Let’s Get Back to the Basics at JTA

[vicupstate]

It seems that, especially, first term mayors try to tread carefully regarding existing major projects that fall into their laps and to avoid conflicts with colleagues leading government entities. 

A very salient point. Which is just one more reason why it sucks that JAX Mayors have a two term term limit.

I have seen a number of mayors make a profound difference in their cities. Differences that last generations. Very few of them served only two terms.

[CityLife]

Storm clouds forming over JTA.  Not a fan of our State Attorney General but I get his vibe on this one.  I wonder if it would be better to be investigated by the State or U.S. Attorneys instead.  No matter what, an investigation by someone is called for.

Florida attorney general launches probe of JTA amid financial crisis
https://www.jacksonville.com/story/news/local/2026/09/29/florida-attorney-general-issues-subpoena-to-jta/92000618007/

Being bad at business and decision making isn't illegal.

This is a 100% political fishing expedition to see if any negative headlines can be generated for the anti-Donna campaign.

As predicted, the fishing expedition has begun.

By many accounts, including those on city council, the significant decisions/discussion regarding these issues date back to 2021, but the subpoena only dates back to 2023.

The subpoena directly aligns with Megan Hayward's term on the JTA Board. She joined in October 2023 and left in March 2025. The subpoena requests documents from October 1, 2025 to March 31, 2025.

Seems pretty clear she is working with the Florida AG.

This new article is interesting. It notes that Hayward raised concerns to the Mayor about a contract and Nat Ford's wife. It's presumably the same contract being subpoenaed (Dreambuilders Consulting). Hayward also claims she was going to vote out the U2C project and that is why she was removed. Action New Jax

Action News Jax's Ben Becker has obtained handwritten notes from Jacksonville Mayor Donna Deegan's office that are now part of the Florida Attorney General's investigation into the Jacksonville Transportation Authority.

The notes, which the mayor's office previously argued were personal and not public records, were subpoenaed by the Attorney General on Tuesday to document a March 2025 meeting between Deegan and former JTA board member Megan Hayward.

Deegan has maintained their meeting primarily centered on declining ridership and concerns about a contract involving outgoing JTA CEO Nat Ford's wife.

However, the handwritten, one page of notes taken by a mayoral staffer suggest the discussion may have extended beyond those topics.

Among the entries are references to CEO evaluations, employee turnover, and one notation that reads: "U2C $800 million Skyway."

Last month, Hayward suggested her opposition to the project played a role in her removal from the board and that Deegan was aware of her financial concerns.

Hayward: "And because she knew I was going to vote off the U2C project, I'm assuming that's why she kicked me off. She's lying."

[Ken_FSU]

Among the entries are references to CEO evaluations, employee turnover, and one notation that reads: "U2C $800 million Skyway."

Last month, Hayward suggested her opposition to the project played a role in her removal from the board and that Deegan was aware of her financial concerns.

Hayward: "And because she knew I was going to vote off the U2C project, I'm assuming that's why she kicked me off. She's lying."

I won't pretend to know the full details here. Very open to the possibility that Hayward is telling the truth, but I also won't call for the head of an otherwise great mayor based on a contextless four-word U2C bulletpoint scrawled onto a sheet of scrap paper, her self-admitted "assumptions" about Deegan's motives, and an AG who has been playing gotcha with this administration for years.

This is the same AG that has been throwing shit against the wall to try to crucify Donna since the day she took office. Immigration enforcement. The JEA/Ballard thing. For having the audacity to appear at an apolitical event held by local Palestinians. For trying to keep track of weapons entering city buildings. Etc.

Would TRULY be dumb as rocks if this AG probe was more about trying to make Deegan look bad than it was about trying to figure out what the hell went wrong at JTA.

[fsu813]

Storm clouds forming over JTA.  Not a fan of our State Attorney General but I get his vibe on this one.  I wonder if it would be better to be investigated by the State or U.S. Attorneys instead.  No matter what, an investigation by someone is called for.

Florida attorney general launches probe of JTA amid financial crisis
https://www.jacksonville.com/story/news/local/2026/09/29/florida-attorney-general-issues-subpoena-to-jta/92000618007/

Being bad at business and decision making isn't illegal.

This is a 100% political fishing expedition to see if any negative headlines can be generated for the anti-Donna campaign.

As predicted, the fishing expedition has begun.

By many accounts, including those on city council, the significant decisions/discussion regarding these issues date back to 2021, but the subpoena only dates back to 2023.

