The head of the city of Jacksonville’s Planning and Development Department is out two months into his second year on the job.
R. Brett James said April 11 that he submitted his resignation upon request by a representative from Mayor Donna Deegan. He said the administration had a “desire to go a different direction with the planning department.”
In a telephone interview, James said Deegan’s office gave him no further details behind the reason for seeking his resignation.
He said his last day in the office would be April 11. His resignation is effective April 25, but he will take administrative leave effective April 12.
James, who was appointed to the director position in February 2024 by Deegan, said he would leave the city government with no bitter feelings. He said he performed his role to the best of his ability.
“I am very disappointed, because I thought I was the right person for the job at this time,” he said. “There are great things on the verge of happening here.”
City Chief Communications Officer Phil Perry confirmed that James had resigned and said the mayor’s office does not comment on personnel matters.
James is the former director of strategic planning for the Naval Facilities Engineering Systems Command in San Diego, where he spent eight years as the senior civilian leader for Asset Management at two NAVFAC commands, Southwest and Far East.
He was responsible for master planning, project development, real estate, public-private partnerships, geographic information mapping, and real property accountability for Navy land and facilities valued at more than $100 billion across Japan, Korea, Singapore, Diego Garcia and the southwestern U.S.
At the time of his appointment, Deegan said James would bring “a fresh perspective and a wealth of knowledge to Jacksonville.”
As director of the department, James oversaw divisions that included Community Planning, Current Planning, Development Services, Building Inspection and Transportation Planning departments, and the Office of Resiliency.
James said he had no immediate plans for the next step in his career. He said he had developed a large network of professional contacts and was open to options locally, nationally and internationally.
Planning
His departure comes after two issues revealed tension over development and the city’s planning process.
In late 2024, Council member Mike Gay introduced legislation to create a Northeast Jacksonville Development Review Board, which would have supplanted the city Planning Commission in reviewing requests for rezonings and land use changes 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. Gay’s District 2 includes Northeast Jacksonville.
Gay’s legislation stemmed from concerns by Northeast Jacksonville residents that they had too little influence in the current planning process and that the planning staff and Planning Commission were approving development in their area with little regard for their concerns that it was incompatible with their neighborhoods, would overtax the infrastructure and diminish their quality of life.
The city planning staff and Planning Commission do not set growth policy. That is the role of the City Council.
At the same time, Council member Rory Diamond submitted companion proposals that would have facilitated infill development of duplexes, triplexes and quadplexes in portions of Jacksonville, including established single-family neighborhoods.
On Dec. 5, 2024, the Planning Commission deferred hearings on the proposals by Gay and Diamond, saying commissioners had not had adequate time to review them.
That prompted Diamond to propose a successful amendment in early 2025 for the Council to sidestep the Planning Commission and consider his legislation without its recommendation. Diamond, who said he had submitted his legislation to the Planning Commission weeks before the deferral, was unhappy that the commission delayed them from moving forward.
During a debate on the amendment, some Council members criticized the Planning Commission, suggesting the Council would do its work with or without the commission’s recommendations.
Council later deferred Diamond’s proposal and eventually voted to withdraw it.
Gay’s legislation died March 25 on a 10-7 vote, with Council members commending him for taking a stance for his constituents but warning that establishing a review board for one part of Jacksonville could lead to many others and a patchwork of zoning.
Plan R.I.T.E
Days after that vote, Council member Rahman Johnson offered a proposal titled Project Plan R.I.T.E., which is described on its title page as “a people-powered planning process that is inclusive of all voices.” The acronym in the title of the proposal stands for Representation, Inclusion, Trust and Equity.
As part of that plan, Johnson would increase the size of the Planning Commission from nine members to 15, including one member from each of the city’s 14 Council districts. Commission members would continue to be appointed by the mayor, but with district Council members recommending nominees for the 14 district-oriented seats and the mayor choosing the at-large nominee.
Editor’s note: This story has been updated.