Black History Month: A big Wink to our hometown hero, Former Lt. Jennifer Carroll
North Florida is the home of Jennifer Carroll and we could not be more proud. Jennifer was the first woman and the first black person to be elected to the position of Lieutenant Governor of Florida. She is one of our heroes and we salute her during Black History...
Food deserts, Camelot, Bigfoot and other flights of fancy
It has gotten way too easy for politicians to lead the media around by the nose. There are plenty of examples at the national level but there are some in Jacksonville, too. One classic example: Local media faithfully report on the mythical phenomenon of “food...
Eye Scoop: Former JEA money manager on the colossal blunders & the pot of gold left on the table
$4 Billion left on the table at JEA? It is possible the taxpayers missed out on a big opportunity when they nixed the sale of the JEA, based on an analysis of the situation by a former employee of the city-owned utility company. In his estimation, the sale could have...
Part 2 – $56 Million Tax Dollars: Are city officials to blame for the mounting cost on the downtown parking garages?
It appears that the parking garage fiasco may have been brought on by city officials many years ago. As usually is the case in government, those who created the mess are gone, leaving the taxpayers to clean up. Three parking garages were built about 16 years ago, two...
Thanks for the memories Jacksonville. I’m needed across the pond. xoxo Jaxson
In January 2017 when the Jaguars took a knee in London and the city went crazy-mad over it, a well-known politician reached out to me. He was trying to understand why Shad Khan would do that. He was confused because he's also a businessman and he thought the customer...
Finally, someone is taking action on a sweetheart deal city officials made 16 years ago
$56 Million Parking Garage - Honey of a Deal and Jax's next big scandaL Differences over financial information related to the operation of downtown parking garages may land the city in court with its partners, Metropolitan Parking Solutions. The company operates...
What’s next for JEA? A turnaround expert.
There were a few times in my career when one of my CEO clients got into a situation that required a Turnaround Expert to be called in to help. Sometimes that situation was their own doing and other times, it was someone within the organization that had messed things...
Want to zip around Jacksonville on a rented electric vehicle? Your chance may be coming
Jacksonville continues to move into mass transit, hoping to interest a public that has not embraced it in the past. Some of the earliest efforts did work well – under private operation. The old trolley system ran into Ortega and Springfield about a century ago. Later,...
Amid questions about the effort to sell the JEA, pertinent questions are not being asked
Details of how a public relations company prepared opinion pieces for a local newspaper that ran under the names of a JEA official and another person have been provided by News4Jax. Dalton Agency employees recruited Henry Brown, who is on the JEA board, and HCI Group...
Everyone in Jacksonville will miss Jake Godbold
Former Mayor Jake Godbold Jake Godbold, one of Jacksonville’s outstanding political figures, has died at the age of 86. He was the second mayor of the consolidated government, following Hans Tanzler. Before that he was a city councilman and served as a council...
Wink Alert: Scott Wilson forms special committee to investigate the mess at JEA!
Scott Wilson, City Council President City Council President Scott Wilson has formed a committee to investigate JEA. This committee will have subpoena power and will work independently of the Federal investigation into JEA. The difference between the two investigations...
Eye Report: School officials provide answers to questions about the need for new schools
Questions raised by Eye on Jacksonville concerning the proposed tax for new school buildings got a response from school officials. The school district says on its Web site that the district has been affected by state funding cuts and it acknowledged that Eye was...
Can downtown be saved? Lori Boyer is trying
It must be tough to be Lori Boyer right now. Lori is a former City Council Member and now runs the Downtown Investment Authority (DIA). Downtown development is not easy and has been a thorn in Jacksonville's side for many, many years. Jacksonville is in a messy...
City trampling all over the Request for Proposal process and we need your help
While the Feds are in Jacksonville looking at the JEA sales process, we believe they will stumble upon some unfair business practices...specifically the Request for Proposal process. A Request for Proposal (RFP) allows our government entities to compare various...
JEA Board: It’s time to Admit. Apologize. Act.
The headlines in the local newspapers created head-shaking. But I wasn't surprised. All the fingers are pointing and those who made poor decisions are looking for others to blame. It's pretty typical of weak leadership. And at this point in time, the JEA Board is weak...
Local schools want more money for new buildings, but how badly are they needed?
Government schools in Jacksonville are conducting a sales campaign in favor of a half-cent sales tax they hope local taxpayers will approve. But their main sales point is a little suspect. The school system says it needs to build new schools because it has not kept up...
Care about our city? Join this group
OurJax is a newly formed group of concerned citizens who care deeply about the governance of our beloved City of Jacksonville. Sounds like our kind of people!! Because of the recent JEA debacle and some other issues that have raised red flags about our city...
BREAKING NEWS: Two Melissa’s do the right thing for our city today!
It is not a great day in Jacksonville yet it's a great day in Jacksonville.What was great? Two very strong leaders in our community, Melissa Nelson and Melissa Dykes, both did the right thing today. Melissa #1: State Attorney Melissa Nelson announced she...
Crime rates are not as malleable as the media seems to think
The local media in Jacksonville is going through another spate of hand-wringing over the crime rate and looking for someone to blame. The usual remedy is to hire more police. That decreases response times, which means police get to a crime scene quicker. But it does...
Fight over 5G wireless technology is heating up in Jax
Residents of Jacksonville who are concerned about the new 5G technology are continuing to press the City Council over proposed changes in local law that would enable its rollout in Jacksonville. Last week at a workshop, city laws provided a comparison of what the...
Mayor Curry’s legacy: The toxicity of our City
I’ve seen Mayor Curry’s “leadership” traits before. Sadly many of you have seen similar leadership in the workforce. His leadership style is toxic. Books have been written about toxic leadership and in an article in Psychology Today, dated July 6, 2016, it...
