a unit stes am sign May menp B or City ofv and Jason Hera who's with the US Army Corps of Engineers he's the project manager for this project will be the speakers and it will be May 1st at 700 p.m. at the beaches Branch library and I would encourage people to attend so that you can better understand what the plan is for project and that's all I have thank you Miss Golding Mr Jansen yes just a quick message uh last week I was able to attend a meet and greet with the artist that's um if you're not aware we're having a sculpture here in the in the beach it's going to be in the corner of uh between sneakers and the Walgreens on Second Street um it's called water walls there's no water there but that's just the name of it um it's pretty interesting sculpture feature I think it's going to have an educational piece to it as well it's actually really beautiful and it really pays homage to to our community so get an opportunity to see it we there is a YouTube link you know if that's going to be posted on our city site I'm not sure is not but yeah I think we can make sure that it gets on there there's a YouTube link that and we'll post it on the city site so if you want to take this sne peek at it um construction is already started so looks really good thank you Mr jansson that was great to meet uh Xavier cortada morning I got you and he asked about different groups since some of you are here um we recommended that the cup Club at C Elementary might be a good group to um participate in whatever level would make sense there Mr horn I didn't want to Echo and repeat what counciling said is that if you want to reach out to the governor or your representatives please let them know that we do not support Senate Bill 280 um our contact get from the represent frombody we need to hear from people that they represent um and my only announcement would be that today is tax big surprise to you you might want to get tax just as a Qui REM thank you Mr horn Mr Mesa do you have any announcements I do not okay thank you um I just have a couple last week um I attended the uh commemoration of the SS golf America on April 10th this was a uh torpedoing of a uh oil tanker off the coast of Jacksonville Beach in 1942 19 men were lost uh in that explosion um it was attended by Secretary of State CBD who if you don't know is also a n Beach resident so it was a very nice event at the um Veterans Memorial Park within the ocean FR Park so if you haven't been by there uh it's a really nice spot to stop it's beautiful beautifully done um and we should be really proud of it we are coming right up on opening of the beaches so I want to let everybody know the sand castle contest is back um the city of Jacksonville Beach is taking it over in terms of running it and they are taking applications now for participants that would be on Saturday the 27th there's going to be a few new activities added um and you'll see some more uh things added to opening of the beaches in the years to come of course the parade will be on that Sunday on the 28th um we're also taking applications for participants in the parade if you are so inclined it's a lot of fun and if you're not participant please come out and watch it um it's a good one and then uh for the council members we are working on getting a little more citizen involvement in the judging of both the S Castle contest and the parade so um I'm working with City staff to ask each of you to nominate one citizen or one to do both the judge the parade and the San Castle contest or one for each so um Allison will be sending out an email tomorrow with more information on that um but it'll be a mixture of citizens and staff um maybe citizens with an artistic name there for the sand castle contest because as I recall there's some pretty impressive sand sculptures out there so that'll be a lot of fun the 27th and 28th make sure you are out there um any other announcements from Council I nominate M all right uh we have one courtesy of the floor um everyone else is attached to to an agenda item so we'll call on you when we get there um James grark grark you're going to have to tell me how you say that you'll have 3 minutes give us your name and address you have three minutes to address the council James gor uh 133rd Avenue South Jack speach uh first I wanted to thank everybody for last week I attended the Monday with the chief and I really appreciated everything you guys did I wrote an email to the mayor about third out south parking issues that I've seen firsthand during the two what they call boxing events where most of the parking was running up and down my street since that day for some reason um the Charlie and McDonald's had somebody charging for parking this weekend and the I called it the parking War started all up in the small Lots cuz everybody was fighting for a couple free spots but it was it changed the flow of three people just piling up the street from char that they would show up with like 15 people in one car and park for free and it it stopped and it was really amazing I hope they continue it and I just wanted to thank you for one email and your meetings really actually made an impact that's it thank you well thank you Mr you actually don't me to applaud after each speaker but I do thank you and appreciate you being here um we will move on to the consent agenda I move did we approve the consent agenda second no excuse me I was down to speak at this point and I think it got confused with speaking for an agenda item and Casey BR okay Mr you the drill go ahead yeah and I was at the events this weekend which were really full exciting and and very good and I had a lot of conversations with people that were unusual because you know I'm just hanging around downtown but one of them was an older gentleman who lives right on the Park area there and he was very concerned about the bar traffic especially when bars closed and the type of driving that happens in the Lots leaving Tire squealing and engines roaring and he lived with it up until the recent shootings we've had and that just raised more of a concern and he felt as though if there was more control on the exit of the bars at 2 in the morning which we all know that's when the crap hits the fan that uh it would it would help to uh prevent or keep a handle on bigger issues that could happen and I told them that I was sure that the