we've become a partner in the community. People know that they can pick up the phone and call us, and we're going to be there to support them. We certainly support all the groups who are represented here today. And when it comes to listening to the community, I'm only here because I listened to the community and I had several community members that did ask that we represent business interests. It's very important to me that every penny of this money goes to the people of out east that have been doing the work for years long before the CBA showed up and long after that money is spent. They'll be there doing the hard work, and I just want to support it. All right. Thank you, sir. Thank you, sir. Anyone in the queue? We'll go to Councilmember Gabe, please. You're recognized. Thank you, Mr. Chair. Thank you, Mr. Swink, for coming forward for this. And as I've addressed each of the candidates that come, I just want to get that commitment that you're always going to have an ear to the community and their desires and just let their voices be heard and represent them. It's what the commitment I'm looking for, and I appreciate you coming forward. Thank you. Absolutely. No one else in the queue. Please open the ballot and record your vote. Six yays, zero nays, one abstention. By reaction, you've approved 2026-0257. We'll now go to the front part of the revised marked agenda, and we'll work our way through the rest of the bills. Thank you all for coming who were nominated. Item number one, 2024-0627 is deferred at the request of Councilmember Diamond, and I am following up on this and the next one as requested, but I don't have an answer for you yet. But 2024-0627 is deferred. 2024-0966 is also deferred at the request of Council President Carrico. Item three, 2025-0775 is deferred at the request of Councilmember Carlucci. Item number four, 2026-0187. We have a motion second on the bill. Anyone in the queue? Anyone in the queue, please open the ballot and record your vote. Seven yays, zero nays. By reaction, you've approved 2026-0187. Item number five, 2026-0192 is deferred. And this is my decision to continue the deferral until we get the additional information, the efforts that are ongoing regarding JEA. Also, item number six, 2026-0203 is also deferred for the same reason. We've already taken up item seven. And item number eight, 2026-0213. We have a motion second on the amendment. Ms. Caher, would you please explain the amendment? Through the chair to the committee, the amendment will add the exact dollar amount that's in the September 30th, 2024, ACFER operating reserves of 392,138,000. And also add some language explaining that amount and how it reconciles with the amounts that are reported in the ACFER. Okay. Thank you very much. Pass, excuse me, pass President Sam on the amendment? No, not on the amendment. I'm sorry. Okay. Thank you. Anyone on the amendment? All those in favor of the amendment, please signify by saying yes. All those opposed, no. The amendment passes. We have a motion and a second on the bill as amended. We're going to pass President Sam. Yes. Thank you, chair. Y'all might recall that I had some discussion about a percentage on this bill. I have an amendment, but I left it upstairs and I will do it tomorrow at finance. It's 17%, but I want to use the right language that was... Oh, I'm sorry. Phillip is here. I didn't see Phillip behind me. Phillip, can you help me, please? I forgot my cheat sheet upstairs. Yes, sir. Through the chair to the committee, working with Council Member Salem. His goal was to establish the operating reserves at a certain percentage of the city's operating budget and be able to fund this unfunded completion grants or unfunded one-time lump sum incentive payments as long as that percentage has met. And so his amendment would be to establish an operating reserve balance floor that would be higher of the $392,138,000 that Ms. Karaher referenced as part of the amendment or 17% of the General Fund General Service District operating budget. The purpose of that is as the budget continues to rise, and we assume it will, the 392 will continue to be a smaller portion of that budget. So I wanted a percentage that we will maintain. The auditors worked with me. They felt like 17% was the right number, so that's what I'm recommending. Looking for a second. We have a second. We have an amendment and a second. Any discussion? Past President, excuse me, Past President Freeman, please, you're recognized. Thank you, Mr. Chair. Through the chair to Councilman Salem. Councilman Lane kind of did the rounds with this last week, and I do recall you mentioning something. How, we can't read his mind, he's obviously not here, but how does this align with the conversation that you all had last week, just so we make sure that? It aligns completely. He left it up to myself and Mr. Peterson to come up with the percentage, but he was all on board with a percentage as a floor, and we just came up with 17%. So he's very supportive. Thank you. Thank you both. That was my question. I just wanted to make sure the introducer, this was in sync with his thinking, and if there is anything to address, I'm sure we'll have another shot in finance, but it sounds like that's all been worked out, so that's great. Anyone else? Let's see. Where are we again? I'm sorry. To the Chair, you're on the Salem Amendment, which has been