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Last modified 7/22/2008 - 12:36 am
Originally created 072308
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By DREW DIXON, Shorelines

NEPTUNE BEACH - A veteran of three decades at the city's police department, Lt. Joan Hermann retired Friday, but not before leaving the department's communication system in better shape than she found it.

Hermann, 68, has been in charge of the Police Services Division, which includes dispatchers. She stepped down after 31 years on the job, and she's leaving a legacy that includes a better dispatch center and better communications for officers.

The Police Department last week implemented a new Computer Aided Dispatch and Records Management System that Hermann helped to select and launch July 13.

"We have had computers in the police car for some time, it's just that everything was handwritten in the office," Hermann said, noting that now everything is centralized through the new $85,000 computer system, paid for with a federal Justice Assistance Grant.

Now, when a dispatcher enters data into the system, either relayed to them from field officers or their own information, the computer system stores everything.

"Dispatch picks up the phone, it automatically pulls up an address," Hermann said. "Everything is computerized. Eventually it will be direct and automatically linked to officers in the field."

The new system, from Executive Information Systems based in Idaho, stores data on police service calls as well as information about residents at different homes to help officers who may be responding to a call, Hermann said.

"When you give me an address and I put it in there, it verifies the address. It also has notations of special needs, such as oxygen or wheelchair assistance or if someone has a heart condition, among other issues," she said.

The system also tracks the amount of time it takes for an officer to work a call or gives geographic breakdowns of crime trends in an area.

"It can be printed up right there for officers. It's information that's readily available rather than having to do hand searches for everything," Hermann said.

Police Chief David Sembach said the system has been flawless.

"It moves us from the '50s and '60s into the 21st Century," he said. "We had outdated computer systems. So much of it was done by hand.

"This will free us up. These [dispatchers] won't have to do double or triple work. The first time they enter it into the system, it will be the last time."

Getting the system was Hermann's last major project at the department before she retired. She started in the department as an administrative assistant for former Chief Howard Basil in 1977 after serving as a dispatcher at the Atlantic Beach Police Department. Atlantic Beach used to serve as a dispatch center for both cities until 1981, when Neptune Beach opted for its own dispatchers for the force of four officers, Hermann said.

As Neptune Beach eventually grew into a force of 20 officers, Hermann helped guide the growth.

"I stayed in my position and I trained all the people to be dispatchers. I was the fill-in. If someone got sick or went on vacation, I would close my door and go in and talk on the radio," she said.

Watching the changes and dealing with them as the department grew has been a privilege, Hermann said.

"It's been a wonderful ride. Things have come along and the old dogs are learning new tricks. Even the radios have changed. We're on 800 megahertz right now. We used to be on UHF."

While the technical changes help, Hermann said Neptune Beach police remain committed to basic community patrolling.

"To be very honest, Neptune Beach was doing community policing before anyone knew what it was. People were so comfortable with Neptune Beach police, they used to call in and ask for officers by their first name," she said.

Sembach acknowledged it will be tough to replace Hermann, if that can ever be done.

"Every agency or every company has one person that makes that company run. Joan is a 4-foot-11-inch spark plug and there's nothing in this department she doesn't know. I don't know how I'm going to replace her and I don't know if I can replace her," said Sembach.

Drew Dixon can also be reached at (904) 249-4947, ext. 6313.

072308 neshorelines 2 drew.dixon@shorelines.com NEPTUNE BEACH - Despite late spring and early summer concerns about a crush on parking at Town Center, the City Council agreed Monday to drop any plans to increase parking control at the popular commercial hub.--> Last modified 7/22/2008 - 12:36 am
Originally created 072308

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By DREW DIXON, Shorelines

NEPTUNE BEACH - Despite late spring and early summer concerns about a crush on parking at Town Center, the City Council agreed Monday to drop any plans to increase parking control at the popular commercial hub.

"I have a sense that the problem is not as urgent as I thought initially," Councilman John Weldon said.