police were restructuring or increasing their uh attention at bar time and and weekend nights but I promised I might speak to the council so I did and uh I'm sure that he will improve at the same time I was today at a park and I ran into a bunch of U French uh University soccer uh not soccer uh track players who were in The Track event at the UNF coming up and I knew them because they spoke French and they're from n and I talked to them about everything but they were very complimentary about our Beach's area and the atmosphere and the friendliness and you know coming from fr that's a good compliment any thank you Mr Bon apologies for missing you I do have another um there's a lot of very organized Stacks with Post-its and paper clips here and I apologize that I missed it we did have an additional courtesy at the floor um Rachel r hi Rachel gr I live at 23 30th Avenue South um here in Jacksonville Beach and I was just hoping that the council could address um what role the state legis legislature versus the school board plays in the decision to keep um open the school or close it C floor is your opportunity to speak to the council but we don't really engage in answering questions this time so please feel free two and a half minutes left if you'd like oh okay well um yeah I'm just concerned with the rest of the citizens um you know about the coming school closing and how some of the decisions or votes uh in the state legislature trickle down um and now we're kind of facing these um issues and just um uh wanted to say that I'm concerned and I'd like to be involved um moving forward thank you thank you m okay we will I think that's the end of courtesy of the floor I don't see anybody hoing up I do apologize for the temperature in this room and also the current size of the room two things that are fine with me I love a good warm room but it's normally a meat locker in here so um at some point you're going to feel a wish of cold air uh hopefully sooner than later so we will move on to our resolutions resolution a Madam CL read by title I'm just consent agenda I made the motion it was seconded already so we're ready for voice we not okay oh sorry he jumped up I got it okay all in favor sign signify by saying I I any oppos motion carries back on track to resolution a Madam clerk uh R tile only please a resolution of the city of Jacksonville Beach Florida amending the operating budget for the fiscal year beginning October 1st 2023 and ending September 30th 2024 and providing for an effective date uh Miss would you like to make a report on this um good evening mayor and Council Ashley dos CFO um before you tonight is a resolution amending the operating budget for fisal 24 for all the activities since the original budget was adopted in September through to the end of March um listed in the resolution is each individual item the reason and when it may have been before Council um earlier this year and as always I'm happy to answer any questions you might have on any of the items thank you Miss Gosset and I apologize for calling you miss Gosman the heat got to me um and a motion on the it down I move that we adopt resolution number 2169 d224 amending the operating budget of the city of Jacksonville Beach Florida for the fiscal year beginning October 1st 2023 and ending September 30th 2024 second we have a motion in a second any comments or questions by councel m Golding I would just say thank you for the work that you do on on this report that you put together it definitely helps us understand all the things that were approved that we need to remember but it's it's very good thank you thank you very much any other questions or comments from Council uh Mr Mesa do you have any questions or comments ments seeing none Madam CL rall council member golden yes council member horn yes council member jansson yes council member MAA council member suton yes council member Wagner yes mayor Hoffman yes motion carries Madam clerk Item B please read by title only a resolution of the city of Jacksonville Beach Florida requesting the Duvall County School Board take action to ensure that cbes elementary school and San Pablo Elementary School continue to operate as the community's elementary schools and not be subject to closure providing for adoption of recitals repeal of Prior inconsistent resolutions and Council decisions severability and an effective date thank you we'll hold off on a motion for a second um this resolution as I'm sure a lot of you are very familiar with is on the agenda in response to a recent presentation to the D duall County School Board that presented cost-saving options that included multiple variations of closing and consolidating beaches schools while we understanded this was a presentation of a consultant and far from an executable plan the three beaches cities Atlantic Beach at their meeting last week and Neptune and Jacksonville beaches at their meetings tonight are considering resolutions in support of our beaches schools um so we'll go ahead and start public comment now before we uh do a motion on the item and I do have two statements to read first um that were sent in unfortunately May Degan uh wanted to be here for this meeting but she is in San Diego representing our city so her statement May Donna Degan city of Jacksonville I wholeheartedly support the work of stakeholders at the beaches to keep our neighborhood schools open while dual County Schools must do all they can to adjust to a changing education environment it's clear the community is strongly behind supporting these valued local institutions and I Champion their efforts we also received a statement from school board rep representative April Carney I would like to personally thank the beaches Community for the outpouring of support for all of our district 2 schools as the superintendent and school board have noted The Proposal gaining so much attention recently is only the first draft it came from a consultant who presented it to our board board earlier this year nothing has been decided and there will be a tremendous amount of community conversation before final plans are written and presented to the school board for approval we are in the very early stages of this process and I encourage everyone to stay engaged and interact with all seven board members I ask that you please watch tomorrow's board workshop at 9:00 