seconded, and you could take a vote on that. We need a vote on that amendment. Okay. All those in favor of the Salem Amendment, please signify by saying yes. All those opposed, no. The Salem Amendment passes. To the Chair, would you like to roll those up? Yes, please. Okay. I'm looking for a motion. Okay. We have motion and second on the bill as amended. No one in the queue. Please open the ballot and record your vote. Seven yays, zero nays. By reaction, you've approved 2026-0213 as amended. We next go to item 9, 2026-0220. We have motion and second on the bill. Seeing no one in the queue, please open the ballot and record your vote. Seven yays, zero nays. By reaction, you've approved 2026-0220. We've already taken up item number 10. We'll go to item number 11, and I see Councilmember Peluso has joined us. Item 2026-0223. We have motion and second on the bill. We have passed President Salem. You're recognized. Thank you, Chair. I voted against this in neighborhoods this morning. We expanded the downtown hours of operation from 2 a.m. to 3 a.m., and that bill was signed at the end of February, so it's been in place about seven weeks. I think the idea behind when Councilmember Arias brought this to the council was to gain some experience with the 3 a.m. He was looking at 5 a.m. and compromised at 3. I would like to see 3 a.m. for some period of time before we expand it to 5 in this area and or in any other area of Jacksonville. So I'll be a no on this. Thank you. Thank you. We'll go to visiting Councilmember Peluso. You're recognized. Thank you, Chair. To the point that I know it got through neighborhoods. I know many of you were in there, so we kind of talked about it then. I did expect to have Stacy here. She is not in town. She's in Key West for a funeral, so I apologize for that. She's the owner of Inca Hoots and the one who has been the most vocal about this. But this was amended into the last version. We did have Brooklyn as a part of the last version. DIA approved it and the council sponsor also was on board with it. And so I don't think because he wasn't here on Council Night and because I maybe wasn't paying attention as well as I should have, the amendment that carried the Brooklyn addition did not move forward on City Council Night and instead it went through without it. And so that's when, you know, when I heard from the owners of Inca Hoots how disappointed they were. And I said that I would file this bill to make sure that we get them in there because that was the expectation. And so that's one of the reasons why we're here. And if it wasn't for a funeral, she would be here tonight. She'll be here on Tuesday during Council evening. But I just ask that we, you know, we look at downtown and we wanted to do something good for Bay Street. This will be the only establishment in Brooklyn that would even consider probably staying out this late. It's a nightclub. It's been there for many, many years. And she's a small business owner who's been doing this work for a long time. And so her big concern was, hey, you know, I thought we cared about small businesses and here I am, you know, trying to do all this work. And we're kind of gifting something to folks on one street and not to the rest of the downtown area. So when it was approved by DIA, I thought that was a good sign. When it was approved by the Neighborhoods Committee, I thought it was a good sign. But just asking that you take a look at this and support it. Thank you. Thank you. We'll go next to past President Freeman, please. Thank you, Mr. Chair. And I'm a lover of small businesses, thus the 200,000 you see coming later for JSEB. And I do hope the administration changes their mind and supports that. I am going to align with Councilman Salem on this one in the aspect, not that I don't want to see maybe potentially if this can, I see this a little bit of a sprawl, but if we go through a period, which is kind of a pilot time downtown area, which makes sense. And we noticed that there are not more incidences that cause challenges or concerns, then talking about expanding is, I think, the appropriate time to do so. So I'm going to align with my colleagues here, Councilman Salem and Councilman Gay, in the time being and not support the expansion of what's already been done and signed. Had they gotten in that early one, they would have fallen in under, I guess, under the wire, but unfortunately, they missed that window and so they'll have to catch the next one. Thank you. Okay. No one else in the queue. I'll wrap this up before the vote. I will say the same thing that I said in neighborhoods. I will be supporting this bill. I've looked up where the current location is and Cahoots is currently located in an area where it's a business area. Yes, there are a couple of streets across. You go across and you'll touch into some residential high rise. But for now, because this is a one-hour difference and because specific businesses ask for it, I will go with this for now. However, as I said earlier today, if we get any pushback, whether it be downtown or in the Brooklyn area from a significant amount of residential individuals, I will do my best to bring this back up and we'll revisit it. But at this point, I will support this bill. Anyone else? Okay, please open the ballot and record your vote. Four yays, three nays. By your action, you've approved 2026-0223. We'll next go to