Nassau County Legislative Delegation hears from community

By Reporter, Cindy Jackson

January 7, 2019 10:41 a.m.

State Senator Aaron Bean, and State Representative Cord Byrd gather as members of the Nassau County Legislative Delegation to hear from city and county officials, non-profit organizations, and citizens.

On January 3, 2019, the Nassau County Legislative Delegation hosted a meeting in the Nassau County Commission Chambers to hear from local organizations and county residents as to their wants and needs for the coming legislative session. Representative Cord Byrd was elected chair and Senator Bean will serve as co-chair.

First to speak at the podium was Commission Chair Justin Taylor. He outlined the three main funding priorities for Nassau County. They are:

• The William Burgess Extension from US17 to Miner Road which will provide a second entrance and exit route to the Yulee middle and high schools and alleviate some traffic on A1A. Last year, Nassau County received $1 million to begin project design and right of way acquisitions. This year, the BOCC is requesting help from the delegation in getting $1,476,000 to complete the design phase of the project. Taylor was quick to add the county would be providing $1 million in matching funds.
• The American Beach Well and Septic Tank Phase-Out project. As explained by Taylor, “this project will eliminate sewage seepage into the soil and groundwater and would mitigate the future risk of red tide in the area.” The commissioners are requesting $1 million to begin design.
• The Edwards Road Urbanization and Widening Project which will create a safer intersection in that area near Interstate 95. The amount requested is $5.5 million for engineering, design and construction and construction, engineering and inspection.

Taylor noted that county staff is currently looking at programs through the Florida Department of Transportation for funds to assist. He specifically mentioned SCRAP (the Small County Road Assistance Program), designed “to assist small county governments in resurfacing and reconstructing county roads,” as described on the FDOT website and SCOP (the Small County Outreach Program), the purpose of which “is to assist municipalities and communities in repairing or rehabilitating local bridges, paving unpaved roads, addressing road-related drainage improvements, resurfacing or reconstructing local roads, or constructing capacity or safety improvements to local roads. Representative Byrd stated, “The Burgess extension is worthy of being a number one priority.”

Dr. Kathy Burns, Nassau County School Superintendent

Dr. Kathy Burns, Superintendent of Nassau County Schools, was just one of several individuals speaking to the delegation about the state of education in Nassau County. Dr. Burns noted tthe county has A-rated schools (again) and the graduation rate is up to 93%, another increase in recent years. Said Burns, “We have two priorities for this school year -- increasing teacher salaries in a meaningful, substantial manner . . . adequately fund safety measures.” Mental health and school safety were also a topic discussed. Jamie Vienneau, with the Nassau Teachers Association and Marian Phillips from the Nassau Educational Support Personnel Association also made impressive fact-filled presentations.

Fernandina Beach had a large delegation at the  meeting of the Nassau County Delegation. Pictured  are Commissioner Chip Ross, City Manager Dale Martin, Commissioner Len Kreger, City Grants Administrator, Lorelei Jacobs;  Attorney Richard Scholz and City Lobbyist, Attorney Buddy Jacobs.

A large delegation from the City of Fernandina Beach was also present to request funding assistance for three priority projects. Led by well-known local attorney and lobbyist Buddy Jacobs and his partner Richard Scholz, the first request was for $1,114,000 for an A-6 stormwater project for an area running from Ash to Elm Streets and from 8th Street to the river. The second priority is a shoreline stabilization project involving the construction of a seawall at the marina and the third priority -- a stormwater buffer on the ocean side of the Island. Certain dunes need to be reconfigured to better resist flooding and saltwater intrusion. The concept is to provide “walk-overs” as opposed to “walk-throughs.” Currently there are a total of 48 access points and 15 walk-throughs. For now, Points 8 and 9 North and Access Area 2 are slated to be addressed first.

Mr. Jacobs returned to the podium to talk of what he sees as a need for the repeal of a law that has been on the books since 1967. As the stands now, the city can only sell property at appraised values but he believes the city should not be limited in the event of a very interested buyer.

Other organizations making requests of the delegation included The Coalition for Americans for Prosperity, the Council on Aging, the Tree Conservancy and Nassau County Fairgrounds and a private individual made a plea that Bible reading and praying to be allowed in schools. The meeting was very well run with each speaker allowed three minutes. The commission chambers were full and Representative Cord Byrd summed it up when he said, “2019 is going to be a good year for the state of Florida.”

Editor's Note: Born in Hagerstown, Maryland, Cindy received her BA in Political Science from Dickinson College. Upon graduation, Cindy began her career on Capitol Hill working as a legislative aide and director. She later became a part of the public relations and lobbying team of the American Iron and Steel Institute and served as director of the office of state legislative affairs for the Aircraft Owners and Pilots Association (AOPA). Cindy was involved in economic development with the state of Maryland, and served as executive director of Leadership Washington County. As a community volunteer, Cindy participates in numerous volunteer activities serving as a member of Sunrise Rotary, and as board member of Cummer Amelia Board of Directors.