a.m. which will be live streamed and available for playback as we start to look at scheduling Community engagement meetings for the near future please keep your emails and calls coming with your thoughts concerns and wonderful ideas I enjoyed speaking to everyone who has contacted me thus far and want us to be in this process together as a Community I am proud of our high performing Schools of Excellence at the beaches and will continue to support what makes our community such a special place to live and what so unfortunately while they couldn't be here I do thank them for sending in their comments um we'll open the floor for public comments and we I'll call The Honorable Rory Diamond up to the podium honorable and George thank you madam mayor uh Rory and much more popular George Dian 15 15 Ocean Front neun Beach um I will say this I walked over from my new office I'm your newest small business in Jack Beach until the Greek donut place opens uh in a couple of days uh but George had like every single restaurant and front door to choose to go to the bathroom on he saved it for Jack's Beach City Hall and I have not figured out if that's a political statement or he just loves your beautifully curated lawn so thank you for the nice lawn um uh that's my only joke today because the subject of our beach of schools is very very serious and and you only need to look at the people behind me the folks who showed up at Atlantic Beach uh uh commission last week about uh potential closure of Atlantic Beach Elementry and I've never seen the beaches so United about anything than to keep our beaches schools open and to ensure that our high- performing A+ awesome community supported elementary schools from Atlantic Beach Elementary and the families and the people behind me are here to support CBR Elementary and St Pablo Elementary to keep them open and any notion of closing them I think is absolute insanity I understand that we have too many schools in our district a lot of that goes back to he's always more popular and more interesting than me forgive me um if you go back to segregation in the city of Jacksonville we were building two schools side by side a black school and a white school and now we have too many schools and that's what happened our community finally either through the courts or common sense realized that that's absolutely wrong that has not right-sized the number of schools we had in addition the number of students who are in newal County public schools has come down every single year since 1 and so when the master facilities plan came out it should have taken it into account this falling enrollment it should have but it did not and that was a mistake and so now I strongly think that DCPS needs to take into account that the district needs to shrink but you close failing schools not A+ awesome well supported schools here at the beaches I don't care what the politics tell our schooler the reality and facts and statistics mean that seab breze s Pablo and Atlanta Beach element need to stay open Period and if they try to close them the fight is not over we will sue we will do whatever it takes to keep our beaches schools open and we will win because there's no logic that supports that decision so that's my stance I'm here to fight for our community for our schools and for our beaches and this is a long road so I ask the folks if you've got these shirts get ready to wash them because we're going to be wearing them over and over and over again until at the end of the day this new ball school board just says no we're not going to close those Beach of schools I week I've spoken a lot with April Carney our district school board member over the last couple of weeks as you can imagine she's been inundated with people giving her advice and thoughts but I will say this every single time I ask her about these three beaches elementaries she's always very clear that they absolutely should not close and said I have a lot of faith that she'll keep up that bik so thank you for your time I appreciate it and George and I will get out of this very very hot R thank you thank you Council Diamond I just felt did anyone feel the cool air kick in I felt it it's coming it's coming um we have quite a few speakers or speaker cards for people who want to express their support but not necessarily speak um so I'll get just raise your hand when I call your name so um in support of the resolution we have Heather na Wiki you want to raise your hand thank you heather for being here Tabitha Tule thank you Tabitha John Patrick thank you John Stephanie scano how close was I CH Christa Murphy thank you Christa Edith Williams thank you Edith Lindsay Williams thank you Lindsay Colleen nigan is I close Okay close enough that she raised her hand Ariel Johnson uh Cathy arer I know I got that one right Stafford Williams I thought this might be a young student here uh Ena theom [Music] Jessica Morris you guys are just doing this to make me read hard I got it um additional uh people that want to support um James Manson thank you James Jennifer fber you'll always be J ad to me Aaron Harris Aaron fit Simmons Harris you know she was here Melissa bkin thank you Megan wiel Aaron Whitlock thank youon Stephanie Dixon Holly Scala here thank you Holly Megan Tios it did I yes that's one Ken Mitchum thank you Karen Frankie Mitchum thank you Frankie and then uh the two earlier speakers also indicated support but did not wish to speak Rachel gra and and Casey Braun thank you both okay now on to the cards that wish to speak and when I call your name if you come up to the podium give us your name and address and you will have three minutes Elizabeth borders hello Elizabeth B 1637 6 AV North I'm a concerned CB's mom who loves Jack spee and I'm a proud supporter of all of our neighborhood Public Schools the very fact that we are here today is a testament to the total failure of the existing system A system that has left us feeling powerless and disenfranchised I and many others feel tricked by school choice and how those words were used to pulled our heartstrings and lure us into the false sense that our elected leaders actually cared about our choice instead of having choice we find ourselves trapped in a two-tiered system where Charter Schools AR AR eligible for closure while sees an a-rated school of excellence and a clearly beloved piece