Members of mayor's cabinet have meetings with JEA before formally announcing potential privatization

With the possibility of a sale of JEA still out there, some customers have concerns about the transparency of the process.

“It’s definitely been not talked about like it should be,” said JEA customer Durmish Durmishi.

JEA customer Tom Minette agrees.

“I think there’s been some behind-the-scenes talking, or negotiating, or something going on, because it just kind of comes out as a full-fledged idea, not the beginnings of an idea,” Minette said.

MORE: JEA braces for possible sale | Expert says all signs point to a JEA sale | JEA employee: 'There's a sense of panic right now' | Jacksonville City Council president: "I won't rush the sale of JEA" | Jacksonville city leaders claim they received calls against JEA | Comparing JEA rates during uncertainty of sale

Emails obtained by Action News Jax through a public records request may only add to that conversation.

Talk of a sale of JEA started when then-JEA Board Chairman Tom Petway brought up privatization at a meeting in November of 2017.

This email titled 'JEA Matters' shows the city's Chief Administrative Officer Sam Mousa scheduled a meeting with JEA CEO Paul McElroy the month before Petway posed that question.

About a week before Action News Jax was the first to tell you JEA sent letters to employees in leadership positions offering them incentives if they stayed on after a sale, McElroy scheduled a meeting with Mayor Lenny Curry's chief of staff, Brian Hughes.

Days later, Mousa asked to meet with JEA's CFO Melissa Dykes.
The city of Jacksonville won't say what was discussed in these meetings or if they even happened.

But Curry addressed transparency in an interview with Action News Jax Monday.

“Do you feel like you’re being transparent about this, completely transparent?” Reporter Danielle Avitable asked.

“Absolutely,” Curry responded.  “And, again, my record speaks for itself.”​

Cox Media Group