item 12, 2026-0227 as being deferred at the request of Council Member Diamond. Item 13, 2026-0230. We have motion and second on the bill. We have Council Member Amaro in the queue. You're recognized, sir. Thank you, Mr. Chair. I want to offer up a floor amendment. It's technical. I'll defer to Ms. Schell to explain what it's about. Thank you, through the chair of the committee. I'll get a second on it. Do I need a second on it before? I'll explain it and then we'll look for a second. Okay, go ahead. So the bill title in the first line refers to subdivision of Lot 10, Section 33, T1S-2070. That is the correct subdivision plat. But later in the title, it refers to Jack's Heights subdivision and that is incorrect. So this technical amendment would just remove the incorrect subdivision reference in the title. If we could get a second on that. Second. We have a motion and second on the Amaro Amendment. All those in favor, please signify by saying yes. All those opposed, no. The amendment passes. We have motion and second on the bill as amended. No one in the queue. Please open the ballot and record your vote. Seven yays, zero nays. By your action, you've approved 2026-0230 as amended. Item 14, 2026-0231. We have motion and second on the bill. No one in the queue. Please open the ballot and record your vote. Seven yays, zero nays. Seven yays, zero nays. By your action, you've approved 2026-0231. We've already taken up item 15. Thank you. Item number 16, 2026-0237. We have a motion and second on the bill. Anyone in the queue? No. Please open the ballot and record your vote. Seven yays, zero nays. By your action, you've approved 2026-0237. We've already taken up items 17 and 18. And item 19, 2026-0241. I have deferred. Ms. Black and I have been trying to catch up with each other, and she has returned from her trip, and we'll be getting together sometime this week. So I thank the administration and also Ms. Black for allowing me to defer until we've been able to sit down and have a good chat. Item number 20, item 2026-0242. I'm looking for a motion on a withdraw. We have a motion and a second on a withdraw. Please open the ballot and record your vote. Yes, sir. Seven yays, zero nays. By your action, you have withdrawn 2026-0242. And we have past President Salem. You're recognized. Thank you. Through the chair to Mr. Dennis. We've had two people withdraw. Is that my understanding? Are they both mayoral appointments? Through the chair. One is counsel. That was Sean Ashley. And then this one, Ariana Randolph, which is ours. Do we know why they're withdrawing? For ours, the opinion came back from ethics, the state ethics opinion. I'll be more than happy to share that. But basically, she is an employee of Lift Jacks. And if she is seated on the board, Lift Jacks cannot apply for any of the funding. And I think, Sean Ashley, I think it was more so, I think what Councilman Amaro alluded to is just a lot. And so he decided to just step away. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you, Chair. Thank you. Yes, we've already taken up item number 21. So we move to item 22, 2026-0244, which has been deferred also at the request of the appointee. Item 23, we've already taken up. Item 24, we've taken up as well as 25, 26, 27, 28, 29. Item 30, 2026-0256, looking for a motion on the withdraw. Yeah, we motion second on withdraw, as was just talked about at the request of the appointee. Please open the ballot and record your vote. Seven yays, zero nays. By your action, you have withdrawn 2026-0256, we've already taken up item 31. Item 32, 2026-0258 is on second read, as well as item 33, 2026-0260, second read. Item 34, 2026-0262. We have motion and second on the bill. No one in the queue, please open the ballot and record your vote. Seven yays, zero nays. By your action, you've approved 2026-0262. Item 35, 2026-0263. We have motion and second on the emergency. Ms. Kerr, would you please explain the emergency? Through the chair to the committee, the nature of the emergency is that the dollars that these dollars are going to be used for is an event that occurred this last weekend. So the council member would like to make these funds available as soon as possible to offset those costs. Okay. Thank you. All those in favor of the emergency, please signify by saying yes. All those opposed, no. The emergency passes. We have motion and second on amendment. Would you also explain the amendment, Ms. Kerr? Through the chair to the committee, the amendment will include CIP amendment language and attach a CIP project information sheet for the council district eight traffic calming project, which is being used to fund this grant. And attach a revised exhibit two, which is the term sheet and budget to correct a scrivener's error on the budget narrative. Thank you. You're on the amendment? Okay. We'll go to past president. Freeman, please. Thank you, Mr. Chair. And I'll just ask the tough questions. Gaffney, Councilman Jr., Gaffney Jr. is not here, but how many times have we, as a body, taken money that was for infrastructure, roads, and redirected it for a party that has already happened, an event that's already happened? I just want to see if we're creating a precedent, because I have no problem voting against something like this. If we're creating a precedent now that I don't want to see a slippery slope. Through the chair to Councilmember Freeman. I