of our Jack Beach Community is threatened with closure how is this school choice when the entire Beach Community has no choice and has no voice we are silenced when our local elected DCPS school board has no jurisdiction over the very schools that are bankrupting our Beach Schools it's taxation without representation over how our funds are spent not one of us wants our public schools to close yet we're being held hostage by the overreaching laws imposed by the state of Florida laws that strip away are fundamental State constitutional right for our local school board officials to control and determine how our local taxpayer dollars are distributed to our schools today's tax day leave the people at Jack Beach and other residents Duval County fund these charter schools with our tax dollars Charter Schools conveniently consider themselves Public Schools when the money is being dealt yet when it comes to facing the consequences of the failing system that they created they conveniently aren't under our board's jurisdiction and they're not eligible for closure so far the State of Florida has mandated that we divert 62 million dollar of our District's our District's voter approved half cent sales tax to Charter Schools and in this totally unjust two-tier system these Charter Schools unlike our Public Schools don't receive these on a need Bas on based on their needs they aren't obligated to use the funds on capital projects or School improvements it's literally just a bonus check the State of Florida is mandating that our Jack Beach residents pay to these charter schools meanwhile our incredible Jack Beach Schools like St sees and San Pablo are facing closure and consolidation these are Stables of our community and they've educated generations of our Jack Beach residents and because of this unjust system they are struggling for funding so today I'm here asking the Jax Beach Council and the mayor to stand up for SE and San Pablo and all of our beach schools and fight to give us back our local economy and save our Beach's schools thank you all for bringing this [Applause] resolation hi my name is Mandy Ruben I live at 5828 Avenue North um and I don't know how I'm going to follow that way to go with um first I want to say thank you to Mayor Hoffman and the city council for uh your Swift response and action on the master of facility plan proposal it means so much to know that our local Representatives support and Believe In traditional public education as much as we do I wholeheartedly support the resolution drafted by this Council to request that DCPS not mess with the good thing we have going on with our Beach's Public Schools I hope that in addition to this resolution that we as a city council and Community can engage our school board productively to eliminate the need to consolidate or close any of our Beach's elementary schools we need a solution to the bu shortage of course uh but one that involves closing our schools which would then be offered up to charters for the taking cannot and should not be considered what would the impact be on our property values if all of our Peach's elementary schools closed um the traffic implications this proposal clearly has not been thought through to the end and I appreciate your action again to share our Vital voices to this discussion finally I would like to point out the reason that we are in this situation which is connected in part to the half penny tax referendum which was supposed to fund the updates and maintenance our Public Schools need instead we have been forced to share it with Charter Schools who do not need it which was unfortunately championed by one of our Jacksonville city council members uh Lor I'm not sure if you're still here I am grateful to his support today I really am but we do need an explanation for why he insisted that DCPS have in writing that we share that half penny tax before he would allow it to go to a vote public funds should not be going to privately owned organizations that run Charters they do not have to hold themselves to the same standards of anti-discrimination when it comes to their attendance and who goes there they do not have to get approval for their curriculum is not run by the state uh they they are not held to the same standards as true public schools are if there is any influence that we have as a city council here to exert pressure on that requirement I think that we should exercise it as SCH as possible save our Beach Schools save s Pablo thank you guys so much I appreciate [Applause] it hi good evening uh Natalie Brewster 2519 Independence Drive Jacksonville Beach um I'm the parent of two Elementary age boys who attend cbes elementary I work full-time as a physician recruiter at the Mayo Clinic and I've lived in the South Jack Beach area for over 10 years and I've owned our home since 2016 we move to our current neighborhood because it met our needs at the time and we thought it would be fun to live near the beach we chose to buy our home and root ourselves here because of the community the anger of that Community is seab bre's Elementary our seahorses can often be found walking biking scootering or skateboarding together to school many parents accompany them in the morning and afternoons this is a natural way that families have gotten to know each other we chose this area because of the ability to be connected to a neighborhood school where our kids would make friends and have opportunities to see each other outside of school seahorses find each other at sunshine Park in the neighborhoods at the baseball field not only do our kids get to attend an a school and a school of excellence but they are able to attend a school that teaches them about and aners them to a community the beaches are special and we all know that when work friends decided to leave the beach to build their large homes in St John's County complete with water Hearts we stayed even though we have outrun our home rather than sell our home and leave the area be embarked on an addition to our own because that is how tied we are to this community we chose to stay because of the community and family familyfriendly nature of South Jack Beach should SE be not be part of it part of that and its existing location the community as we know it would disappear thank you [Music] [Applause] hi when the district identified the need for the half