The subpoena directly aligns with Megan Hayward's term on the JTA Board. She joined in October 2023 and left in March 2025. The subpoena requests documents from October 1, 2025 to March 31, 2025.

Seems pretty clear she is working with the Florida AG.

This new article is interesting. It notes that Hayward raised concerns to the Mayor about a contract and Nat Ford's wife. It's presumably the same contract being subpoenaed (Dreambuilders Consulting). Hayward also claims she was going to vote out the U2C project and that is why she was removed. Action New Jax

Action News Jax's Ben Becker has obtained handwritten notes from Jacksonville Mayor Donna Deegan's office that are now part of the Florida Attorney General's investigation into the Jacksonville Transportation Authority.

The notes, which the mayor's office previously argued were personal and not public records, were subpoenaed by the Attorney General on Tuesday to document a March 2025 meeting between Deegan and former JTA board member Megan Hayward.

Deegan has maintained their meeting primarily centered on declining ridership and concerns about a contract involving outgoing JTA CEO Nat Ford's wife.

However, the handwritten, one page of notes taken by a mayoral staffer suggest the discussion may have extended beyond those topics.

Among the entries are references to CEO evaluations, employee turnover, and one notation that reads: "U2C $800 million Skyway."

Last month, Hayward suggested her opposition to the project played a role in her removal from the board and that Deegan was aware of her financial concerns.

Hayward: "And because she knew I was going to vote off the U2C project, I'm assuming that's why she kicked me off. She's lying."

^ right. I believe the media and many people are conflating a few issues: JTA's current financial hole and what the former board member was concerned about at the time.

I mentioned this in a thread a couple weeks ago, but the former board member's concerns at the time weren't about a pending massive financial hole, they were about potential ethical conflicts and the accuracy of data being reported. The current financial debt and those concerns aren't directly related, which many don't seem to understand, but it does paint a picture of poor/problematic leadership.

Of note: city council says they investigated the concerns prior confirming the replacement of the board member.

[CityLife]

Deegan falling for NAVI reminds me of John Peyton getting snookered by the Chief Judge over the courthouse project.  It seems that, especially, first term mayors try to tread carefully regarding existing major projects that fall into their laps and to avoid conflicts with colleagues leading government entities.  They want/need to pick and choose their battles in an attempt to build political capital.

Spot on. There is also likely a very steep learning curve for any new mayor and administration that comes in. Especially one (and many senior staff members) that doesn't have experience in City government or City Council.  There is also a much heavier work load and need to work on a wide range of projects at the same time than people realize. The average person would have nervous breakdown's if they had to deal with the myriad of issues and problems that a Mayor and Senior Staff have to deal with at any given time.

When Deegan first announced she was running in 2021, I pointed out that her lack of experience in politics or law would be a handicap (see below for some interesting points). She can actually use this to her advantage here. Think how many times in your own life or career, you have said, I wish I knew now what I knew then. 

I don't think Deegan should have been expected to come in right away and catch everything, especially since she came in as an outsider. In her first year or two, she was still trying to figure out the lay of the land. Hire the right people, put out fires left from Curry, and work on the Jags deal.

I think she could have won some points out of this ordeal by basically saying that in her first year her priorities were getting the Jags deal done, fixing Downtown parks and development, hiring the right people, and fixing organizational issues. Then say that like others she did not want to rock the boat at JTA since the U2C was already far along and it looked like the Holon deal could be a big economic development win for the City. Then say that as time went on, she has come to realize that the U2C and Ford were problems and that she is relieved to see Ford leave for Dallas and the U2C put on ice. She could have just come out and said that she regrets what happened with Hayward and if she knew then what she knows now, she would reconsider how things went down.

Instead, she is going to be at serious risk of re-election if any actual wrongdoings are found by the AG. 

Here are some posts from 2021
https://forum.metrojacksonville.com/index.php/topic,36694.msg511555.html#msg511555

Is there another large city in the country where two former newscasters would even be considered top candidates for Mayor? I know Joyce Morgan is a councilperson now, but she doesn't seem to be one of the stronger ones.

