The Downtown Investment Authority's Future

[Florida Power And Light]

Worthy of a review of the historical record of Duval “ Authority “ placement. And implementation….. supposed, and Otherwise.
DTA, JTA…….
Yikes ….. this thread is multiple pages…….likely Irrelevant.

[jaxlongtimer]

For some reason this seems to be a problem across multiple authorities around here. Appointed boards that constantly heap high praise and lavish salaries and insist that everything is just fine until someone finally decides otherwise, at which point everything implodes.

^ The real problem with all appointed government institutional boards, including, not just agencies and authorities, but also universities and commissions, is that members are mostly appointed based on politics and donations to politicos making the appointments, not based on appointees' expertise, experience or passion relating to the mission of the institution.  Patronage appointments are almost never good.

Whether JTA, JEA, JAA, the SJRWMD, UF, UNF, FSCJ, Planning Commission, state boards, city and state commissions, advisory boards, etc., it is rare to find a fully qualified group of board members acting in the best interest or with the best ability to serve the constituents or affected parties of said entity.  It is one of our government's biggest weaknesses. 

To add, why should a state-wide governor or legislature in Tallahassee be allowed to dispassionately appoint board members to local area boards that they have no real connection to or concern for vs. a mayor, local legislative body, local voters, etc.? 

[Charles Hunter]

For some reason this seems to be a problem across multiple authorities around here. Appointed boards that constantly heap high praise and lavish salaries and insist that everything is just fine until someone finally decides otherwise, at which point everything implodes.

^ The real problem with all appointed government institutional boards, including, not just agencies and authorities, but also universities and commissions, is that members are mostly appointed based on politics and donations to politicos making the appointments, not based on appointees' expertise, experience or passion relating to the mission of the institution.  Patronage appointments are almost never good.

Whether JTA, JEA, JAA, the SJRWMD, UF, UNF, FSCJ, Planning Commission, state boards, city and state commissions, advisory boards, etc., it is rare to find a fully qualified group of board members acting in the best interest or with the best ability to serve the constituents or affected parties of said entity.  It is one of our government's biggest weaknesses. 

To add, why should a state-wide governor or legislature in Tallahassee be allowed to dispassionately appoint board members to local area boards that they have no real connection to or concern for vs. a mayor, local legislative body, local voters, etc.? 

I agree with everything you said. However, I believe that the Governor's appointees must be (in our case) Jacksonville-Duval residents, so it's not like we could get someone from Tampa, Pensacola, or Miami, sitting on a Jacksonville authority. That doesn't mitigate your observation that in the vast majority of cases appointments are rewards for political donations or favors.

Edited to reflect reading the Chapter 349 (the JTA statute) and the JaxPort Charter, neither of which speak to where Board members must reside. So, if he wanted to punish Jacksonville for having a Mayor who is a Democrat, could appoint a red-hat from the Villages, or the Panhandle, or anywhere.

[marcuscnelson]

To add, why should a state-wide governor or legislature in Tallahassee be allowed to dispassionately appoint board members to local area boards that they have no real connection to or concern for vs. a mayor, local legislative body, local voters, etc.?

That’s because JTA is legally a state agency, not a local one. If we copied, for example, Miami and established a solely local transportation agency then we wouldn’t have to worry about state appointees, but then the agency wouldn’t have all the powers that JTA has as an arm of the state instead of as a municipality. But of course, this is a thread about the DIA, not JTA, and we don’t seem to have a whole lot to show for home rule either.