Weldon was among several council members who in June was considering adding parking meters or signs limiting parking to two hours because of a crush of beachgoers using the parking lots surrounding Town Center to go to the shoreline. Restaurant and shop owners complained to the city the use of spaces by beachgoers was depleting spaces for customers.

But at a workshop Monday, several business owners in the Town Center said they'd prefer not to change the current free parking system.

"Do no harm, that's what we really ask you as business people," said Rona Brinlee, owner of the Bookmark book store on Atlantic Boulevard. "Please don't have paid parking. I think that would really be hurtful to business.

"I think that it's important that we have to allow beach parking. People come here to go to the beach," Brinlee said.

City Manager Jim Jarboe pointed out it was businesses who brought concerns to the city over parking issues about two months ago. While Jarboe said there was a surge on parking during the weekends for several weeks, that seems to have subsided.

Jacksonville City Councilman Art Graham, who represents the Beaches district, also was present at the Neptune Beach workshop Monday and said the late June introduction of the Beaches Trolley system on the weekends seems to have done well.

The trolley runs from South Jacksonville Beach to the Town Center and Graham said ridership at the Town Center stop has taken off, noting many people wait at the stop for the last run of the trolley at 2 a.m.

Mayor Dick Brown said the trolley has likely helped alleviate the parking demand on Town Center, but he said it's not certain.

Jarboe said if parking demand in Town Center develops into a long-term problem, the city might want to look into a purchase of a nearby lot for additional parking for Town Center.

"But I don't think that's financially doable at this time." Jarboe said.

Meanwhile, Weldon said, as the parking crush has tapered off this year, the merchants of Town Center should at least start formulating some sort of long-term parking plan.

Weldon said he's heard from some business owners that "there's a certain tension" between some restaurants and other merchants over restaurant employees using much of the prime parking when they go to work for hours on end. He said businesses need to explain what they need.

"We do ask ... the Town Center Merchants' Association to get together at your next meeting and give the City Council of Neptune Beach and, simultaneously, the City Commission of Atlantic Beach some advice as to what you need, what you're looking for and how we can help your businesses prosper in Town Center," Weldon said.

In other action in a special meeting before the workshop, the council approved an ordinance that grants a request by Duval County Supervisor of Elections Jerry Holland to move the City Council elections qualifying deadline to Aug. 25-29 effective this year in order to give more time to print overseas ballots.

The deadline had previously been Sept. 15 to Sept. 19

Nov. 4 is the general election and the runoff is Dec. 2, if necessary.

As of this week, five candidates had opened campaign accounts for this fall's mayoral and council races. They are Harriet Pruette, the current Seat 3 council member who is running for mayor along with Scott Wiley; Sybil Ansbacher and Kara Wade Tucker, who are both seeking Pruette's seat; and incumbent Seat 2 Councilman Eric Pardee, who is unopposed.

Drew Dixon can also be reached at (904) 249-4947, ext. 6313

In a surprise move, the St. Johns County commissioners decided Tuesday to stop a plan that would have charged homeowners a fee for fire services.
Four of the five commissioners had voted in favor of the fee in June, but changed their minds after receiving a lot of negative feedback from the public.
Currently, homeowners pay for fire services through their property taxes, but that’s not enough to fund infrastructure needs, such as new fire trucks and fire station buildings, so the commissioners were looking into charging a fee based on the size of the residents’ homes rather than their property values.
Because property taxes vary based on if and when homeowners have applied the 3 percent Save Our Homes cap on their property taxes, some of the commissioners said there’s an inequity between the amount homeowners pay for fire services.
For example, if someone bought their 2,000-square-foot home 30 years ago and got a Save Our Homes cap, they pay less in property taxes than someone who bought their 2,000-square-foot home two years ago.
The fire services fee, on the other hand, would be charged based on the size of the home and its fire hazard rating. So property owners with 2,000-square-foot homes would pay the same amount, regardless of when they purchased them and if they have the tax cap. However, because of the fire hazard rating criteria, commercial property owners would pay more than residential property owners.
Beth Breeding, a commercial property owner in Ponte Vedra Beach, said the proposed fire services fee for her properties were 50 percent higher than what she paid for all services in her property taxes in prior years.
“I understand that it costs money for these things. ... When it’s a 50 percent increase over the entire tax bill for all services for the prior year, it’s something we just can’t absorb,” she said.