cent sales tax I spoke at the Jacksonville city council meeting in ordering to invoice the importance of the investment in our city schools and need the need to place it on the ballot for voters at that time seway was planned for a new building due to its age voters were made promises regarding investments in dual County facilities the Revis Master facilities plan will be a huge deviation from what voters agreed to when we must pay tax money to restore the dunes of our beaches or invest in our roads we're investing in our community there's not a more powerful way to invest in the citizens of dual County than to provide them with access to a high quality education sea in s Pablo need to remain open to provide the beaches commun Unity with the plan there promise when we voted on the half cent sales tax as a teacher at sebres and a parent of a fifth grader and a second grader I see the countless Lads our schools ties our community families together and form strong bonds our assistant princip principal and our guidance counselor and teachers address the diverse needs of our students we do have students experiencing homelessness and a lot of students experiencing poverty if we built as a large K8 School the students would not get the individualized attention and support they get from our school community at this time and we have roughly 520 students so it's not like we're facing facing um an issue recruiting students we have many students on the school choice waiting list as well our volunteers organize blessings in the backpack so that uh children in poty have food on the weekends our nonprofit enhances the kids education by funding a stem teacher salaries um which is something extra that's not provided by dual County there's a million reasons that seab should be rebuilt as a K5 as promised as a county we would not close half of or as a country we would not close half of our national parks just because of the cost associated with running our national parks our City's public schools have provided benefits similar to our national parks the beauty of a highly functioning School family and the change in the trajectory of students life outcomes is a treasure just as precious as our national parks we are investing in the children who are our future additionally if we think about the environmental impact of the world that we're leaving to our children 50 years from now um more cars on the RO there would be more car riders if the two schools are combined parents choosing to drive their child and the pollution of additional buses I believe the additional pollution would outweigh the price of two smaller buildings in their current location versus the air conditioning in one large building they're also talking about increasing the bus Zone to two a 2 mile radius so that would have a lot of our improver students Crossing Beach Boulevard to get to school which is very dangerous we School of Excellence thank you guys so much for your time and your support thank [Applause] you hi I live at 1645 6 Avenue North I have a a current first grader at uh San Pablo Elementary and an incoming kindergarten um as some others have talked about the bottom line is uh Crea these budget issues from tax dollars going to um private school vouchers and Charter Schools um but I also want to talk about the age Gap there's discussion of a k through eight um and that's problematic for safety reasons with 5 six and seven year olds going to school at 12 13 and 14 year olds um as well as adjustment for younger children into the education system um even if you combine s Pablo and and seab breze that puts 1,000 students in elementary school in one school if it's K through 8 that's 2200 at the current uh the current um number of children in U St Pao seab Brees and fler Bill um furthermore these kids and the teachers have overcome a lot in recent years um from Co closing down schools and having to adjust to that getting back into schools and uh and getting used to the new life in school the last thing they need is you another obstacle um we all know that these are top a rated schools and all of them are at 94 to 97% capacity um you know combining these schools we're going to have traffic issues um geographically it really doesn't make sense I mean at at San Pablo a lot of of these students are Walkers and bikers that live very close to the school in fact uh we we've had um days where it's you know hey walk or bike to school is the uh is the challenge or the or the thing to do that day um so I just don't want to see these schools get combined um it it puts it puts you know a lot of people out so we would really appreciate the support to save our schools thank you hi I'm KRA sharp and I'm at um 12 11 18th Avenue North and I'm here I just want to say that I hope we can find something else to do instead of closing schools at the beaches or combining them um one of my children has an IEP and it's an in individual education plan and he went to neptun beach first because they have a great ve program if you don't know like the ESC classes and things and I'm worried about those students what about those kids with their IEPs and their plans that was so hard to get it took me over a year in order to get him an IEP for them to tell me there's three schools at the beaches I could choose and for me to research it tour it find one that fit him fit our family so I finally found one and now all of the parents that are like me in my vote that have to go and struggle what's going to happen to these kids and all of the master plan and all these discussions I haven't heard anyone talk about what are we going to do with these kids with the IPS what are we going to do like what is their plan and I haven't heard anything about what their plan is I know if you can bind schools what's going to happen to the teachers I know you know certain teachers that teach that they have specialized like certifications and things like that are they going to be the same are they going to be different Transportation issues they can't ride on the regular school bus those are all different and I have yet to hear anything regarding those children in that future also I just want to say K through 8 how again is that going to look when you have specialized programs like gifted you know the specialized classes things like that and not only that Elementary School both my kids