JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – The Jacksonville Jaguars’ so-called “Stadium of the Future” is expected to have a huge impact on the city and it’s expected it could change nearby neighborhoods.
Part of the $1.4 billion plan to renovate the stadium, which would include $775 million from the city, calls for $300 million to go to the community. The Community Benefits Agreement (CBA) that was introduced to Jacksonville City Council this week could improve Eastside neighborhoods and city parks over the next 30 years. A total of $150 million of that would come from the city and be immediately available, while $150 million would come from the Jaguars and be spread out over 30 years, under the current proposal.
A recent UNF poll found vast support for the CBA, with 81% in support and 17% opposed.
Council members met Thursday to discuss the agreement and some Republican council members expressed concerns about overspending in the upcoming budget and that the deal money would only go to the Eastside, an area that residents said has been long underserved.
The council on Thursday discussed taking the CBA portion of the stadium deal out and voting on it separately. There could be more discussion about the possibility of removing that part of the agreement during a public hearing Monday.
Jacksonville Mayor Donna Deegan, who helped negotiate the deal, appeared frustrated by the development and said the CBA needs to be included in the overall stadium deal.
“We have negotiated this all together and you gotta be careful when you start pulling on threads,” Deegan said. “At the end of the day, this was a very big and positive deal for Jacksonville all the way across the board, between the Jaguars agreement and the CBA.”
Republican City Council President Ron Salem was one of those who wants the CBA separated.
“I am concerned about the spending that we know we have to take care of next year,” Salem said. “And it’s potentially several 100 million dollars and how that will fit into the budget and in addition to this. So if I see her budget, and she’s giving her address July 15, and then I’ll understand where we are and what she’s projecting and then we can see how all this fits in. It’s as simple as that.”
If the CBA is abandoned, the Jaguars could only kick in $100 million for Eastside redevelopment but might add more. Part of the negotiation stipulated that the team would add an extra $50 million if the city would match with its own $150 million for Eastside enhancements.
Salem addressed the perception that killing the CBA would end up with the city missing out on $50 million.
“If you listen to what I said, I said I will find ways to get their $50 million. I believe we can do that,” Salem said, adding his stance is about “fiscal sanity” not playing politics to make the Democrat mayor look bad.
But residents have heard this before when the Jaguars first came to town nearly 30 years ago.
When the city upgraded the Gator Bowl into what became Jacksonville Municipal Stadium for the team, not much changed in the surrounding neighborhood despite promises made back then.
Suzanne Pickett, who is part of Historic Eastside Jacksonville, has been instrumental in landing the community benefits agreement for her area and other parts of the city.
“There has been plan, after plan, after plan. There’s been a Super Bowl plan. There’s been a stadium plan. There has been an Out East or Eastside Revitalization plan. We want to stop being a city of just plans...we really want to put our money where our mouth is,” Pickett said. “This community benefits agreement is modeled after many major cities that we say we want to be like, so if we say we wanna do it then we should just do it and if we don’t wanna do it, then we should just stop saying that Jacksonville wants to be a great city.”
How the money will be used still needs to be determined.
Deegan described the potential influence the money could have.
“What makes this an impact player is the fact that we get to see these programs immediately with real money. And then have the sustaining money come in over 30 years. That is what makes this a thing that really can create an impact for downtown and frankly for the entire city,” Deegan said.
News4JAX talked to several people on the Eastside on Wednesday, like Selina Lee, a homeowner involved in community programs. She, too, is watching what happens with the agreement and hopes the money, if approved, will help more than just one group.
“It could be a good thing and I don’t see any funding for the community as a bad thing. If it’s done appropriately and through the right channels and for the people who are most in need of it,” Lee said.
The plan, which takes up just 14 pages of the 300-page deal, was discussed in-depth and appears to be the most controversial part of the deal.
Councilman Rory Diamond has said on social media that the community benefits agreement is a nonstarter, and he believes the council will remove it.
The public hearing will be held Monday at 5 p.m. in the council chambers at City Hall.
