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Public commenters urge broader review of waterfront access and question emergency legislation filings
Summary
Two public commenters at the Jacksonville Waterways Commission meeting urged stronger attention to public access to waterways, flagged perceived gaps in counsel representation at civic meetings, and opposed processing two pieces of legislation as emergencies while asking whether JEA franchise-fee revenue could fund septic-tank phaseout.
At the commission meeting, public commenters raised concerns about public access and city process. John J. Nooney told the commission he would submit Jacksonville City Council resolution 20230819 as evidence and emphasized public access to waterways while listing regional bodies he follows. He criticized the absence of the Office of General Counsel at several civic meetings, calling that omission "alarming and disturbing."
Nooney said he participates in multiple civic forums, including FIND and the Northeast Florida Regional Council, and urged continued support for potential land acquisition to improve access. "Biggest takeaway was public access on our waterways," he said during his comment.
Carnell Oliver, later in the public-comment period, urged that two pieces of legislation (file numbers cited during his remarks) go through the normal City Council process rather than be handled as emergencies. Oliver said he had not had time to fully review the legislation and raised questions about administrative costs and whether JEA franchise-fee revenue could be rediverted to accelerate the phaseout of septic tanks in the city.
The commission did not take formal action on the public comments; those remarks were recorded in the meeting minutes and commenters noted they would submit supporting materials to the record.
