Jacksonville City Council torpedoed an economic development agreement that would have awarded a $70,000 grant that Jax Yacht Charter said it needed as a "bridge" to make the year-old service financially viable for dinner and brunch cruises from downtown.
The 14-1 vote on Oct. 13 against the legislation marked a rare case of City Council rejecting taxpayer assistance for a downtown project. Mayor Donna Deegan supported the proposed grant.
Jax Yacht Charter sought the grant to cover the cost of maintenance and repair work done recently on its Royal Princess so the boat would pass a U.S. Coast Guard inspection that such boats must go through every two years.
"We are connecting residents and tourists to the St. Johns River, which is the most beautiful
river," Jax Yacht Charter President Lezlee Ballanich told City Council members at a Sept. 14 Neighborhoods Committee meeting.
She said she expects the business's prospects will improve as more people learn about the Royal Princess that is docked on the Southbank near the Charthouse restaurant.
"We need help just right now to bridge this gap," she said.
The Downtown Investment Authority is the lead agency in charge of providing city assistance for businesses in downtown and has a program for awarding grants that help with the start-up costs of restaurants and stores. But DIA told Jax Yacht Charter that its grants are for brick-and-mortar establishments so the cruise boat wouldn't qualify.
The city's Office of Economic Development that works on economic development deals then put together an economic development agreement that the Mayor's Budget Review Committee supported and sent to City Council.
"We basically looked at this like we're doing any other project, trying to help a small business in a distressed area anywhere else in the city," Office of Economic Development Executive Director Ed Randolph said.
He said Jax Yacht Cruise wants to stay in Jacksonville but might move to another city in the Southeast such as Savannah, Ga. because "right now Jacksonville just does not pencil out" based on the amount of income it gets from people booking rides on the boat.
All three City Council committees voted against the legislation, leaving little doubt that the full council would also.
"I think it's going to do down in flames," City Council member Tyrona Clark-Murray said at an Oct. 5 Neighborhoods Committee meeting.
City Council member Will Lahnen said Jacksonville has boat-based business on waterways across the city who might come forward with their own requests for taxpayer help.
"I always appreciate a small business choosing to locate here but I'm concerned about the precedent we're setting," Lahnen told Randolph during a Sept. 14 Rules Committee meeting.
City Council member Ju'Coby Pittman cast the lone vote for the assistance at the Oct. 13 City Council meeting.
This article originally appeared on Florida Times-Union: City grant won't be served for downtown dinner cruise business