don't know the answer to your question, but I will say that these dollars, the council district eight traffic calming project, this was funded in the 2324 budget. This was a council strategic initiative that was requested by Councilmember Gaffney Jr. So the funds are being shifted to another request of his. Thank you. And through the chair to Ms. Kerr. Those dollars, I think this kind of goes back to the JIA closing timeframe, but it was sidewalks and traffic calming. Why weren't they used for that? And, I mean, council members can do whatever they want with it, but if they're not approved right now for a party, could these dollars still go for infrastructure? Street lights, traffic calming, or will these dollars lapse? I mean, I'm trying to figure out what the urgency is in getting these dollars out, one. And then, two, why can't we use these dollars to fix a pothole or fix a light or make a park safer? Through the chair to Councilmember Freeman, the dollars in the council district eight traffic calming project will not lapse. It's a CIP project. It's in a capital fund. So those dollars will stay in that project until the project is completed or they're appropriated to a different project. Okay, thank you. I'm going to be voting against this only because this reminds me of something last cycle where people were with the babies. And we're like, can we find it, but we're all support saving lives, but can we find a better source for funding? I don't know anybody up here that's going to agree with traffic calming, anything that's dealing with infrastructure and safety being shifted to a party that's already happened. So I'm not supporting this. I'll gladly go to district eight, live close by it and share it with them and see if they have any concerns or if they have a sidewalk that needs some repair. If we have this much money, then a lot of these individuals that are living in these communities, they don't need to be complaining as much, but they have issues. So I'm not going to be a part of paying for this. I wish Councilman Gaffney was here to explain it better to me so I'll understand it. But I will gladly stand up on Tuesday as well because I want the community to know, because I get yelled at a bunch. I want them to know that we're choosing to spend $25,000 on an event that's already happened at Orsterfest and not fixing potholes and not fixing streetlights and not lighting parks for our seniors to walk in. Thank you. We'll go next to Councilmember Gay. You're recognized. Thank you, Mr. Chair. I initially did support this in neighborhoods and as always, I reserve my right to change my vote at any committee or council. So now that you've brought that to light, I think we need to have these answers and make sure that we get the money used as it was initially approved. But we'll see what the next council meeting or TEU, what is said from Councilmember Gaffney. So I'll be changing my vote on this one and look forward to more dialogue on it. Thank you. Okay. We'll go next to past President White and then we'll go past President Salem. We'll go to past President Salem. Through the Chair to Councilmember Froome, you may recall through our doze, we found $10 million in the CIP for projects that had been completed and they were still all there a year later. Actually, I think it was 18 months later. So, I mean, this is not unusual to have dollars sitting there. Unfortunately, sometimes there's, there might be good reasons for that, but it is frustrating. And through the Chair to Councilmember Salem, that great work that you all did, what did you do with a lot of those savings? Did you all pay down parties or did you put it towards debt? Did we put it towards critical infrastructure and needs for our city, right? And that's kind of where I'm going with this is, is when we do the good work and he finds it, is this the best use? And I want him to answer that question on the record. Is this the best use of taxpayer dollars, the $25,000, which is now the minimum threshold per your bill for anything that goes with nonprofits and small things. So, this is a big chunk to me now. Thank you. Okay. We'll now go to past President White, you recognize. Yes, sir. Through the Chair, I have a question, if I could. If we defer this and can we debate it a little bit, I'd like to hear from Gaffney, myself. I mean, I hate to do a yes vote from what I've heard here, but I hate to do a no vote if there's a good explanation. So, is there a place we can put it? There he is. Oh, here he is. Good. I was going to say, it's going to go to finance next. Finance next as well. So, I'm glad he's here. Okay. Thank you. Councilman Morrow, while he's getting set up, would you want to comment as well? Thank you, Mr. Chair. I just wanted some clarity on Councilman Freeman's concerns, and if I hear him correctly, your concern is the use of dollars that were dedicated to traffic calming to now be used for an oyster fest, which doesn't seem like they're in the same lane. Just clarify that for me. Yes, sir. I just, and I'm glad the council members here. It seems almost as if it's a bait or switch. Like, we get the dollars set aside or appropriated to do something that is needed. Obviously, in certain parts of our community, cars are racing through them. And so, it is 25 from traffic calming for District 8 or other construction cost, account to the Riverview collective