JEA Board to Consider Mass Layoffs/Privitization

[Snaketoz]

To those that didn't want JEA sold, be thankful your public officials are so incompetent. I'm not sure opponents of the sale could have drawn up a better way to kill the deal.

Selling JEA may actually be a good play for Jax, but there's no way it will have a chance after this debacle.

That may be true.  Perhaps some day we will go about it the correct way and find out.

[thelakelander]

Yeah, in a correct and transparent process, there would be a good reason proven for selling it and a plan to do something with the profits generated from a sale. Under the current scenario, we'd simply be selling to line the pockets of a few, screwing the community in the long run.

[Steve]

To those that didn't want JEA sold, be thankful your public officials are so incompetent. I'm not sure opponents of the sale could have drawn up a better way to kill the deal.

Selling JEA may actually be a good play for Jax, but there's no way it will have a chance after this debacle. 

That's the crazy thing! When this first was announced, I was generally against it but wanted to hear the argument for doing it, as I felt like I could be convinced. Now? There's no way I'd be for it, at least not while any of these folks are in leadership.

[thelakelander]

With this currently going up in smoke, does anyone expect this to negatively impact the timeline of Lot J construction?

In 2018, they claimed it would be under construction by Spring 2019:

Funding will be a mix of public and private investment. No specifics have been announced, but Jaguars President Mark Lamping said he hoped to see an economic development deal in place and construction underway by Spring 2019 on the Lot J phase, which he said represents a "sizeable portion" of the development's overall price tag.

Full article: https://www.jacksonville.com/opinion/20180617/lotj-no-time-like-present-for-25-billion-development


Just last month, the new prediction was first quarter 2020.

Khan on Saturday reiterated that the project – which is designed to continue revamping and reenergizing downtown Jacksonville around TIAA Bank Field – remains a major objective, and said he expects to break ground on it by the end of the first quarter of 2020.

Full article: https://www.jaguars.com/news/khan-talks-business-lot-j-london-more

However, incentives and tax breaks must be approved by council and the DIA. It doesn't seem like those rounds have started.

[CityLife]

To those that didn't want JEA sold, be thankful your public officials are so incompetent. I'm not sure opponents of the sale could have drawn up a better way to kill the deal.

Selling JEA may actually be a good play for Jax, but there's no way it will have a chance after this debacle. 

That's the crazy thing! When this first was announced, I was generally against it but wanted to hear the argument for doing it, as I felt like I could be convinced. Now? There's no way I'd be for it, at least not while any of these folks are in leadership.

I was curious to hear the professional sales pitch as well. Anecdotally, I have been less than impressed with JEA both as a former customer and member of the development community in Jax. I've been an FPL customer for a couple years now and have also dealt with them professionally on the private and public side, and they are in my estimation a much more well run operation. Service wise has been a night and day difference too, though my neighborhood's utilities are underground, so we never have power outages.

There's obviously a fear of a private utility becoming a monopoly and raising rates and having greater power to limit alternative power sources; but there is also the issue of professionalism. Do you want your utility company's staff and board being filled with nationwide leaders in their industry, or political appointees and cronies?

As far as prices go, FPL's rates are lower than JEA's and that is even including franchise fees. The gap would likely be even greater when adjusted for cost of living differences.

See rate comparisons here:
https://assets.noviams.com/novi-file-uploads/fmea/Rates/2019/2019_october_rates.pdf

Jacksonville and it's residents, unfortunately, will not even get an opportunity to make a fair evaluation of the worthiness of selling. Sad times.

[vicupstate]

To those that didn't want JEA sold, be thankful your public officials are so incompetent. I'm not sure opponents of the sale could have drawn up a better way to kill the deal.

Selling JEA may actually be a good play for Jax, but there's no way it will have a chance after this debacle. 

That's the crazy thing! When this first was announced, I was generally against it but wanted to hear the argument for doing it, as I felt like I could be convinced. Now? There's no way I'd be for it, at least not while any of these folks are in leadership.

That anyone could trust anything coming from this administration going forward is just beyond me. When someone shows you who they are, believe them.   

[vicupstate]

As far as prices go, FPL's rates are lower than JEA's and that is even including franchise fees. The gap would likely be even greater when adjusted for cost of living differences.

It was not that long ago that JEA had the lowest rates in FL and among the lowest in the broader region.

The bottom line difference to JAX area taxpayers/ratepayers is probably pretty significant in favor of public ownership as the annual contribution is far greater than privately paid property taxes would be. I think there is significant subsidy by electric of water/sewer infrastructure as well.     

[CityLife]

As far as prices go, FPL's rates are lower than JEA's and that is even including franchise fees. The gap would likely be even greater when adjusted for cost of living differences.

It was not that long ago that JEA had the lowest rates in FL and among the lowest in the broader region.

Someone correct me if I'm wrong, because I'm by no means strong in this area, but didn't JEA make catastrophically bad investments in coal years ago? I remember being at a lunch at JEA a few years back where they said due to new environmental regulations, coal plants they built are being decommissioned much more quickly than initially projected from their initial bond issuance. I would imagine that loss is now being passed on to customers.

