Latest news with #KevinCarrico
Yahoo
3 days ago
- Business
- Yahoo
Gateway Jax breaks ground on a second major development in Downtown Jacksonville
Work is officially underway on a new development in Downtown Jacksonville. A groundbreaking ceremony was held on Thursday for a second building in Gateway Jax's Pearl Square neighborhood. Mayor Donna Deegan, City Council President-elect Kevin Carrico, and City Councilman Raul Arias were in attendance. Pearl Square is a mixed-use development located at 425 Beaver Street. The new building will feature 286 multifamily units, on-site parking, and nearly 20,000 square feet of retail space. When combined with the work that's already underway in Pearl Square, there will be 500 residential units and 40,000 square feet of retail space. The goal is to create a walkable neighborhood Downtown, where people can live, dine and shop. The project should be complete by 2027. >>> STREAM ACTION NEWS JAX LIVE <<< [DOWNLOAD: Free Action News Jax app for alerts as news breaks] [SIGN UP: Action News Jax Daily Headlines Newsletter] Click here to download the free Action News Jax news and weather apps, click here to download the Action News Jax Now app for your smart TV and click here to stream Action News Jax live.
Yahoo
3 days ago
- General
- Yahoo
Incoming City Council president said he felt 'threatened' by another City Councilman
There was a tense moment in a Jacksonville City Council meeting this week. Incoming City Council president Kevin Carrico, said he felt 'threatened' by City Councilman Matt Carlucci and requested that the sergeant at arms remove Carlucci from council chambers. The two were debating a bill that would make some changes to the Downtown Investment Authority. Carrico is the sponsor of that bill. It would enable the DIA to file legislation directly with the council president, thereby sidestepping the Mayor's budget review process. It would also require the DIA's CEO to be confirmed by the council, and gives the council and/or the DIA Board the authority to remove the CEO with a majority vote. Councilman Carlucci is not a member of the special committee on the future of downtown. But he helped put the DIA together. He said the DIA is meant to be independent. >>> STREAM ACTION NEWS JAX LIVE <<< 'The DIA has its own board,' Carlucci said. 'They hire and then they fire the DIA board, who the executive director or the CEO reports to. That's the way it should stay.' Councilman Carrico said, 'With autonomy comes accountability. It is not a power trip, it's an accountability thing. The likelihood of the council wanting to remove a CEO would be pretty extreme.' In a video from Thursday's meeting, you can see Carlucci get up from his seat and stand near Carrico. That's when Carrico said he felt threatened. Action News Jax asked Carlucci what he was doing by approaching Carrico. Carlucci said, 'I walked up, as I normally do, before I leave a meeting early, and walked over to the chair and to say I'm leaving early. He was engaged in conversation.' We reached out to Councilman Kevin Carrico for an interview. He replied back saying 'no comment'. [DOWNLOAD: Free Action News Jax app for alerts as news breaks] [SIGN UP: Action News Jax Daily Headlines Newsletter] Click here to download the free Action News Jax news and weather apps, click here to download the Action News Jax Now app for your smart TV and click here to stream Action News Jax live.
Yahoo
5 days ago
- General
- Yahoo
Jacksonville's OGC advises police to stop enforcing state and local laws criminalizing illegal entry
The City of Jacksonville's Office of General Counsel has advised the Jacksonville Sheriff's Office not to enforce state and local laws that make it a crime to be in the state and county without legal status in the country. In the new guidance, which was obtained by Action News Jax, city attorneys wrote a federal injunction on the state law 'would equally apply to the city's ordinance' because the city ordinance 'was modeled' after the state law. 'The reason we passed this bill, one of the main reasons, is it's a mandate from the President,' said Council Vice President Kevin Carrico (R-District 4), who sponsored the local immigration bill. Carrico initially requested OGC weigh in on whether the injections impacted JSO's ability to enforce state and local immigration laws. He questioned why OGC would advise against enforcing the local ordinance, given it's never been challenged in court. 'It's handcuffing law enforcement and it's going against the will of the state, the Governor, and ultimately the President of the United States,' said Carrico. >>> STREAM ACTION NEWS JAX LIVE <<< While there is an active injunction against the state law, Florida's Attorney General James Uthmeier issued a letter to Florida's local law enforcement agencies in April, telling them, 'It is my view that no lawful, legitimate order currently impedes your agencies from continuing to enforce Florida's new illegal entry and reentry laws'. Mayor Donna Deegan refused to sign the local immigration bill over concerns it may be unconstitutional, and instead let it go into effect without her signature. 'The Mayor's Office is completely separate and has no authority over the Jacksonville Sheriff's Office. The Office of General Counsel represents the entire Consolidated Government and has repeatedly raised concerns that the local ordinance is redundant to the state law that is now blocked by a federal court,' the mayor's office told Action News Jax when asked about the advice issued by OGC. 'This is simply legal guidance offered by the General Counsel to another independent entity to avoid lawsuits being filed against the city.' But Carrico argued the new guidance reflects OGC doing the bidding of the mayor. 'This is someone who always says we're doing things political and everything is so political. Look in the mirror,' said Carrico. 'This is very political.' Action News Jax reached out to JSO asking whether the agency plans to stop enforcing the state and local immigration laws as recommended by OGC. 'As a law enforcement agency, the Jacksonville Sheriff's Office will always enforce federal, state, and local laws,' said JSO in a statement. [DOWNLOAD: Free Action News Jax app for alerts as news breaks] [SIGN UP: Action News Jax Daily Headlines Newsletter]
Yahoo
7 days ago
- General
- Yahoo
3 arrested at Jacksonville City Council meeting, 1 had knife, Jacksonville police say