community. I know the area well. I'm just wondering how those two align. And that is truly my concern. And then, not should they give the money to oyster fest, but is there another bucket that we can find to give the money? And so, that would be the question that I would ask through the chair to Councilmember Gaffney. I just hate seeing any money from 7, 8, 9, and 10 leave infrastructure, knowing how hard your dad fought for sidewalks and everything else. When the GIA, when we close that, is there any other way that we can find money or buckets? So, let's be fully able to, willing to support if we can. Councilmember Gaffney, you're recognized. Thanks for joining us. Absolutely. Thank you. And through the chair, I apologize for not being here. As a matter of fact, I didn't even know it was going to the Rules Committee or else I would have been here. You know, I respect you guys' time and attention to this matter. So, please forgive me for not being here. I was actually in the office in the meeting with her, Lena, discussing some ALUZ stuff for the MAR. So, then Roshanna brought it to my attention. And then, that's why I immediately raced down, came down here. But, yeah, thank you. So, Councilmember Freeman, I understand where you're coming from. So, when I designated these funds to traffic commons, it was two years ago. I had a lot of communities reaching out to me about speeding, you know, just safety measures and safety commons in terms of speed humps. But what I have learned over the last two years, a lot of these subdivisions can't get 75%. And they can't get the people, petitions to sign for these speeding commons. So, I had some money sitting aside. And it was only $25,000. I think we're talking about $25,000 or $300,000. So, I still got a good batch of funds left for speed and commons. So, another group approached me, my Riverview, another group of my community. It's an educational opportunity called the Rip Oyster Fest. We had an event this past Saturday where we talked about oysters, the whole festival. We had 2,000 people came out, very educational, just about the St. John's River and reserving that. So, they asked me for some funds. Anyway, I thought as a district councilman, it was the best to remove $25,000 for those funds until this bucket of money. So, I think we're still in good shape in terms of $275,000 left in speed and safety measures funding. May I? Through the chair to Councilmember Gaffney. No, definitely hear your heart and appreciate that. I guess my question was, are these the only funds that we can find to utilize this event? One. Two, does this require some type of a waiver? Because we're direct funding an organization now to provide a service which was training of oysters. And so, we're now being asked to waive a code in order for these funds to go to this organization. I'm just trying to ensure that, because you know as well as I know, once it happens in one district, we all start getting these phone calls. Councilman Gaffney did it. How can we do it? And your pot of money is going to be the pot of money that people were going to say was tapped into once. Can we tap into it again? So, I'm just trying to make sure that we have guardrails. Like, if this is a one-time thing you're looking to do or are you going to look to go back to this pot again? And if there's a chance for any of the dollars, can we just go that route? Yeah. So, great question through the chair. So, you know, as a council member, you know, priorities and issues are going to change each year. You know, next year it could be small businesses. The following year it could be some type of social programming. The next year it could be speed humps. A couple of years ago, like I said, it was speed humps. I had so many organizations and so many communities calling me about speed humps. Two years passed. We can't get the petitions. We can't get the match. We can't do this. And the fund's just been sitting. You know, so next year it might be something else. So, I probably will tap into these fees next year and it might be going to a different initiative. One of the calls I'm getting now is affordable housing. Councilman Gaffney, how can you help me with affordable housing? So, I'm thinking about going into that fund again and helping out affordable housing. So, to answer your question, I will be tapping back into this fund because right now the communities are not stepping up the plate to get these 75% petition signs so I can use them for speed humps. And I definitely understand the challenge of that. I just love your heart. Love where you're going with it. I can't support taking it from traffic calming. Is there a way moving forward? And I'm done. It's the last time I'm talking about it. I'm going to be voting against this. Not against the oyster fest. Not against traffic calming. I'm more against the process. Is there a way to change the title of this trust fund now? Because I think it's just misleading to me, personally, as a council member, to our citizens, that when we see money put aside, I'm a big believer that when you set money in trust funds, you don't sweep them. That's just my own principle thought process, and that is essentially what's happening here is money's been set aside. To your point, it is a challenge getting it. Is there a closer thing to speed traffic calming, like street lights? I mean, are there other things that