Residents of Jacksonville will be more vulnerable in the future to mistakes like this than they would be from a firm with a more diversified portfolio of energy sources, not to mention economies of scale.

[Steve]

It was not that long ago that JEA had the lowest rates in FL and among the lowest in the broader region.

And while doing that, JEA deferred infrastructure investments, made some poor investment choices in power plants, and really didn't do a good  job keeping their house in order. JEA's rates were, in my eyes, artificially low.

I'm not saying they should let Curry sell the thing. But, JEA has been managed in a sub par manner prior to Aaron Zahn.

[thelakelander]

JEA Vice President and Legal Officer Lynne Rhode resigns

JEA Vice President and Legal Officer Lynne Rhode is out at the city-owned utility.

Rhode submitted her letter of resignation to the City Office of General Counsel effective Dec. 19, according to City Assistant Director of Public Affairs James Croft. City Deputy of Government Operations Lawsikia Hodges will fill Rhode's position on an interim basis.

She is the second executive out of a position at JEA this week.

https://www.jaxdailyrecord.com/article/jea-vice-president-and-legal-officer-lynne-rhode-resigns

[jaxlongtimer]

JEA Vice President and Legal Officer Lynne Rhode resigns

Not just resigned but skewered the Office of General Counsel and is threatening to sue!  A new wound opened.  Curry administration starting to fall apart at the seems?  Controversy is showing up at every turn.

https://www.jacksonville.com/news/20191220/jea-top-lawyer-involved-in-bonus-plan-scandal-resigns-says-city-attorneys-were-rsquofully-informed-and-engagedrsquo-with-utility-dealings

And, now, there is this about Zahn and Curry!  From a contractor, no less, traditionally a Curry constituency.

Semanik is a major investor in BCR Environmental Inc., a company that treats bio-waste, and for eight years employed Zahn as its CEO. Semanik described Zahn's tenure at BCR as a "trainwreck" and said the company terminated him in 2017. These are details about Zahn's background that have never been publicly discussed...

...Semanik isn't surprised by the turmoil that unfolded under Zahn.

"He was terminated at BCR because he wrecked the company," Semanik said in an interview Wednesday. "You can't trust him. He's truly dangerous to anyone who employs him, as he was for BCR."

...Semanik said he spoke to JEA board members about Zahn's struggles at BCR, although he wouldn't say who he spoke with. He said he believed Curry orchestrated the move to put Zahn in control of JEA.

"I think he's (Zahn) an embarrassment to our city, and anyone who assisted Lenny Curry in his placement is an embarrassment as well," Semanik said.

https://www.jacksonville.com/news/20191220/ousted-jea-ceo-aaron-zahn-was-rsquoterminatedrsquo-by-former-employer-in-2017-according-to-investor

https://www.jacksonville.com/news/20191220/nate-monroe-feud-shows-outside-investigators-not-city-lawyers-need-to-probe-jea-controversies

[CityLife]

As far as prices go, FPL's rates are lower than JEA's and that is even including franchise fees. The gap would likely be even greater when adjusted for cost of living differences.

It was not that long ago that JEA had the lowest rates in FL and among the lowest in the broader region.

Residents of Jacksonville will be more vulnerable in the future to mistakes like this than they would be from a firm with a more diversified portfolio of energy sources, not to mention economies of scale.

Speaking of this, does anyone know if JEA will be lowering rates soon? FPL is reducing rates (slightly) due to investments in natural gas and solar.

Florida Power & Light Co. says residential customers will see monthly electric bills fall by an average of $3.86 starting in January.

FPL, the state's largest utility, said Thursday that the price of 1,000 kilowatt hours of electricity will fall to $96.04 in 2020, down from $99.90 this year.

FPL and other utilities have benefited from plummeting price of natural gas, a key energy source for power plants. The utility also says it's reaping rewards from its investments in solar.

"Our long-term investments in state-of-the-art clean energy centers and in zero-emissions solar energy are helping to lower fuel costs and customer bills," FPL President and Chief Executive Eric Silagy said in a statement. "We are focused on continuing to find innovative ways to save our customers money while providing industry-leading reliability."

https://www.palmbeachpost.com/business/20191219/fpl-to-reduce-power-bills-in-2020-as-natural-gas-prices-plummet

[thelakelander]

Mayor Lenny Curry tells JEA to stop sales talks

https://www.jacksonville.com/news/20191223/mayor-lenny-curry-tells-jea-to-stop-sales-talks

[tufsu1]

^ Lenny Curry - "the public has lost faith in the process."

I'm sorry sir but you may be missing a large part of this.

[jaxlongtimer]

^ Lenny Curry - "the public has lost faith in the process."

I'm sorry sir but you may be missing a large part of this.

Agreed.  Quote should be "the public has lost faith in the Mayor and everything he touches..."

Like the Jags he so slovenly drools over, City Hall needs a complete make over at the top of the organization.  The parallels can't be ignored.  Dictatorial style is out of vogue.