Councilman calls Lot J ‘one of the greatest opportunities’ he’s seen in Jacksonville, councilwoman still deciding

JACKSONVILLE, Fla. —

Flanked by fellow council members, local pastors, and business owners, council member Reggie Gaffney expressed support for the Lot J proposal in a news briefing held on the steps of city council.

“In my opinion this could singly be one of the greatest opportunities I have seen in Jacksonville in my lifetime,” said Gaffney.

Council member Brenda Priestly-Jackson said she was at the briefing to stand in solidarity with councilman Gaffney.

She went on to say she hadn’t made a final decision on how she’ll be voting.

“What would you need to see in order to give a vote of confidence for this project?” asked Action News Jax Reporter, Ryan Nelson.

“I need to see a definite return on investment for our neighbors,” said Priestly-Jackson.

“And the return on investment for me means what are we going to be able to free up in our budget to make certain first that we are taking care of infrastructure and other needs that we have. And I rely heavily on the council auditor. I do. I need to feel that there’s a certain level that they have with this going. And most importantly that we are not saddling and burdening future generations by a bad decision today.”

Council members Ju’Coby Pittman and Sam Newby spoke today as well.

“Let this not be a mistake, this is an opportunity for us to continue to work together as we have been,” said Pittman. “But today, we are making a statement to let the community know not one person speaks for [districts] seven, eight, nine and ten. We all work together and understand the economic development by being intentional.”

“I stand with councilman Gaffney and all my councilmembers today. I think Lot J will be a game changer, but also, I think we need to have game changers for the all the communities of Jacksonville.”

Councilman Gaffney said believes Lot J would provide an economic spark to the Eastside, downtown, the city of Jacksonville as a whole, and Northeast Florida.

“Job opportunities will be available for Lot J development and give individuals who live on the Eastside a chance to become employed with jobs that give them living wages and help people to rise out of poverty,” said Gaffney. “… We also should recognize that this project is the first step to revitalizing the Eastside. And why I say the Eastside is because that’s the neighbor of Lot J.”

Action News Jax spoke to Eastside small business owner, Kacheryl Gantt, about the possible impact Lot J could have on her A. Phillip Randolph Restaurant.

“I think it’s good and great opportunity for the businesses that are already planted here on the Eastside,” said Gantt. “.. We need all the help we could get. Especially with the COVID and stuff.”

But in early December, Jacksonville’s NAACP wrote a scathing letter to city leaders about the deal. The organization said the deal was bad for taxpayers and didn’t do enough to address unemployment.

Gaffney responded today.

“You’ve heard of the three P’s, Public Private Partnership. That’s what this is! And we’re all in this together,” said Gaffney. “… As lot J grows, other opportunities are going to follow.”

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