Last modified 7/18/2008 - 2:02 am
Originally created 071908
  
Atlantic Beach let him go after finding he used excessive force in 2004.

By DREW DIXON, Shorelines

ATLANTIC BEACH - A Florida appeals court has ruled a man fired from the city's police department three years ago on charges of using excessive force while arresting a juvenile should to be reinstated to his job as an officer.

The Florida First District Court of Appeal ruled Tuesday that Victor Raynor should be returned to his position as an officer on the force. The appellate ruling upholds the original arbitrator's ruling that said Raynor used excessive force but should not have been fired. A Circuit Court decision overruled the arbitrator, in favor of the city, leading to Raynor's challenge in appeals court.

"He's been out of work for three years as a police officer," said Raynor's attorney, Tad Delegal. "He thought he won ... and it's taken two additional years to have that arbitrator's award reinstated."

Part of the ruling states Raynor should not only be reinstated, but should be compensated for all of his lost salary since he was fired from the department in 2005. He was making about $41,200 a year at that time. Any back pay award would subtract income Raynor earned in other employment since his termination.

The case stems from Raynor's conduct during an arrest of a 17-year-old boy on Oct. 23, 2004, on charges of leaving the scene of a crash with property damage, careless driving and not having a driver's license.

Sgt. Jimmy Hundley, one of two backup officers called to the scene, said he saw Raynor grab the teen by the throat, pull him from the car to the ground while the teen was handcuffed and choke the teen on the ground. The teen gave investigators the same account of the events.

Police Chief David Thompson recommended firing Raynor based on accounts from Hundley and other witnesses. City Manager Jim Hanson upheld the chief's recommendation and fired Raynor.

Hanson said Wednesday he was "disappointed" by the appeals court ruling and he acknowledged he's not sure what the city's next legal move will be. The city has until the end of the month to respond to the ruling and seek another court hearing.

But Hanson said Raynor had a history of disciplinary problems prior to the 2004 incident and the city remains confident in its decision to terminate him.

Raynor was investigated several times during his 16-year career with the department. In 1998, he was given verbal counseling for improper case investigation. In 2003, he was reprimanded for misappropriating and destroying property.

"In this case, most of the witness testimony is very similar," Hanson said. "He had a history with the city with other disciplinary action before that. It's not overly complicated."

Hanson said the city wants to uphold the integrity of the police department; that's why Raynor was fired.

Raynor said his extensive involvement in the Fraternal Order of Police and activities for the union helped lead to his termination; the FOP was a co-plaintiff in the lawsuit contesting the city's decision to fire him.

In 2004, before the October arrest, Raynor filed a federal lawsuit against the city, saying the city denied him promotions and other opportunities for advancement because of his involvement in the police union.

Delagal Raynor simply wants his job back after nearly a career-wrecking ordeal.

Drew Dixon can also be reached at (904) 249-4947, ext. 6313.

More and more military families are going to the Mayport USO station for no-dough dinners, where they get meals for free every other Monday. See our story with a photo selection.

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Last modified 7/16/2008 - 12:11 am
Originally created 071608

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Idea is on the table for a terminal to be built in the fishing village.

By DREW DIXON, The Times-Union

If they want to bring a cruise ship terminal to the village, let's move the village elsewhere.
   
That's a conclusion some members of a Mayport advisory board arrived at Tuesday while discussing the possibility of a Jacksonville Port Authority terminal being built in the historic fishing village.