we can do? I don't know, but I just don't feel comfortable taking, unless we change that title, I wouldn't feel comfortable taking from there for this. Yeah. So through the chair, I guess we could change the title. I'm not sure. And I'll reiterate myself. So two or three years ago, I just put aside some arbitrary number, $300,000 aside for speed humps, not knowing if I'm going to need $300,000 for speed humps. I just know I was getting a lot of calls at the time, just right when I got in office. Two years passed, a lot of communities have not stepped up the plate. So I would be doing the community a disservice by continuing to leave the funds in there, and we can't use it. It's just waiting on the community. So if we have other needs for the community, I'm going to move it where I feel like it's best for the community. That's fair. And what account did you get those $300,000 from? So, and I guess I thought that was mentioned, these are strategic funds. Right. So, you know, to the councilman, discretionary funds. Thank you. And next go to Councilmember Gay. Thank you, Mr. Chair. So, through the Chair to Mr. Gaffney. So these are coming from your contingency special funds, not for specific for speed common? Yeah. So, thank you, Councilmember Gay. So, two years ago, these are my strategic funds. Like I said, this number is just arbitrary. I just removed all my strategic funds to one bucket of money, to speed humps only. That was the only thing that was designated for. I didn't know if I was going to need $300,000. I didn't know if I was going to need $700,000. They was used for speed humps only. The only reason I took so much, because at that time I received like seven or eight calls. Two years passed by, where half of the community don't want it. I went to a meeting at North Creek, and JSO and JFRD, they could reference this. It was a fight I almost broke out. Because when I told them that I had funds for the speed humps, they thought I was advocating for it. I was just trying to help. But half of the community don't want it, half of them do. So what I have found out going to these meetings now, half of the community want it, half of them don't want it. So now it have put me in a big dilemma. Even though I got funds set aside for it, I'm stuck in a pickle. So none of these funds just sitting. Okay. Thank you. Ms. Schell, could we appropriately legally list this as strategic initiatives of the council member versus traffic calming? I mean, because it does beg the question, versus the original source of this funding is what he stated was his council member strategic initiatives. To the chair, typically in legislation, we list the actual account name that's being used to fund. So in this case, that's what we have listed. We could add a whereas clause to explain how that account was funded using strategic dollars. That would be an option. If we could somehow, in the title, in that first line, put strategic initiatives or strategic, whatever the term is, even if it's in brackets or parens, however that is, so that people know what the original source was. To the chair, that would need to be an additional amendment. Okay. If we could one second and vote on the amendment that was moved and seconded and not yet voted on, that would be very helpful. Okay. All those in favor of the amendment that was already discussed, please signify by saying yes. Yes. All those opposed, no. The amendment passes. We have another amendment being offered by past President Freeman. Thank you, Mr. Chair. And through the chair to Ms. Schell, I would like to offer an amendment so that there's a whereas clause added that clearly indicates that these dollars were from the contingency, the special counsel contingency fund, and that he is appropriating these dollars in such a manner. And I think that is consistent to how all of us have spent dollars. And then it will, it will protect Councilman Gaffney from future attacks that he's taking money for infrastructure and giving it for events. And that was my biggest concern coming up. So thank you. We have a motion and second on the Freeman amendment. All those in favor of the amendment, please signify by saying yes. Oh, we have, we have before we vote. Okay. Pastor President. If I can. Say them, please. These were dollars that I'm sure during the budget process, I think I was finance chair at the time, you know, we allotted these dollars. So it's not global council contingency as I view it. It's more, and I don't know what the terminology is, but it was dollars that were signed to you or signed to him or signed to me, not a global council. It's strategic initiatives is the word that, thank you. I think strategic initiatives is a better word. I'm not going to get into it, but it was his strategic initiative dollars. Okay. If we could include that in the language. Ms. Kerher, please. Through the chair to the committee. That's council member Salem is correct. The $300,000 that funded the council district state traffic calming project, $250,000 was appropriated in the budget process from the city council strategic plan set aside contingency account. An additional 50,000 was added to that as an enhancement during the budget process from the special council contingency. So both, both were contingency accounts that funded this project. Okay. Thank you. Ms. Last one. Our. Just be quick. Through the chair. Yes, please. I