are in elementary school and I love it that's a time for them to be young and be silly middle school we all know I know if you have some middle schoolers that's sassy they're mean like let that be later you know give me my elementary time with them don't make them grow up too quick and I just hope that whenever you guys have your discussion later on you ask about those children whose parents fight so hard for them all the time just to make sure they get what other kids get you know is someone going to stand up for them and speak for them as well because I know we don't want any students any children to suffer but let alone that population that needs a voice so thank you [Applause] [Music] guys hi I am Jamie mccan 1867 Kings Court um I am a St pav elementary teacher at um live here in Jack Beach and most importantly I'm here tonight because two of my children attend s p Elementary I really hope that my three-year-old also gets to attend um at s paabo we take care of 500 kids very similar to se and it's a school where we really take care of our own um we're able to do that because we are such a small school our kids are provided clothes Thanksgiving Meals toys around the holidays this week Monday Tuesday Wednesday we're planning Sea Oats on the beach um in conjunction with sea turtle Patrol these kinds of events are able to be planned with dedication of our community I really appreciate how Jack beach has responded to The Proposal by the school board I also know that DCPS School Board are essentially the people and ultimately the people that will decide on whether this proposal will move forward or not but the voice and the unity of our beaches Community the way that we are expressing our support for our public beach schools helps all of us stay focused on our goal we want our successful Beach Schools to remain open and running in the efficient Community built way that we currently are we do not want our schools to merge to be A8 and we do not want any of our elementary schools at the beach at all to close thank you so [Music] [Applause] much hello my name is Jessica Morris I live at 3881 Point SI Boulevard and today I come to you with a plea a plea to preserve the heart and soul of our community our local neighborhood elementary schools in the face of proposals to close these cherished institutions We Must Stand United in defense of what truly matters our children our neighborhoods and our shared sense of belonging closing our neighborhood elementary schools is not just a logistical decision it's a betrayal of the very fabric that binds us together these schools are more than just buildings they are the lifeblood of our communities the hubs of social cohesion and Collective identity they are where friendships are forged where bonds between parents and educators are strengthened and where memories are made that last a lifetime but beyond sentimental value there are compelling reasons to keep our local neighborhood elementary schools open firstly these schools serve as a foundation upon which our children's educational Journeys begin they provide a safe familiar environment where Young Learners can Thrive academically socially and emotionally closing these schools disrupts this critical continuity foring children to adapt to new environments new routines and new faces A disruption that can have profound and lasting effects on their well being and academic success small neighborhood schools are not just buildings they are hubs of social cohesion and Collective support they are places where parents chat with teachers at drop offs where local businesses sponsor field trips and where grandparents attend school plays in these environments the boundaries between home and school blur creating a seamless web of support that extends far beyond the classroom walls this sense of belonging and Community engagement not only enriches the educational experiences but also instills values of empathy cooperation and civic responsibility in our future Generations in conclusion the closure of our local elementary schools isn't merely about losing physical space it's about losing the heart and soul of our commun Community it's about severing the ties that bind us together eroding our Collective identity and dimming The Beacon of Hope for future Generations let us stand firm in our resol to protect what matters most our children our neighborhoods and the vi vibrant tapestry of community life together let us ensure that these treasured institutions continue to serve as bastions of opportunity unity and belonging for all who call our Beach's Community Home than [Applause] thank you Miss Morris that was the last speaker card I would yes sir did you spell I marked my card wrong oh please come on up I'm sorry are you sure you want to follow that one though John P I live at 707 First Street South Jacksonville Beach St cast condo I didn't know this was on the agenda tonight came by to see how you folks were doing I I have two sons two grown sons who went to CB's Elementary okay they walked they walked from my house up up to school they came back we did homework most days they went to my mother around the corner we you're Jing the council Mr okay thank you but anyway I just want to express my support my children did well my boys are grown very successful and I would like these folks to have that same opportunity for their children thank you for letting me speak so that's it for public comment um I would encourage you all those were some really well thought out um speeches please make sure you're emailing them to and I I wouldn't just limit yourself to um School Board member Carney I would email all of the school board members um with those messages um and and keep it keep it up um can we have a motion please I move that we adopt resolution number 2172 d224 requesting the Duval County school school board take action to ensure that cbr's elementary school and San Pablo Elementary School continue to operate as the community's elementary schools and not be subject to closure second we have a motion and a second discussion by Council Mr Jansen even know where to start um so first off I I too am a graduate of cab Brees Elementary um my family runs deep in the local schools here my wife is a teacher at San PBO Elementary and um I did not support the sales tax either one of them because mostly in part because of the