Before the current City Council has its bon voyage Tuesday, advocates for Downtown’s water taxi service are hoping they will approve a reworked marketing agreement.
A bill introduced by Mayor Alvin Brown in late May would have Lakeshore Marine and the city enter into a two-year contract providing $120,000 of public funding each year.
Lakeshore Marine would have to privately raise its matching portion before the city would pay.
The agreement would offset revenue declines caused by drops in ridership, which are about half of what the former provider drew in 2012.
But, that agreement received some council pushback — now it’s been tweaked.
Instead of $240,000 total over two years, it’s been scaled back to a one-year, $120,000 matching partnership. Instead of the money coming from the general fund, it will come from an SMG managerial account. And, it has the Downtown Investment Authority acting as an oversight agent for the deal.
It also allows Lakeshore Marine to have one boat in service at all times, instead of two. It’s a decision that would save on expenses, but the second boat and a captain would be on call should the need arise.
DIA board member Jim Bailey has been working with the city and Lakeshore Marine on the agreement.
“I think council will appreciate this more the way it’s done now,” said Bailey, who is publisher of the Daily Record.
The Parks, Recreation and Community Services Department also is on board. Daryl Joseph, parks interim director, called the service a valuable resource and said that working with DIA made it a “doable plan.”
Council member Lori Boyer, the DIA liaison, said some council concerns haven’t been addressed. Mainly, some members thought that with public dollars coming into play and the contract being reworked, it should go back out to bid.
Lakeshore Marine secured the contract last summer.
The DIA board ended up approving a resolution in support of the water taxi service, which included having the board involved as an oversight agent.
Other news Downtown-related news from Thursday’s meeting:
• Hemming Park has its first “Founding Friend” in The Florida Times-Union. The newspaper has agreed to provide $800,000 worth of in-kind services to the organization over the next five years. It will come in the form of printing and advertisements. The donation won’t count toward Hemming Park’s fundraising goals to collect on its $1 million city contract, but it will offset expenses, said Vince Cavin, Friends of Hemming Park executive director. So far, the group has raised $238,000 toward the $250,000 overall goal. Cavin said his efforts continue to be geared toward sustainability, which will require up to $800,000 in recurring revenue — with the hope the Times-Union partnership might spur others to contribute.
• It was the last DIA meeting of the calendar cycle, meaning a slate of new elected officers. Bailey was elected chair of the board for the 2015-16 year. Vice Chair Jack Meeks will serve in the same role for the year, while Melody Bishop was elected secretary. It also was the final meeting for member Kay Harper, although she will continue to serve until a replacement is selected and confirmed. She served at the request of the mayor.
• Progress is being made on making Downtown a national historic district. Joel McEachin, Jacksonville Historic Preservation Commission supervisor, told the board he went to Tallahassee to present the case why the area needed to be recognized. An application is still under review. The 56-block district has 189 resources, that include 146 contributing structures, McEachin said. If it ultimately became a historic district, building owners within could be eligible for a 20 percent federal tax credit for expenses incurred rehabilitating structures.
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