At a meeting of the Ponte Vedra Democratic Club on Monday, Jan. 22, Jacksonville Mayor Donna Deegan highlighted some successes from her first six months in office.
Since day one, she said, “I’ve tried to talk about those kitchen-table issues that are really important to people’s lives instead of constantly stoking the culture wars. I’m not saying that issues aren’t important, but when people can’t afford housing or they can’t afford food or they’re out on the street, it’s hard to care about other stuff.”
Arguably, the most significant development in recent months was passage in December by the City Council of an ambitious $26 million package of programs rooted in the findings of committees formed by Deegan’s transition team.
That package established programs to keep people in their homes in the face of various challenges, including pending eviction and the need for roof rehabilitation. It also provided relief for people across the spectrum of homelessness.
“We really have a dearth of affordable housing units,” Deegan said. “You guys probably do, too.”
In addition, the package includes help for small businesses; literacy initiatives; and programs that will improve public health, including that of expectant mothers so as to reduce infant mortality.
In fact, Deegan drew applause for one specific success concerning health care.
“I’m really proud to tell you that we had a major, major drive both on television and social media with influencers all over Duval County to push people to sign up for health care with the Affordable Care Act,” Deegan said. “In the first few weeks, we’re plus-27,000 from where we were before.”
Deegan also devoted a lot of attention to crumbling infrastructure in various parts of the city.
The bringing together of competing factions to conduct a single, unified Martin Luther King Jr. Breakfast on Jan. 12 has been seen as an expression of Deegan’s efforts toward greater unity.
Deegan earned cheers from her audience when she noted the removal, at her instruction, of “that damned Confederate monument,” a reference to the “Tribute to the Women of the Southern Confederacy” monument removed from its place in Springfield Park on Dec. 27.
Concerning the coming election, Deegan predicted an “enormous wave” of women going to the polls, motivated by the Supreme Court’s 2022 ruling that overturned Roe v Wade and gave individual states the authority to regulate abortion.
Despite challenges faced by the city, Deegan sounded a note of optimism, saying, “I think good days are coming for us.”