way they were written they lack substance they lack detail and there was too many open ends that that really allowed the school board to kind of I want to say mismanage or misuse that money but it was open-ended so I couldn't support him and I didn't support him um but here we are today uh feeling the effects of that very issue of having a poorly written tax and I'll add this I sit on I was just recently appointed to the Bal County Public Schools s tax oversight committee it's a mouthful and with this proposal I have more questions than I have answers now and those questions are going to come in the main meeting rest assured on that the primary question that I have is how do you look your constituents in the face that all supported this tax and then turn and tell them that you were going to build a new school for sebr they it down build a new one you were going to put s p on a deferred maintenance program and then turn around and change your mind how do you do that how do you look these taxpayers in the face the ones that voted for it so they need an answer to that number one um some of the other issues that I see um the last meeting that I attended I did bring up uh s PAB Elementary being built in 1957 and how come they didn't make the list to get the rebuild and the only answer I was given at the time was well we thought it all out and we believe that because of the ages of the school and and I know that I think just recently they re they rebuilt rebolt and that was a 1957 school as well and so I was given an answer as to well it just didn't make it it made the Deferred maintenance list but nowhere in there did they say they had a proposal and this wasn't 30 days ago so all of a sudden how did this change almost literally overnight so I I stand behind councilman Diamond I I think that if this does happen we should sue and find out you know what's going on because we are taxpayers and and we did vote for this uh well some people voted for um so when it comes to the resolution uh one of the plans I I looked at the proposal there's two there's two aventies on this proposal one of them was to combine the two schools and rebuild San P elementary and then let Fletcher middle stand as it is and the other plan was to combine them all together into clutcher middle and make it a k through eight so when it comes to this resolution I would like to make an amendment to add one word in here that says the resolution of the city of Jackson Beach Florida request the duall school board take action to ensure that c Elementary School and S and S ped Elementary School continue to operate I would say after the word operate independently as the community's elementary schools and not be subject to closure s so on um that way we cover both sides of that that they need to be independent not combined together and I don't want I don't want those funny words slipping in there and say well we are going to let them still be there they're just going to be together you know so let's let's make this message clear just a um just a point of order you made an amendment so before we discuss the amendment let's see is there a second second there there's a second from Mr suton um discussion on the amendment go ahead Mr Jansen yeah so yes I just wanted to make sure that we're that we're not mixing words and that we make our message explicitly clear when it comes to this resolution any other discussion on the amendment Mr suton Wagner your light's wrong Mr S no discussion on okay um Madam clerk R call as to the amendment to add the word independent or was it indep independently independently council member horn yes council member Johnson yes council member MAA yes council member Sutton yes yes council member Wagner yes council member Golding yes mayor Hoffman yes Amendment passes Mr Jansen did you have further comments I don't think so we can come back to you Mr [Music] Sutton uh thank you mayor first of all thanks everybody for being here um and it it seems like a bad joke um to me um you know the these two schools have been part of the fabric of our community since the ' 50s and um two super high performing schools and the best teachers in dual County are at these schools and a lot of the best teachers are at Fletcher and Fletcher as well uh for a reason uh it's really because of this community so I certainly stand with you and you know encourage the um School Board to go back and look I think they've gotten a little caught up the the whole um you know setup that they have with the charter schools I think needs to be Revisited because certainly that has exacerbated this problem Y and um you know while I think choice is fine uh it can't be at the expense of what we're facing today that's unacceptable um so you know I um I think they've gotten a little caught up in um in efficiency versus Effectiveness and um these two schools are highly effective and I plan on you know it to to the point that I can affect it than being there for a long time I uh attended Sam Pablo a few years ago and and um and and um and my son attended San Pablo and and had Miss Newan as a as a teacher and so um you know the um just the thought of either one of these institutions at the at the beach in Jacksonville Beach going away I find I find disturbing and highly unacceptable and um um certainly support everybody so thank you for being here thank you Mr s Mr Wagner you know I I want to start by thanking each of our wonderful each teachers parents and residents that have come up that in this setting and in settings out and then of course outside of this setting I think it's just a wonderful Testament I want you guys to keep it up and I think you're going to hear from most of us or all of us we're going to keep it up right this is something that's important to us I'm a beach native my mother had a 40-year teaching career here in dual County my mother was vice principal at series Elementary she started the first class in mport elementary um I've gone to almost every elementary school cuz I had to go wherever she was um so um and and you know just my brother was Patrol and T I mean like you know this is this is important to us and and you know um and all of the wonderful things that I heard there was a couple of folks that referenced they felt that we didn't have a voice and and so we we really need to make sure that we overcome that as a community