JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – On Tuesday night, Jacksonville City Council members are set to vote on a proposed ordinance that would create a special development review board for Northeast Jacksonville, despite facing some council opposition.
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Ordinance 2024-0851, introduced by Councilmember Mike Gay, aims to protect the area from overdevelopment and give people in the neighborhood a chance to weigh in on how development is conducted.
If approved, the board would provide recommendations on rezoning requests in an area roughly bordered by the St. Johns River to the south, Main Street to the west, the Duval County line to the north, and the Atlantic Ocean to the east.
Councilman Gay introduced the plan for a Northeast Development Review Board last year, but it was voted down. He has since reintroduced it with some changes.
In a finalized meeting attended by a handful of council members and people in the public, Gay laid the framework for his vision along with some agreed-upon changes. For years, Gay says development has been one of the top areas of concern for people in his district.
“The community is not saying ‘no’ to development,” Gay said. “They’re saying the overlays out there...now, you’ve got one acre, one home per one acre in certain areas. We want to keep that.”
If created, developers would work with the Northeast Development Review Board instead of the city’s Planning Commission. Additionally, the Review Board would meet at 5:00 p.m., giving people in the community a chance to attend under the new proposal, a considerable difference from the Planning Commission, which meets at 1:00 p.m.
“If you need to come and speak at the planning commission and you’ve got kids in school, you can’t come and just sit here and hope that your bill comes up,” Gay said. “It’s not doable for everybody.”
One compromised change is for review board meetings to take place at the Ed Ball building. This is the same location as the Planning Commission, allowing for the administration to save time and money. Originally, the plan had been to meet in the community.
The board would also operate on a 12-month trial basis and would consist of five members who live within the boundary.
A few people spoke during public comment at Monday’s meeting, and most were in favor. James Matchett says a review board gives people in the community something they rarely have-- a say in what happens in the neighborhood.
He wants to make it clear: he is not against development.
“We want responsible development. We want development that leaves a progression, that does not destroy the home values of those homes that were there,” Matchett said. “We are constantly letting developers come in here and over-develop, and then we’ve already got poor and suffering infrastructures that do not get addressed. So, then we the homeowners, have to deal with it every day.”
But not everyone is on board. Councilman Joe Carlucci voted against the proposal in committee and says while he likes the concept in theory, he says staying with a single planning commission is the way to go.
“I think we, as a Council and the district council members, we can be more selective and more intentional about who we put on that planning commission,” Carlucci said. “I don’t believe there should be 14 different planning commissions for the entire city. I think it’s working well right now.”
Matchett says if the council does sign off on the proposal Tuesday and a review board is established, he plans to be a regular at the meetings.
“This was a real struggle for me to get here because it was in the middle of the day,” Matchett said. “But if it’s at a more opportune time, yes, I would get there because I’m concerned with what goes on and I would want my voice heard. And again, it’s not in opposition of development.”
The council will be voting on this proposed review board Tuesday night.
