Mobility Live blog

fsujax · October 09, 2012, 07:15:27 PM

There was no bill introduced. There was a good turnout. Many of us turned in cards but did not speak.

Bridges · October 09, 2012, 07:29:57 PM

Quote from: fsujax on October 09, 2012, 07:15:27 PM
There was no bill introduced. There was a good turnout. Many of us turned in cards but did not speak.

I turned in a card but didn't speak once i heard Bishops statement.

dougskiles · October 09, 2012, 07:38:34 PM

Great showing tonight by the Mobility Plan advocates.

This is far from over. We need to be prepared for the eventual filing of another moratorium bill. With any luck, the message we have been sending these past few weeks (punctuated by tonight) will make it clear the support for the Mobility Plan and the Mobility Fee.

And many people with more great points to make did not speak, saving their comments for if/when a bill is filed.

Writing this reminds of the man we need to thank for even having a Mobility Plan to defend in the first place, Mr. Bill Killingsworth. Thanks for your vision, Bill.

JeffreyS · October 09, 2012, 07:53:14 PM

Great job everyone I couldn't make it tonight but in light of past communications with council members I know there is still some support for selling out to a few stucco developers. We will have to continue to support this great plan. Again kudos to those of you who showed up and the organizations who stood up thanks.

simms3 · October 09, 2012, 07:55:49 PM

Sounds like a very successful CC meeting. Repeats of this forever and ever, please. All citizens on the side of right, speaking up.

fsujax · October 09, 2012, 07:57:20 PM

Doug thanks for rallying the troops. Together we can make a difference.

sheclown · October 09, 2012, 08:11:43 PM

Quote from: dougskiles on October 09, 2012, 07:38:34 PM
Great showing tonight by the Mobility Plan advocates.

This is far from over. We need to be prepared for the eventual filing of another moratorium bill. With any luck, the message we have been sending these past few weeks (punctuated by tonight) will make it clear the support for the Mobility Plan and the Mobility Fee.

And many people with more great points to make did not speak, saving their comments for if/when a bill is filed.

Writing this reminds of the man we need to thank for even having a Mobility Plan to defend in the first place, Mr. Bill Killingsworth. Thanks for your vision, Bill.

Indeed!

fieldafm · October 09, 2012, 10:05:54 PM

Tonight I fell in love with my city all over again.

Thank you to everyone that came out in support.

JeffreyS · October 09, 2012, 10:11:23 PM

^Like

Ocklawaha · October 09, 2012, 10:41:42 PM

Well it all ended pretty quickly, there was nothing introduced that would extend the moratorium. I didn't get a chance to close out this live-blog properly as I have to commute about 40 miles (future commuter rail customer) to get back to the ranch.

We must all watch the agenda's in the upcoming council meetings and be as ready as the minutemen to again show our solidarity on this important issue.

I truly believe that this plan, if enacted, would be the start of a whole new Jacksonville boom, and if the moratorium continues, it will be the end of the city as a contender in 2Nd tier cities.

Dog Walker · October 10, 2012, 07:52:12 AM

My favorite moment was when all those present to support the ending of the moratorium were asked to stand up and 90% of the people in the chamber did. I think I heard all of the members of the Council gasp in surprise.

At this point any Council member who votes to extend the moratorium can kiss reelection goodbye.

Sorry, Tony.

CityLife · October 10, 2012, 08:29:37 AM

Quote from: stephendare on October 09, 2012, 11:06:20 PM
Special credit really has to go to Doug Skiles and Mike Field and all of the advocacy work that they did behind the scenes and the presentations and brilliant job that Doug did in making the case to the community.

Seriously...these two are superhuman. I'm pretty sure Mike Field has at least two clones, maybe three. Doug got to work studying the Mobility Fee, costs of sprawl, etc last year after the moratorium and hasn't let up. Lets not forget Ennis's work here on MJ about the mobility fee either.

Hats off to everyone who helped the above, sent in emails, and went to speak last night. Not out of the woods yet, but the first round goes to the good guys.

Tacachale · October 10, 2012, 08:45:39 AM

So what happened to the pro moratorium crowd? Could this have been a false alarm, or did the strong showing prevent the introduction of a new bill? What happens if a similar bill gets introduced in committee?

sheclown · October 10, 2012, 08:47:40 AM

Quote from: stephendare on October 09, 2012, 11:06:20 PM
Tonight was a real win for the good guys.

RAP, SMarco preservation, SPAR, all of the CPACs, BikeJax, Transform Jax, San Marco By Design, the Sierra Club, and many concerned citizens from metrojacksonville all showed up and the council had to recognize the will of the public.

Special credit really has to go to Doug Skiles and Mike Field and all of the advocacy work that they did behind the scenes and the presentations and brilliant job that Doug did in making the case to the community.

This evening we couldnt have been prouder than to have the amazing people who were all on the same side, working for the right cause.

It was quiet, decisive, and for the greater good.

So privileged to be associated with this group----which itself was comprised of many groups.

Thanks to everyone for demonstrating what a little good faith will do.

yes!

dougskiles · October 10, 2012, 08:58:44 AM

Quote from: Tacachale on October 10, 2012, 08:45:39 AM
So what happened to the pro moratorium crowd? Could this have been a false alarm, or did the strong showing prevent the introduction of a new bill? What happens if a similar bill gets introduced in committee?

It is coming. Trust me. There is too much money on the line for them not to fight for this. Their message will be about JOBS JOBS JOBS. They have an advantage of a certain emotional appeal in that argument, however, it is also a simple one to refute. None of the statistics point to the moratorium as creating a net of new jobs.

Some points to make in this regard:

1. Just as many jobs, if not more, are created when an aging shopping center is redeveloped. Why? Because bringing life back to an area of blight creates more business opportunity for the entire neighborhood. If you want to get Councilman Warren Jones fired up, talk about redevelopment opportunities in District 9. Councilman Jones is one of the heroes on City Council. I can't say enough about my respect for him and his leadership. We should start naming streets after the man.

2. Specific jobs incentives similar to what Paul Crawford is doing with the Lime Manufacturing plant are much more effective, and fair, methods of incentivizing job creation locally. When they do these programs, they are careful not to steal jobs from existing companies (which is exactly what a fee moratorium does in retail business - no net new created by retail) AND the job creation is measurable AND the performance is guaranteed (or no tax abatement).

3. Just as many construction jobs are created by the construction companies building the rail lines, bike lanes, road widenings and sidewalks from the Mobility projects as are created by the development. The difference is that at the end of the infrastructure project, the community owns the product and gets the value, while at the end of the private project, the private owner gets the value. Going deeper, the infrastructure sets up the construction of more private development, giving them more options. It still is surpising to me that they are fighting this.