"Move the residents and everybody," said Carroll Huffines, secretary-treasurer of the Mayport Waterfront Partnership, which advises Jacksonville City Hall on Mayport issues. "It's something to think about. It's very progressive. It may be controversial. I don't think we should close our minds to that."

Huffines and Partnership Chairman David Fisher said increasing numbers of Mayport village residents are interested in moving the enclave - about 70 homes on 80 acres - to an area known as Buck's Island. The area has been suggested because it's near the ocean and Mayport, it's vacant and it has no environmental concerns.

The 126-acre spit of land is about 3 miles west of Mayport village on the south side of the St. Johns River, accessible via Fort Caroline Road. The area is used as a dump site for spoils from Jaxport and Army Corps of Engineers dredge projects. Those agencies lease the land from the state.

The Waterfront Partnership and the Mayport Village Civic Association have both passed resolutions opposing the port proposal to build a $60 million cruise ship terminal in the historic village established in 1562. Many residents fear the terminal, which has not been approved yet, would wreck Mayport's traditional fishing industry.

Instead of fighting the terminal, Fisher said, it's time to at least consider moving the community.

"What if you could move the working waterfront from here to there?" Fisher asked. "The idea would be that you would get a house and a piece of property of equal value or larger or better. This is just a what-if thing, now."

Fisher said homes could be rebuilt on Buck's Island, fishing boats could dock there and some historic buildings could be hauled there.

Fisher and Huffines said negotiations should begin with Jaxport, which closed on ownership last month of about 4 acres on the Mayport waterfront in preparation for a potential cruise ship terminal. The port authority paid about $9 million for the property.

Port spokeswoman Nancy Rubin said Tuesday that because the agency doesn't own Buck's Island, the authority is in no position to negotiate any possible relocation of the historic village.

But Rubin said Jaxport is considering using Mayport village for a cruise ship terminal because of the fishing history.

"A lot of what makes Mayport attractive as a service destination is the village. That [relocation] would be removing a crucial piece of what the attractiveness is in Mayport," she said.

drew.dixon@jacksonville.com

(904) 249-4947, ext. 6313

Last modified 7/15/2008 - 3:42 pm
Originally created 071608
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By DREW DIXON, Shorelines

NEPTUNE BEACH - City officials are backing off plans to install meters or other parking controls in the Town Center shopping area.

In response to a recent influx of beachgoers and others using the parking lots surrounding the shopping hub along Atlantic Boulevard, City Council members in June had considered adding parking meters or signs limiting people to two hours. But Mayor Dick Brown said Friday parking meters have been ruled out and it's unlikely signs will be posted.

"There was a tremendous amount of activity just as the [beachgoing] season got started," Brown said. "They're tremendously expensive, the new meters, and they're also a maintenance problem being that close to the ocean."

City Manager Jim Jarboe has recommended against meters that would require payment in what are now free parking areas.

Police Chief David Sembach said in June that more people than ever are going to the beach this year. Many of them had been using the Town Center parking spots all day, instead of patrons of the shops and restaurants. Business owners complained to the city.

Then, once the City Council started discussing parking control measures in June, Brown said business owners and residents started contacting the city in opposition.

"I for one am not for parking meters," Strand Street resident Jan Wolke wrote in an e-mail to Brown. "I have never had a major problem finding parking to shop or go to the restaurants. ... I for one do not want to have to pay for parking each time I go to town."

At a July 7 council meeting, weeks after he acknowledged crowds were in a rush to get to the beach, Jarboe said parking demand around Town Center was decreasing.

"It seems to have worked itself out a bit," Jarboe said. "It's not as much of a crisis as it was."

Brown said the consideration of posting signs limiting parking to two hours in the Town Center area seems unrealistic now, since merchants have raised concerns.

Brown's reservations about adding parking controls follow the concerns of some City Council members who said in June that they had been dodging the issue for too long.