Let's take a look at what current mayors of major Florida cities did before their roles:

St. Pete-Lawyer turned City Councilman then State Congressman
Tampa-Former Police Chief
Miami-Lawyer turned City Commissioner
Orlando-Lawyer turned State Senator
Fort Lauderdale-Lawyer turned City Commissioner
West Palm Beach-Lawyer turned City Commissioner
Tallahassee-MPA/MURP, governmental consultant turned County Commissioner
Sarasota-Lawyer turned City Councilor
Lakeland-Businessman
Pensacola-Businessman turned County Commissioner
Gainesville-Masters in Poli Sci turned City Commissioner

What do you see there? A lot of lawyers and all but one was a politician (or department head in the case of Tampa). Most of them rose from the ranks of their council. Transitioning from council allows them come into their mayoral terms with lots of institutional knowledge, understanding of processes, and a firm grasp on major initiatives and vision; as well as knowledge of strengths/weaknesses of the organization.

Jacksonville keeps electing people with absolutely zero experience working in local government, law, or politics; and then residents wonder why it's a horribly run city that doesn't come close to capitalizing on it's potential. The last three mayors have absolutely no experience in local government or law:

Lenny Curry-Accountant and former chair of Republican Party in Florida.

Alvin Brown-Got in with Bill Nelson and was gifted appointments to federal positions. Zero educational or work experience that would serve him in local government

John Peyton-No experience in local government and no educational background to prepare for it. Heavily backed by his family's influence.

Then our last two successful mayors:

John Delaney-Lawyer, turned COJ General Counsel, then Mayoral Chief of Staff.

Ed Austin-Lawyer, turned COJ General Counsel and State Attorney

Jacksonville needs to get back to electing lawyers and/or people with experience on Council or local government for Mayor.

In another message I pointed out

-The mayors of 18 of the 32 largest cities in the US are former City Councilors
-9 of the remaining 14 were former politicians in larger roles
-11 of the 32 have JD's (some with additional masters)
-11 of the 21 non JD's have Masters in Poli Sci, Public Policy, or Business Administration
-5 of the 10 non JD's/Masters have undergrad degrees in Poli Sci

[Charles Hunter]

Can you spell incompetence and lack of reading the room?

Jacksonville's JTA floats bringing back tolls to help close budget gap amid $39M shortfall

 Jacksonville Transportation Authority's interim CEO raised the possibility of bringing tolls back to the city as the agency looks for revenue amid layoffs and a budget shortfall.

Cleveland Ferguson told the City Council's Financial Audit and Oversight Select Committee that JTA has the authority to collect tolls and could explore working with a private partner.

Jacksonville voters approved a half-cent sales tax in 1989 to remove tolls from bridges, Ferguson said. He offered tolling as one possible revenue source, not as a finalized plan.

"Tolls would be a tough fight to rebuild," City Council President Nick Howland said. He said JTA must first stabilize its finances and right-size and optimize the agency.

The toll discussion came as council members began examining how JTA developed a nearly $39 million budget shortfall. The agency has laid off about 200 employees, and riders have faced reduced routes and longer waits.

The meeting was the first of five planned by the committee. Members said they would share relevant information with the state attorney general's office, which has issued subpoenas as part of its own investigation.

https://www.news4jax.com/news/local/2026/10/09/jacksonvilles-jta-floats-bringing-back-tolls-to-help-close-budget-gap-amid-39m-shortfall/

[thelakelander]

Lol, I'm very serious when I say one of the first things Jax needs to do to right JTA is to replace executive leadership and the board. We can't expect a group that put the organization in this hole to immediately turn around and have viable solutions to get out of it. They've failed. Clean house before coming up with future plans and dreams.

[marcuscnelson]

Well, the listing for the next permanent CEO is now available, if someone more sensible wants to throw their hat into the ring:

https://jobs.kl2connects.com/jobs/careers/377797000018471056/Chief-Executive-Officer

I suppose it's up to the appointers (DeSantis/his successor and Deegan/her successor) whether they want to replace the board members. There's perhaps an argument that some of them haven't been on the board long enough for this to be directly their fault, but I would certainly look poorly on Chair Aundra Wallace and Vice Chair Patricia Sams in particular given their championship of Ford's leadership.

[jaxlongtimer]

Lol, I'm very serious when I say one of the first things Jax needs to do to right JTA is to replace executive leadership and the board. We can't expect a group that put the organization in this hole to immediately turn around and have viable solutions to get out of it. They've failed. Clean house before coming up with future plans and dreams.

I agree with this.  No one there currently will ever regain credibility when it comes to JTA's affairs.

And, bringing up tolls is just going to make even more enemies for the JTA team.  Where would they put them, back on the bridges?  It would be political suicide.