think it came from Councilman Kevin Carrico at the time. I think he gave every council district $50,000 at the time. Just like two years ago. Okay. Thank you. Okay. On the amendment before us, all those in favor, please signify by saying yes. All those opposed, no. The amendment passes. Please roll those up. We have a motion. We have a motion. We have a motion. Second on the bill as an emergency as amended. We have a council member gay in the queue. You recognize. Thank you. Thank you, Mr. Chair. So, yes, this, I think gives it a clear path to so we don't get so much contention from the community and the rest of the dollars. I know a lot of your area there that they communicate with me where we can spend it, so I'll get with you on that. Thank you. And past President Freeman. Thank you, Mr. Chair. And Council member Gay just hit the nail on the head. We all live in close proximity with our district, so we get stopped from Chick-fil-A's, from everything else that comes. And so this is another one. So thank you so much for your willingness to work with us on this and get it to a good place. Thanks, everybody. Appreciate everybody's input and willingness to work together on that. Please open the ballot and record your vote. Do we have an announcement on the vote? Seven yays, zero nays. Thank you. By your action, you've approved 2026-0263 as an emergency as amended. Thank you all. And through the chair. Yes, please do. I think I'm the last person, so I'll be quick. So I just want to say thank you again. I apologize. I would have even had a young lady from the Oysterfest to come here to talk about the festival. But, you know, like I said, it was my excuse. I didn't know it was on that. You're good. I would have been here, so. But I appreciate it. Thanks for coming down. Thank you, God. Appreciate it. Okay. Item 36, 2026-0265 is on second read. Also 37, 2026-0267 is on second read. Item 38, 2026-0268. We have a deferral at the request of Councilman Salem. Past President Salem would like to comment. Please. I asked for a deferral because I'm still fine tuning some of the survey tool and everything, but I'm compelled to say something else. I have been astounded, and I can't say that enough, over the lack of memory to 2019. And I'm looking at Councilmember Freeman and White and Boylan down here, who were with me, on what this council did during the JEA sale. Stopping the sale and then rewriting their charter through the help of Councilmember Boylan, who led that effort, is if the council does not have the ability to investigate. Some of the comments I'm hearing, just, it's unbelievable to me. So I will prepare, particularly for the first-termers and those that have not been on the council since, that need to understand the council's role and what the charter says about investigations of the council. So I will bring all that in two weeks. Thank you. Thank you. We'll go next to Councilmember Boylan. You're recognized. Thank you, Mr. Chair. With all due respect to my colleague, Mr. Salem. Absolutely right. The charter does allow a Special Investigative Committee. But the charter is also very explicit that only the board of JEA has authority to deal with personnel matters. That's black and white, one paragraph, cut and dry. For us, for the Special Investigative Committee to take a look at some of the other issues on policy and practice and business matters, absolutely. Management and personnel is not one of them. Yes, please, please go ahead. And I don't deny that's what it says. We are not going to take any action on any leadership at JEA. We will provide information to the JEA board, which I think will allow them to evaluate their leadership. That's the purpose. We have no authority, as Councilman Boylan just said, to take any action on any personnel at JEA. I couldn't agree with you more. But we can provide information that will allow them to evaluate their personnel. And there's a big difference there. Thank you. Thank you. So, again, this is being deferred to request of Council Member Salem. Okay. Item number 39, 2026-0269. I'd heard there might be an amendment on this. I got you. We got a motion, and do we have a second? We have a motion and second on the bill. We also have an amendment to be offered by past President Freeman, please. Thank you, Mr. Chair. And since this bill was filed, the Jax gents have gone on to compete nationally. So there's an amendment being offered, and it's already been circulated to Mr. Stavopoulos. So I think she's got it. I don't know if, Michelle, did she send it down to you at all any chance? If not, I can give you a sheet of paper here. But it's pretty wordy. Do you want to read it? Would you care? I'll pass it down, because I'm not going to, or I could have Council Member Amaro read it. I mean, it deserves some, like, distinction. May I, Mr. Chair? Yes, Ms. Schell, please. Okay. So the Freeman amendment would add a whereas clause, which reads as follows. Whereas, in April, competing on the national stage in Dallas, Texas, at the prestigious Stomp Wars National Step Show, one of the premier step competitions in the United States, the Jax gents, the Jax gents, proudly represented the state of Florida, and once again demonstrated unmatched precision, discipline, and cultural artistry, earning the title of national champion for the second time. A historic achievement that not only affirms their