"We need to do something," Councilman John Weldon said last month. "We have to realize that this area has to be managed, parking-wise, and we have to take action to do that. We can't just wait for it to turn into a disaster."

Even though parking is an issue, Brown said erecting parking meters or signs would backfire.

"As staff talked to the businesses about what options they saw as doable, short of doing a multi-deck garage, it looked like the fix was going to be worse than the problem," Brown said.

Drew Dixon can also be reached at (904) 249-4947, ext. 6313.

Last modified 7/14/2008 - 11:08 pm
Originally created 071608
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Atlantic Beach will come up with a new population division for the districts.

By DREW DIXON, Shorelines

ATLANTIC BEACH - The City Commission Monday postponed a new ordinance that would establish four geographic districts to correspond with the four commissioner seats, in keeping with a referendum approved by voters last year.

At the request of Duval County Supervisor of Elections Jerry Holland, the commission unanimously "disapproved" the ordinance because of population divisions within the proposed districts that received tentative approval last month. Holland said each district should be divided by population according to the 2000 U.S. Census figures and not by registered voters in each district, as Holland himself had originally suggested.

"My recommendation originally was to use the most current information that we could to divide the districts, which was voter data; those who were registered," Holland said.

But legal counsel for the Supervisor of Elections Office advised Holland that in order to be consistent with state and federal election districts, Atlantic Beach should follow the general rule of using equal division of districts based on the census information.

Holland said he initially was reluctant to use the census data because it was 8 years old. But counsel convinced him it was more consistent to use the census information rather than voter records.

Holland said while the population figures can be used to establish districts, the basis for the number of people for each district can be based on the total population or the number of people 18 years old and older.

The district alignments can then be modified again after the 2010 U.S. Census.

Mayor John Meserve said he accepted the recommendation and directed City Manager Jim Hanson to recalculate the district divisions and come back to the commission with a new draft resolution in August.

The original ordinance provided four geographic districts with two lining the ocean on the eastern boundary, another is generally in the center of the city and a fourth is generally southwest stretching across Mayport Road nearly to the Intracoastal Waterway. Each district would be assigned to a particular commission seat, excluding the mayor, but all voters get to cast ballots on each seat in a general election.

The geographic boundaries are likely to remain similar in a revised ordinance, but the number of people in each district could change, which could move the boundaries slightly.

While the commission agreed to look at the districts again, there were still questions as to whether the entire district system could be done away with, despite the voters' approval of the concept last October.

"What would it take if we wanted to reverse this whole thing and put it back on the ballot again in November?" asked Commissioner Paul Parsons.

Holland said it would take an entirely new referendum and that would include a petition and certification that would have to be finalized at least six weeks before the election ballots are printed, if the initiative were to come from the commission. That time period would be about six months if it were a citizens' initiative, Holland said, adding it's virtually impossible to make the deadline for a new referendum this year.

But the referendum last October was narrowly approved by voters: 1,130 votes in favor and 1,019 against.

Voters who cast ballots in favor of the referendum generally liked it because of the concept of commission seats and their districts representing all neighborhoods in the city. Currently, all of the commissioners live east of Mayport Road near the ocean.

There's still an undercurrent of opposition to the proposed district system and resident Pat Pillmore said during a public hearing on the ordinance that she wants the measure nullified.

"I would still come here if I had some interest in what was going on here. My first thought would not be who is my district representative," Pillmore said. "What is good for Atlantic Beach is good for the core city, the oceanfront, the business districts, subdivisions and where I live" west of Mayport Road.

Holland said after the meeting if the commission or residents feel strongly enough about rejecting the district system, there's plenty of time to organize a ballot initiative for a referendum in the next city election in the fall off 2009.

