-
A little something you can do to Get Out The Vote – from your home!
This suggested letter was sent to us by a Eye on Jacksonville follower. He did not want to be identified BUT we felt it was a great ACTION ITEM that anyone could do. If you would like to send the same letter OR walk your neighborhood and leave it on the front door, go for…
-
Be afraid. Be very afraid of Gillum for Governor. He’s a dangerous man.
When Andrew Gillum won the Democratic primary for the Governor’s house in Tallahassee, the media and the people were scratching their heads. How could that be? Who in the world is Andrew Gillum? Where did he come from? How did he win with very little name recognition outside of Tallahassee? Trevor Loudon, a well…
-
What will happen to the Times Union artifacts. Lloyd Brown snoops it out.
When I was a teen-aged copy boy for the Jacksonville Journal, I often was called upon to go to the morgue – a large room filled with file cabinets containing clippings of all stories published in the Journal. I liked my job and was quite distressed when, while on a visit to Tampa, I picked…
-
Eye’s Lloyd Brown unravels Amendments on the ballot. Whew!
Recently, the Daily Record quoted Hank Coxe, one of Jacksonville’s most well-known lawyers and a member of the Constitutional Revision Commission, as saying the commission’s role in the amendment process was flawed. It seems that politics interfere, in his opinion. I was not as shocked as Coxe to find that politics is involved in a…
-
Conflict of Interest and Poor Business Decision in the Mayor’s Office
The headline read, “Mayor’s chief of staff Brian Hughes to serve as interim DIA CEO.” Conflict of interest — first thing I thought. And I was not alone with that thought either. Twitter went crazy and even one of the members of the DIA questioned if it was a good move. Of course it is…
-
Polling genius, Consolidation expert & Jax native Pat Caddell: “Dems hijacked by a confederacy of gangsters”
(In the run-up to the 50th anniversary of consolidation, we have written several columns on the history of that local political miracle.) During the heated process of bringing about consolidation, one of the lesser known parts was played by Pat Caddell. Today, Caddell is known as a polling genius who has worked for a number…
-
Special Report: JEA…Who or What caused this Stinking mess?
In 1973, JEA seemingly was sitting pretty: 100 percent dependent on oil to produce electricity and invested in a long-term fuel contract to buy oil. Suddenly, a little known outfit called OPEC – an Arab oil cartel – decided to triple the price of oil. The wise men who had secured that contract now looked…
-
Jacksonville Transportation Future: BIG Dreams. BIG Visions. BIG Debt.
Last week I attended an event, Infrastructure: Beyond the Pavement, put on by the North Florida Urban Land Institute moderated by Daniel Davis, President & CEO of Jax Chamber. Present were representatives from local government, contracting companies, technology companies, Jacksonville Transportation Authority, and North Florida Transportation Planning Organization. Development of downtown, transportation, and technology were…
-
The Past:Unadorned facts about things that mattered and clearly labeled opinions backed up with facts.
If I had not retired 14 years ago, I would now be preparing to move into a new building for the fourth time. When I went to work for the Jacksonville Journal at Church and Laura streets, the Russians were about to put the world’s first satellite into orbit and federal troops were escorting kids…
-
Consolidation: White hats and Black hats were part of the story!
In a few weeks, the city will celebrate a momentous event that only a few people seem to remember or appreciate. In 1967, the voters decided by a 2-to-1 margin that they wanted to consolidate the city and county governments in Jacksonville. It was a bold move. A previous attempt in 1935 had failed and…
-
Preschool Teacher “schools” the adults about shooters on campus
Duval County Public Schools and some local private schools are using training videos to educate our children regarding active shooters on campus. We heard from a retired 37 year preschool teacher who was horrified with the videos. She said the videos were inappropriate for young children. They were not well done. They were unemotional. …
-
Want to know how to make Jacksonville’s downtown Great Again? Tough love!
We were excited to spend Saturday night with my son and daughter in love celebrating her birthday. We decided on the coolest, most expensive restaurant in downtown Jacksonville, Cowford Chophouse. We drove downtown and our path took us by The Landing. We all looked at the building that had been home to so many fun…