New video shared with Action News Jax shows several people being walked out of Tuesday night's Jacksonville City Council meeting in handcuffs. Newly elected City Council President Kevin Carrico told us that three people were arrested for assault on a law enforcement officer. It happened just as public comment was ending. Just before 10 p.m., the Jacksonville Sheriff's Office released a statement that said two people were being charged with misdemeanors and one person was discovered with a knife in his possession and being charged with a felony. Action News Jax's Alexus Cleavenger was at the meeting and watched Jacksonville Sheriff's Officers put those arrested into a patrol car. Video shows the moment the commotion happened at the back of Council chambers. Someone could be heard saying 'back up now.' Then it appears an officer tries to grab a man to move him back. It looks like that man then went on to remove the officer's hand from holding him. And that's when it appears an officer pulled that man by the neck over a row of chairs. [DOWNLOAD: Free Action News Jax app for alerts as news breaks] The commotion rattled City Council members, who cleared the room until the situation was under control. Monica Gold with the Jacksonville Community Action Committee was there when all this happened. She believes this started when a community member showed some sort of support during the public comment portion of the meeting, which is against the rules of public comment. [SIGN UP: Action News Jax Daily Headlines Newsletter] 'I feel horrified, I feel sick to my stomach that police feel so comfortable using that level of force on anybody and people that were literally just sitting, and another person just standing,' Gold said. Council member Rory Diamond posted the following on X after the arrests: 'Battery on a Law Enforcement Officer is a felony in Florida if Jax Council protestors were wondering. Fully expect all charges to be pressed. #BackTheBLUE" Carrico released the following statement: 'I'd like to thank JSO for once again keeping us safe during an unfortunate event that took place in council chambers. It was unclear what happened but I'm hearing officers were assaulted after people were asked to leave for violating council rules of decorum. On a side note it was an honor to be Voted President, I'm looking forward to leading this body and this city during my tenure as the 57th President of the Jacksonville City Council.' JSO released the following statement: 'Tonight, Jacksonville Sheriff's Office (JSO) officers arrested three individuals following a disturbance at the Jacksonville City Council meeting. Council leadership requested that JSO officers remove a group of individuals who were disrupting the proceedings. At that time, a few people disobeyed the lawful orders to leave the chambers. The three individuals who were arrested refused to leave and resisted, becoming combative with officers. Officers discovered a knife on one of the individuals who was arrested. He is charged with a felony while the other two are facing misdemeanor charges. 'City leaders stopped the meeting as officers cleared the chamber to ensure public safety. JSO respects the right to freedom of speech and the right to protest; however, the actions of the three individuals in custody constituted a clear violation of the law. They are currently being booked into the Duval County Jail.' The City Council meeting was still going on as of just before 10 p.m., but we are working to speak with Council members about what they saw for FOX30 and CBS47 Action News Jax at 11. Click here to download the free Action News Jax news and weather apps, click here to download the Action News Jax Now app for your smart TV and click here to stream Action News Jax live.
Yahoo
23-05-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Jacksonville City Council could soon have a lot more leverage over downtown projects
City Council members are looking to leverage more authority over the city's downtown development arm with a newly filed bill. The legislation would also strip away some of the mayor's ability to influence downtown development projects. After a year of meetings, Council Vice President Kevin Carrico (R-District 4) is looking to put into practice some of the fixes identified by the Special Committee on the Future of Downtown. 'We were tasked with coming up with a bill that would take care of some of these choke points and give a little more autonomy to the Downtown Investment Authority so they could get deals done,' said Carrico. Carrico is sponsoring a new bill that makes some changes to the Downtown Investment Authority. First, it allows DIA to file legislation directly through the Council President, sidestepping the Mayor's budget review process. Carrico estimated it will cut the time it takes to get deals approved by the council in half. 'So, the DIA can now come straight to the city council and take out a couple months' worth of pain points and timing,' said Carrico. >>> STREAM ACTION NEWS JAX LIVE <<< [DOWNLOAD: Free Action News Jax app for alerts as news breaks] The bill also requires DIA's CEO to be confirmed by the council and gives council and or the DIA Board the authority to remove the CEO with a majority vote. Currently, no one has the authority to fire the DIA CEO. With current CEO Lori Boyer set to retire soon, Carrico argued it will ensure council has a say in the selection of the next CEO and a means to hold them accountable. 'If we give that trust away and that trust is broken and things aren't going right, then the council has the ability to remove that person as well. Is that a likely scenario? Not at all, but it just gives us checks and balances in my opinion,' said Carrico. But the mayor's office is already taking issue with Carrico's proposal. 'Council does not have that authority now, which is by design to keep DIA out of politics,' the mayor's office told Action News Jax in a statement. 'Currently, the DIA board chooses the CEO. We don't believe it's wise to change that.' But Carrico argued with the mayor already having the ability to appoint all of the DIA board members, it's important for council to have a voice as well. 'So, this is really just dividing some of the power and authority over that because we all care about downtown,' said Carrico. With the bill being filed on an emergency basis, it should be ready for a final vote within four weeks. Carrico said he is hopeful it will be in place before the next DIA CEO is named. [SIGN UP: Action News Jax Daily Headlines Newsletter] Click here to download the free Action News Jax news and weather apps, click here to download the Action News Jax Now app for your smart TV and click here to stream Action News Jax live.