Drew Dixon can also be reached at (904) 249-4947, ext. 6313

The Lifestyle Realtors Beaches Fine Arts Series Sprint Triathlon featured a unique event Saturday, July 12. The Ancient City Brass band played throughout - to inspire participants and spectators and to link the triathlon and the free musical concerts the fine arts series, a non profit organization, brings to Jacksonville and the Beaches. Check out my story and photos published Wednesday, July 16 in Beaches and Ponte Vedra Shorelines, and my video of the event on shorelines.com.

Last modified 7/10/2008 - 10:35 pm
Originally created 071208
  

By DREW DIXON, Shorelines

MAYPORT - The reinstatement of a long-dormant fleet and a new commander of the Navy's Southern Command will mean a higher profile for Mayport Naval Station, two rear admirals said.

Rear Adm. Joseph Kernan will take over for Rear Adm. James Stevenson today as commander of the U.S. Naval Southern Command. Also, Kernan will reintroduce the U.S. Fourth Fleet, which has been dormant since the 1950s.

Mayport has had its challenges in recent years, most notably the 2007 decommissioning of the aircraft carrier USS John F. Kennedy and the 5,000 jobs lost when the aircraft carrier departed the basin to be mothballed in Philadelphia. But the high-level commands to be stationed at Mayport could help.

In anticipation of retiring at Mayport Naval Station, the 54-year-old Stevenson said the regional aspects of commands assigned to Mayport will help with the base's future.

"I think Mayport itself has benefited because of the refocusing of this command, U.S. Naval Forces Southern Command. Especially now with the re-establishment of Fourth Fleet, I think this lends a lot more credibility and a little bit more prestige to this base," Stevenson said. "Hopefully, the people that do work in Mayport and are assigned in Mayport will consider working for this command in the future."

While people have debated about the future of Mayport Naval Station and if it will ever get another aircraft carrier, Stevenson said studies are under way to see where all ships should be homeported, which ultimately Congress will decide. But Mayport does have a high profile, he said.

"I think Mayport is a fabulous base. I think it's a base that could be much better utilized with any type of forces, whether it be a nuclear-powered aircraft carrier, whether it be large amphibious ships or an amphibious-ready expeditionary strike group, Mayport could facilitate that," he said.

"If you look at Mayport with any increase in forces, you'd probably have to do some infrastructure improvements and that would be required, especially for a nuclear-powered aircraft carrier. When the decision's made, I think this is a perfect location for any of those types of forces," Stevenson said.

Kernan said reinstating the long-dormant Fourth Fleet is a positive sign for Mayport.

"In standing up the Fourth Fleet, it makes a statement about the relevance of the area that I'm responsible for," Kernan said.

"That status affords me the opportunity to come to the table and petition more for resources and petition for the things that I think are important for me to execute my operations in the southern area of operations.

"Just being at a fleet commander level, I expect to sit at the table with other fleet commanders," Kernan said.

Kernan said while the Southern and Fourth Fleet commands are largely administrative, the posts will bring attention to a base that lost a major aircraft carrier last year.

The Fourth Fleet is responsible for the Southern Command, which includes the Caribbean, Central America and South America, Kernan said.

Fourth Fleet missions will include counter-drug and narco-terrorism operations, Kernan said. Navy resources from throughout the southern region of operations will be under Kernan's command, which he coordinates with other fleets.

Reinstituting of the Fourth Fleet will help keep focus on Mayport, Kernan said. That command was established in World War II and disestablished in 1950; it was always anchored at Mayport.

"Its re-establishment is to place some equity with an important region," Kernan said. "It elevates the status of that region of the world with an equitable status with other regions of the world."

Kernan will wear two hats as commander of the Fourth Fleet and the Southern Command.

"A lot of the ships in Mayport certainly came under this command's operational control and tactical control," said Stevenson, noting the Mayport Naval Station basin still has 22 ships after the Kennedy left.

"I would say in the basin right now, 80 percent of the ships have at one time worked for us in the last three years and some on multiple occasions," Stevenson said.

Drew Dixon can also be reached at (904) 249-4947, ext. 6313.