dominance in the art of stepping, but also elevates the reputation of these young men, and positions the city of Jacksonville as a national leader in youth excellence, performance, and cultural expression. What she said. And that's the amendment to add what she said? Okay. Okay. We have a motion on that amendment. Do we have a second? We have a second. All those in favor of the amendment, please signify by saying yes. All those opposed, no. The amendment passes. We have a motion and a second on the bill as amended. We have Council Member Amaro in the queue. You're recognized. Thank you, Mr. Chair, very expeditiously. I wonder, through the response of the amendment, would these guys come in and give us a demonstration of their skills? May I? Thank you. Through the chair to Council Member Amaro, you may recall at the installation, at that little building we had at offsite for our president, they were the group of young men that were doing the stepping then. So I'm pretty sure, I'm pretty sure, I left shortly after you, but I'm pretty sure you could do it. But I do know that they requested specifically Councilman Past President Salem to join them. So when they do come, Councilman, we're going to have to get out there and try to step with them. So we'll see what happens. All right. Thank you all. Do we need to vote on that, I think? Do we? Yeah, please. Please. Please. Oh, we didn't? We finished that. Oh, just the amendment. Yeah, yeah. I wanted to, you moved the bill as amended, right? Okay. Open the ballot and record your vote. Seven yays, zero nays. By reaction, you've approved 20-26-0269 as amended. Item 40, 20-26-027-0 is on second read. Item 41, 20-26-027-1. We have a motion and a second on the bill. Please open the ballot and record your vote. Seven yays, zero nays. By reaction, you've approved 20-26-027-1. Item 42, 20-26-027-2. Looking for a motion. We have a motion and second on the bill. Seeing no one in the queue. We have two co-sponsor ads. I think I'm already on it. I think I'm already on it. And we have another one. I did in our pre-meeting. I think I'm in there, right? Thank you. Anyone else? Okay. Council Member Gay as well, please. All right. If you would, please open the ballot and record your vote. Seven yays, zero nays. By reaction, you've approved 20-26-027-2. Item number 43, 20-26-027-7 is on second read. Item 44, 20-26-027-8. We have a motion and a second on the bill. No one in the queue. Please open the ballot and record your vote. We have Ken Amaro, Councilman Amaro. Thank you, sir. Very quickly, I want to be added. Ms. Cornelius was at the DEA when my kids were there. So I just want to be added. Okay. Very good. Thank you. Also, Council Member Boylan, you're recognized. Please open the ballot and record your votes. Seven yays, zero nays. By action, you've approved 20-26-027-8. Item 45, 20-26-027-9. We have a motion and second on the bill. No one in the queue. Please open the ballot and record your vote. Seven yays, zero nays. By action, you've approved 20-26-027-9. If you'd also please add me as a co-sponsor too. I missed that one. Item 46, 20-26-028-0 is on second read. Item 47, 20-26-028-1. We have a motion and second on the bill. No one in the queue. Please open the ballot and record your vote. Seven yays, zero nays. By action, you've approved 20-26-028-1. Item 48, 20-26-028-2. We have a motion and second on the bill. No one in the queue. Please open the ballot and record your vote. Seven yays, zero nays. By action, you've approved 20-26-028-2. Item 49, 20-26-028-3. We have a motion and second on the bill. Please open the ballot and record your vote. Seven yays, zero nays. By action, you've approved 20-26-028-3. Item 50, 20-26-028-4. We have a motion and second on the bill. We have Council Member Boylan in the queue. You're recognized. Thank you, Mr. Chair. I certainly want to be added as a co-sponsor. Time and again, we hear during public comment we need to represent our constituents. So I'm proud to say that the vast majority, well, not majority, but certainly the largest contingency of Jewish Americans live in my district. And I do proudly represent them. Thank you very much. Okay. Please open the ballot and record your vote. Two more ads there, Council Member Freeman and Gay. Okay. Please open the ballot and record your vote. We're almost there. Everybody vote. Seven yays, zero nays. By action, you've approved 20-26-028-4. Item 51, 20-26-028-8 is on second read. And unless someone has something, this ends our meeting. Thank you all very much. Oh, we have a quick one from Councilman Bowling. No. Thank you. Just real quick. My apologies for missing your committee this morning. I was watching it. And yes, I heard you, Councilman Bowling, and I do plan on helping you in the next cycle. I will tell you that I did get a call from the administration saying that they're going to work against it, which I'm not sure why, because it was funds that we found, and they're saying they don't have the capacity. If anybody has any questions, I have the minutes from the last JSEB advisory board meeting, where before I filed a bill, I asked that advisory board, do they think we can use it? And the administrator was there, and the answer was yes. So something has changed from March 25th until today, and I'll leave it at that. Thank you. Thank you. Appreciate that clarification. All right. We are second time adjourned.