All the Mayor’s Men have made a mess again
Over the weekend another news outlet uncovered information about the men around Mayor Curry. According to the Florida Times Union, Mayor Curry's political strategist, Tim Baker, sat in on numerous JEA "closed-door" meetings at the insistence of Aaron Zahn - now the...
2019 didn’t work out too well for the Great JEA Sale Caper
Demolition of the Jacksonville Landing produced a large pile of rubble but the debris was small compared to the wreckage of the JEA sale scheme. In what probably was the biggest local story of 2019, an effort to sell the city’s water and utility company took off and...
Jacksonville Leaders: It’s time for some mirror reflecting work.
In 2018, Eye on Jacksonville was formed to Promote Integrity and Transparency and Expose Corruption and Cronyism in our city leadership. There were signs forming that an entity such as Eye was needed. With the help of a former Editor of the Florida Times Union, Lloyd...
City Council listening to telecom lobbyists and refuse to listen to concerned Moms. Wrong!
A letter submitted by Lauren Galvin, a concerned mom, to the Editor of Eye on Jacksonville has some great questions for our City Council. Parents MUST pay attention. Read and response please. ------------ Is City Council showing favor to the interests of...
Zahn is leaving JEA post but many questions remain behind him
Aaron Zahn Aaron Zahn is out, but hold back your tears. He was named CEO of JEA last year, despite having no qualifications other than being a friend of Mayor Lenny Curry. He pretty much screwed up what apparently was his No. 1 job – selling the JEA. Despite that, he...
Mayor Curry Table Slapping. Cue: He’s stressed. Rightly so.
Mayor Lenny Curry I heard Mayor Curry speak last week at a special event. I was concerned with his demeanor and he appeared to be rattled a little. I can understand why. There is a lot of chaos going on downtown and JEA is certainly one of the biggest issues he is...
City Council takes on the issue of Human Trafficking in North Florida. Good for them!
Eye on Jacksonville sends a Big Wink to the City Council for taking up the issue of Human Trafficking in our community. Unfortunately our state ranks third in the United States behind California and Texas for human trafficking cases AND Jacksonville is the...
EYE was at the biggest political gathering where JEA was the talk of the night
One of the biggest gatherings of political players in the city is the annual holiday party held by former Mayor Jake Godbold. Eye on Jacksonville was there for the 2019 version this week. Just a few of the people sighted: Godbold, of course -- this year, sadly, in a...
Two letters are sent, as the JEA issue heats up
Mayor Lenny Curry is changing course on the JEA sale, after receiving a polite but pointed letter from the Jacksonville Civic Council. The civic council’s JEA Subcommittee, consisting of Michael Ward, Bobby Stein and Jeanne Miller, asked Curry to switch from the...
City Council was in a hurry to shovel more money out the door
One of the City Council’s more preposterous actions took place recently when it passed a highly greased bill handing $850,000 in cash to a multi-billion-dollar company. Winn-Dixie is the recipient. All the company has to do to “earn” the money is open a grocery in the...
City Haul has run out of original ideas
Rendering to replace The Landing? Renderings published in the media indicate Mayor Lenny Curry is opting for a new bum magnet in the heart of Jacksonville. To replace the Jacksonville Landing – which just 30 years ago was considered the “catalyst” for downtown...
Ted Yoho Term Limited himself
Rep. Ted Yoho U.S. Rep. Ted Yoho is leaving Congress, as he promised when he ran for office. It is a loss that highlights the problem with term limits. Term limits for Congress is an idea that continues to be voiced whenever public frustration with Congress flares up...
What does El Paso Utility sale have to do with JEA sale?
Eye received a message from a JEA employee who did not identify himself. He said, "You need to check out the El Paso, Texas Utility deal. Very similar to what is going on at JEA." The JEA employee is fearful of being identified and that makes our blood boil at Eye....
Latest fiasco another indicator change is needed at JEA
Thank goodness for the City Council auditor and the General Counsel’s Office. Together they exposed the JEA’s boneheaded performance pay plan scheme as illegal and financially ridiculous. It was not always that way. JEA began paying for performance in 1990. Used...
A picture is worth a thousand words or millions of incentives for Friends of the Mayor?
Tear down of the Landing This picture taken by Sky 4 today says exactly how I feel about our Mayor's Administration. A mess. No words can explain about another bad deal on the banks of the St. Johns River. I've grown up here and the ONLY time anything ever finalized...
Downtown making a U turn?
After decades of trying to make traffic move quicker and smoother, local officials apparently have decided to make a U-turn and slow everything down. In the 1950s, many downtown streets and streets leading to downtown from the suburbs were changed to one-way traffic....
Curry botched the job of selling the idea of selling the JEA — but maybe he can get it back on track
Maybe the most remarkable thing about the JEA sale controversy is how big a mess it has become. Credit Mayor Lenny Curry. He made Aaron Zahn head of the independent authority – over more qualified people – for the purpose of leading the sale effort. Then he pretended...
Calm down: Another take on the JEA frenzy
There are a lot of calls in social media and elsewhere to “stop the process” of determining how much the city-owned utility JEA is worth. Why? What possibly could be wrong with determining its value? The city’s property appraiser doesn’t know. Neither does anyone...
Should we pardon the Mayor or send him a message, “We beg your pardon Mayor!!”
President Trump pardoned two turkeys yesterday at the White House. He had the power to do so. Jacksonville residents have the power to pardon our Mayor and others when they do not do what is in the best interest of their constituents. Today's question is this: Are you...