and that everybody feels that they have a voice and we're when we're here to be part of that we're here to represent you guys so keep keep the messages going just like uh The Honorable mayor um suggested and and don't be shy about giving them to us as well uh you know information data speaking points it's so much more impactful when we can say our wonderful teachers our wonderful parents our wonderful residents say X Y and Z so so um please keep it up do not let us allow you guys to feel like you don't have a voice that that our wonderful you know uh uh centerpieces of our communities AR aren loved and beloved and and aren't going to be here a long time soon so you do your part and we'll do our part and we all do it together thank you Mr ragner Sandy Golding thank you mayor and um thank you fellow council members for your comments and thank you everyone for your amazing comments um I live just down the street from San Pavo Elementary School and my husband went to San Pavo San PAB elementary school so um it's it's these schools are very very important part of our I totally agree with what everyone has said um we these schools need to stay a part of our community and I wanted to mention I don't know if anyone else is aware of this but um I was made aware of an interlocal agreement that exists between our duall County school system and the City of Jacksonville Beach as well as the other beaches cities and then we have um also Public Schools facilities element in our comp plan and interestingly the uh interlocal agreement says that the city council will meet with DCPS and uh legislative bodies of the other municipalities on an annual basis in a joint Workshop or meeting session to discuss and lists off all kinds of things but ultimately um I think that's an opportunity for us to have a voice in what happens to our community schools um the interlocal agreement says that the that DCPS is supposed to be scheduling these and I checked uh I checked with our Deputy city manager and she checked with our city clerk and we're not aware of any meetings that have ever been scheduled so uh I I am going to suggest that we as a council make sure that that change um and again uh I fully support our schools and and along with fellow with our fellow Council memb will do everything I can to make sure they stay where they are and they stay open and and supported like they are from our entire Community thank you m Golding Mr hor um I'll be brief uh well done keep it up okay do exactly what you're doing um and reach out to the members of the school board reach out to your elected officials um whether it be us whether it be Jacksonville um they need to know that there's a big group of angry out there um and they're not going to put up with it one of the problems in some areas of Jacksonville is that people have left their local schools because the schools are not providing what they want and there being good parents that are saying if I can't get it here I will go to a charter school because because my local school is not what I need what we're finding out and what we all know is that seab breze and San Pablo and these schools at the beaches um all these schools the beaches are exactly what the parents want to need and and they're like please don't let this go away and we will support you um just reach out to the school board just you know keep it up okay and thank you all for coming seriously thank you for being so such a great advocates for your children Mr Jansen yeah I just remembered in closing um so I'm when I attend the next um sir tax oversight meeting I'm going to bring with me I've already received a handful of emails uh any of the emails that I have that regarding the tax issue itself I can I can bring and I'm going to present them as well to this to this C Tex and um in this meeting is a as a table or a head table that contains all the the administrators from Chris on down Cory right you all of them are there at this meeting and so they'll get to hear your voice if I have that email that that addresses any tax issues thank you Mr Jansen Mr Mesa do you have any comments you'd like to share [Music] goe um I I want to thank everyone for showing up my apologies I'm under the letter I wish I could be there but I support this resolution more than 10% um I believe education is very important and I think uh what the reach Community represents from seab bre to mport um I think it's very important that we keep all the schools open uh to my colleague Dan Johnson appreciate you bringing that Amendment forward um anything that we could do as a city council to make sure that we don't have any loopholes or any any we wouldn't want to leave anything out um to the parents and the teachers to the community Comm uh thank you very much um as a part of a school board in California that has many problems I think this is an ongoing problem that goes on all over the country and I think this is something that the school board administrative uh staff should be looked into um this is something that should never happen um I I support this 10% I stand with the parents we should keep C Elementary School open and support the other schools as well that's it thank you thank you Mr Rea we hope you feel better any other comments from Council um I have some notes prepared and I don't think I can cover these items as nearly as eloquently as all of you did um but I do want to say I am a Neptune Beach Elementary School student we were a Navy family and I think if my mom had had to figure out where we were going to go to school versus the school that we were just zoned for I'd probably still be figuring out where I was going to be going to kindergarten so so I am grateful for that I am grateful for de Beach and all of our Beach's schools um and I want to thank all of you who leftt into action because I think all of us were very surprised by this um and I want to thank the parents some of you who are in this room who alerted me to this issue so that I could start uh talking to my fellow beaches Mayors to our school board representative and uh as well as the school board chair as recently as this morning um so it sounds like this resolution is going to pass so now I can uh more firmly um speak with the support of the city of Jacksonville Beach behind us which we'll be doing this week um we have a meeting coming up in the inter