Residents urge rules committee to keep public comment at start, protest morgue in residential neighborhood

At the July 14, 2025 Rules Committee meeting in Jacksonville, multiple residents urged the committee to keep public comment at the start of council meetings and pressed officials over a newly built medical examiner’s facility they say sits within a residential neighborhood near a school.

Speakers said the proposed change to move public comment to the end of some meetings would reduce public visibility and civic engagement. “By the time the meeting is over, there’s nobody really left in the chamber to hear what the public has to say,” said Wells Totten, identifying himself as a resident and community organizer. Residents recommended a standing guarantee that public comment remain at the start of the second and fourth city council meetings.

The hearing also drew multiple comments about a medical examiner’s office and morgue built in a residential area. “The placement of the morgue…demands an environmental impact study to ensure that the children at the school 10 yards away are not being exposed to anything toxic,” said Dr. Nancy Stotts, who identified herself as a physician and gave an Atlantic Beach address for the record.

Other speakers tied the site choice to neighborhood equity and quality-of-life concerns. Roselle Van Nostrand said the project was placed in a historically redlined, predominantly African American neighborhood and called the siting “unthinkable.” Katrina Spencer said construction traffic had torn up local streets, created drainage problems and generated noise; she asked the city to “repurpose” the building for community needs such as an urgent care or skills center instead of a morgue. Spencer also referenced residents’ concern about odors and described a claim that the facility would serve “300 dead bodies,” a characterization she used to underscore community unease about the project’s scale and neighborhood impact.

Other public commenters focused on process and access. Amina Sharif and Lydia Bell asked council members to remain present and attentive during public comment and said late-night meetings make it difficult for seniors and working residents to participate. Denise Cook urged the council to move from study and resolution to concrete action on long-promised anti-redlining work and funding, noting “there’s $400,000,000 earmarked for projects in these areas” and asking for clearer next steps and faster implementation.

Committee members acknowledged the public remarks during the meeting but did not take formal action on the morgue siting or on changes to the public comment schedule at this session. The meeting proceeded to the published agenda after the public-comment period.