For those newer here, in the old days, there were two tolls on I-95, one at the Fuller Warren bridge downtown and the other at Trout river, ones along the Hart Bridge expressway, on the Matthews Bridge and on JTB's first phase that ended at St. Johns Bluff road.  Dames Point was supposed to also be a toll road but the voters picked the sales tax increase to replace tolls before it opened.

Tearing down the toll booths at the Matthews Bridge:



https://www.news4jax.com/news/local/2022/06/07/a-look-back-the-toll-jacksonvilles-toll-system-had-on-the-citys-history/

[jaxlongtimer]

Not to beat a dead horse, but I will...

The below article mimics JTA's issues with NAVI.  Like Tesla, NAVI still requires a driver and is far from being truly and safely autonomous.  Given Tesla's issues after all these years, imagine how far away NAVI is from being truly autonomous.  And, the over-selling by Tesla is the same game played by JTA with NAVI.  Regulators and lawyers are circling Tesla.  The same needs to happen with JTA.

Tesla drops 'Full Self-Driving' brand name in Europe after regulator pushback

Elon Musk's automaker Tesla
 has changed the brand name of its "Full Self-Driving (Supervised)," or FSD, system in Europe to "Assisted Driving" after German regulators called the branding "somewhat misleading."...

...On Tuesday, the German Federal Ministry of Transport, known as the BMV, said in a statement that Tesla's brand name "FSD" was "somewhat misleading," adding that "It is not a system that takes over the entire driving task. Rather, it is a driver assistance system that can support certain driving tasks such as accelerating, braking, and steering. The driver must remain attentive at all times."...

...The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, the U.S. automotive safety regulator, is also investigating Tesla's FSD to determine if it is safe for drivers to use in fog, glaring sun or other reduced visibility conditions, and is investigating Tesla to determine whether FSD caused Tesla drivers to commit traffic violations — some that resulted in collisions.

In December 2025, a judge in California determined that Tesla had engaged in deceptive marketing around its Autopilot and FSD systems, falsely implying they were fully automated driving systems. Tesla has countersued the California DMV to try to shed that "false advertiser" label in a Los Angeles superior court. That litigation is ongoing.

Autonomous systems expert Missy Cummings, an engineering professor at George Mason University and outspoken critic of Tesla and other autonomous vehicle developers, said renaming FSD isn't a strong enough measure to ensure the systems are safe for broad release in Europe.

In an email to CNBC, Cummings said European agencies are "ignoring both past and ongoing NHTSA investigations" into safety defects with Tesla's FSD....

https://www.cnbc.com/2026/10/09/tesla-full-self-driving-europe-regulator.html

[jaxlongtimer]

This Times Union article appears to be a fairly presented and comprehensive review of all of Hayward's allegations and various parties' connections/comments/responses/defenses to them at the time they were made.

Ex-JTA board member turned Deegan critic is key figure in JTA probes

https://www.jacksonville.com/story/news/local/2026/10/09/former-jta-board-member-emerges-as-key-figure-in-investigations-of-jta/92132616007/

[Charles Hunter]

Here's the brochure referenced in the job listing linked above.
https://drive.google.com/file/d/14O1dr95hbhw4ssquwnOJET_67QfsH7ia/view?pli=1

The Legislature really needs to strip away all non-transit functions. Then, they can hire a Transit Professional instead of a multi-modal person.

[Charles Hunter]

Tolls? What tolls? Sounds like JTA floated a trial balloon that went over like a lead blimp.

Mayor Deegan, JTA shut down any possibility of using tolls to fix financial crisis

JTA also released a statement, which can be read below:

"The Jacksonville Transportation Authority (JTA) is setting the record straight related to reports by the media that Interim Chief Executive Officer Cleveland Ferguson III presented related to tolls during the City Council's Financial Audit and Oversight Committee meeting on Friday, October 9.

Ferguson did not propose or advocate for reinstating bridge tolls. During the discussion, he noted that tolling remains a dormant capability under the JTA's authorizing statute and referenced it in the historical context of the JTA's former role as an expressway authority.

Bridge or Road tolling was NOT presented as a proposal or recommendation to address the JTA's current financial challenges.

The JTA remains focused on the actions underway to stabilize the Authority's finances, strengthen accountability and continue providing reliable transportation services to the Jacksonville community."

[thelakelander]

More inability to read the room or the community. Its something that never should have been mentioned publicly period. But NAVI would have died years ago and JTA would have never been in this hole today if the ability to read the room has been a strong trait.