Sam Mousa: No investments for Downtown until pension reform

[thelakelander]

 

http://www.bizjournals.com/jacksonville/news/2016/01/27/sam-mousa-no-investments-for-downtown-until.html

[brainstormer]

Doesn't this seem very shortsighted? It's kind of like saying you can't have a cookie until you eat your plate of brussel sprouts. This seems like an easy excuse for not doing anything. Just blame it on pension reform. If Curry's bill in the legislature isn't approved, then what?

[MusicMan]

Damn people wake up!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Lenny Curry does not give a damn about downtown Jacksonville.

What kind of proof do you need?

[CCMjax]

I don't get it.  Didn't Brown spend about 4 years trying to reform the pension issues and didn't he run a re-election campaign that consisted of him claiming pension reform was one of his big accomplishments?  I seem to remember that claim.  What exactly did Brown accomplish on this subject and how many thousands of hours were wasted on getting nothing done.  Seems like Curry pretty much started over figuring it all out.

[RattlerGator]

Seems prudent to me; first things first. He gets what he wants from the Legislature, then uses this pronouncement to get the necessary movement locally for the issue to be resolved -- then move forward with other matters.

[Non-RedNeck Westsider]

[Shad, you good?  Great.  I gotta go be mayor now and make a statement.]

Now it's time for pension reform. 

No 'more' downtown investments from the city until we figure this shitshow out.

[MusicMan]

Next thing you know he'll invite "The Donald" in to make a deal.

Rattler Gator, don't hold your breath.

[Kay]

It's a shortsighted approach.  Revitalizing downtown increases property values which in turn increases taxes.  Unless the City is stupid and puts more money into the Shipyards, for example, than the actual developer and gets no return because they also give Khan a rev grant.

[thelakelander]

Does this mean the Trio is DOA?

[Chris Hand]

I don't get it.  Didn't Brown spend about 4 years trying to reform the pension issues and didn't he run a re-election campaign that consisted of him claiming pension reform was one of his big accomplishments?  I seem to remember that claim.  What exactly did Brown accomplish on this subject and how many thousands of hours were wasted on getting nothing done.  Seems like Curry pretty much started over figuring it all out.

Thanks for asking. What Mayor Brown and our team accomplished was a comprehensive pension reform agreement between the City of Jacksonville (COJ) and the Police and Fire Pension Fund (PFPF) which was projected to save taxpayers more than $1.5 billion. The agreement modified benefits for both current and future employees, established stringent new accountability and transparency reforms for the PFPF, returned negotiations over pension benefits to collective bargaining, and provided a framework for the COJ and PFPF to work together in paying down the fund's unfunded pension liability.

Pension reform is critical for the City's financial future and efforts to achieve it have spanned multiple administrations. Mayor Peyton launched the effort, Mayor Brown achieved the above-referenced comprehensive agreement, and Mayor Curry has now taken the next step in advocating a funding method for addressing the unfunded liability. All of them deserve credit for their attention to this challenge.

Below are some clips about the comprehensive pension reform agreement that was enacted on June 19, 2015. Please do not hesitate to let me know if you have questions or need more information.

http://www.coj.net/welcome/news/mayor,-pension-board-accomplish-historic-reform.aspx

http://jacksonville.com/news/crime/2015-06-19/story/major-jacksonville-pension-reform-bill-gets-green-light

http://floridapolitics.com/archives/185271-lenny-curry-on-jax-pension-deal-a-tremendous-step

[CCMjax]

Does this mean the Trio is DOA?

Spoke with some people from the design team the other day and they had a meeting on it yesterday.  Not sure what came out of it.

[MusicMan]

I'm having a hard time understanding the "no investments for downtown: concept. How about "no investments for all of Jacksonville" until this is ironed out. Why punish downtown, an area that is in desperate need of an economic boost? Does the ban on investing include any other area? Or am I misunderstanding the article?

[Captain Zissou]

I don't understand.  When the pension issue was first mentioned (back in like 2008), I understood it to mean that the city contributed each year and another portion was covered by the assumption that the investments would appreciate to increase the total pension fund value.  This worked fine until the market crashed and took out all of that capital appreciation and then some, which the city had to cover in order to honor its obligation. 

Since that time, the market has more than recovered.  Unless we pulled our investments at the bottom (the worst thing you can do), and then reinvested at the top (the second worst thing you can do), I don't understand why millions or billions haven't been added back into the fund due to the market recovering. 

What am I missing?

[Steve]

I'm having a hard time understanding the "no investments for downtown: concept. How about "no investments for all of Jacksonville" until this is ironed out. Why punish downtown, an area that is in desperate need of an economic boost? Does the ban on investing include any other area? Or am I misunderstanding the article?

That might be the approach. Mousa was speaking at a DIA meeting, so Downtown was the relevant topic. Plus, Mousa has a reputation for being blunt and not giving the polished, politician answer.

[thelakelander]

To some degree, it sounds like semantics. Millions will obviously be spent at EverBank Field and the courthouse parking lot site, regardless of the pension situation.