OPENPUBLICA · PUBLIC MEETING RECORD
Record of Proceedings

Jacksonville City Council Leadership Meeting - March 25, 2026

City CouncilWednesday, March 25, 2026
BodyJacksonville, Florida
SessionCity Council
DateWednesday, March 25, 2026
StatusFILED
Video Record
0:00 / 18:27

Transcript — Verbatim
0:14

All right, let's call this meeting the order.

0:16

I think it is.

0:17

Oh, we got a minute.

0:19

Mike, we're on time.

0:21

No, we're gonna be out real quick.

0:23

No, I don't think we'll go that long at all.

0:25

You got a notice meeting at three?

0:27

Uh, I'm meeting news for Jacks.

0:29

Gotcha.

0:32

And boom, let's call this meeting to order uh with Chairman Lane and Introductions, Rockland Johnson, District 14.

0:39

Will Lane and District 3.

0:40

Mr.

0:41

Chair, thank you for coming to meet with me.

0:43

This meeting, of course, is about leadership.

0:45

Um, there was uh, you know, this is as you know in the speech I gave uh about moving into this space, uh, I think it's important that we have conversations with our colleagues, and this is something we don't get to do often.

0:59

Um, and so I would like to you know be able to do it.

1:01

So the question for you, I guess first question um what do you think it takes, or what do what would you be looking for?

1:07

And I hope we see you in the space um to be, you know, I'm I'm big fan of yours, you know, as one of your committee members.

1:14

Um, and and of course, your fiscal accountability and responsibility.

1:19

A lot of us defer to you, and I don't know what other councils did because they didn't have a Will Lannon on their council.

1:23

But what do you think is needed at this time for the number two?

1:28

Yeah, sure.

1:29

And and and first, just to uh you mentioned me in that space one day.

1:33

I feel like I have been from the beginning.

1:35

Yes.

1:35

In fact, uh I was one of the first, I think it was the only year one vice chair of neighborhoods, and then I've been a chair every other year, um, including VAB chair if you count that.

1:44

I think we count that.

1:45

Uh yeah.

1:47

Also floor leader, and then I've been uh I've been very clear that uh I only want to do this job for two terms, no aspirations after that.

1:54

And my highest political ambition is to be the finance chair, maybe even a couple of times.

1:58

So I hope that's coming uh uh sooner rather than later.

2:01

Because that's really uh, as you know, that's the part of our government function I've been most involved in.

2:07

And so kind of what I'm looking for in the next couple of years is uh really two things, less drama and more numbers and less words, because again, like I view that as our most important function.

2:20

People ask me like three years in now, uh, tell me about the job, and I say, well, it's 90% about the budget, uh, five percent about land use and zoning, and five percent noise.

2:30

And that's really how I feel about the because it's uh again, like the budget is the big piece of our responsibility.

2:38

It's making sure we're taking in enough revenue and that our expenses we are really only spending that revenue on what is required to run a city of a million dollars.

2:48

Uh and then LUZ, yours may be different.

2:50

I can tell you district three, I have one item on the agenda tonight, and that's a rarity.

2:54

You have your what's the best way to put this?

2:58

I'm kind of a more uh settled district.

3:01

You're more of a growing district, I believe.

3:03

Um, and so I think that means you have it may be 80, 15.5 for you, whereas it's 95.5 for me is kind of how I describe that.

3:11

So again, that's really kind of what I'm hoping.

3:14

Uh I just want to see uh uh stable leadership to where we're focused on the real priorities uh of the city going forward because uh we only I mean at most we do this.

3:24

Uh there's a couple special election council members, so they may do it for nine or ten years, but most of us are gonna do this for eight years, so I want to make sure that uh every year counts.

3:32

And it's interesting you say that while I'm not gonna commit to saying I'm only gonna do this, because I don't know.

3:37

I don't know what the future holds.

3:38

I'll tell you, interestingly enough, the question I get all the time is like, what are you gonna do next?

3:43

Absolutely.

3:44

I guess all the I got that year one.

3:46

I'm like, I'm gonna be a council member.

3:47

I'm gonna do this to the best of my ability.

3:50

Yeah, but where I live, the district that I live in, there's not a lot of other opportunities for service.

3:58

While I may, when I leave this council space, be on a board or a commission or something like that.

4:02

I do hope to be a part of the brain trust of this community.

4:04

I like you, we're we're homegrown boys.

4:07

We love this city, and so I do want to be a part of the brain trust that moves the city forward, but I am not in any way saying like, oh, I'm setting up this to be the this or two.

4:18

Yeah, and I think you see a lot of us like we were very involved in different things.

4:23

This is one part I consider it part of my continued community service, and I'll do things after this.

4:29

Really, the only big difference with this one is it is more time intensive, but we also get paid a little for it, or a lot, however, you want to look at it.

Discussion Breakdown — Share of Meeting
Procedural█████████████████████████████████████████████74%
Community Engagement██████████16%
Public Engagement██████10%
Summary of Proceedings

Jacksonville City Council Leadership Meeting - March 25, 2026

On March 25, 2026, Chairman Will Lane (District 3) and Councilmember Rockland Johnson (District 14) held a meeting to discuss leadership qualities and the upcoming City Council Vice President election. The meeting also included a public comment from John Nooney.

Public Comments & Testimony

  • John Nooney addressed the council, noting that the agenda from a recent CPAC 3 meeting lacked representation from JBA and JTA in staff reports, calling this a concern. He also stated that public access to waterways is "probably the worst ever." Nooney reported that the Office of General Counsel (OGC) is not present at meetings of the Mayor's Disability Council and Council on Senior Citizens, leaving those meetings without proper procedure. He requested the restoration of public participation in the Jacksonville City Council legislative process, referencing 2017-160.

Discussion Items

  • Councilmember Johnson initiated the discussion on leadership, asking Chairman Lane what qualities he seeks in the next Vice President. Johnson emphasized the importance of understanding the different priorities of districts, noting his own focus on land use and zoning (LUZ) after three years of service on that committee.
  • Chairman Lane shared his perspective, stating that the council's role is "90% about the budget, 5% about land use and zoning, and 5% noise." He expressed a desire for "less drama and more numbers and less words" in future leadership. Lane drew on his military service, relaying a former captain's standing order to "be nice" as a lesson in civility for the 19-member council. He also stressed the importance of transparency, stating he does 99% of his talking on the dais and avoids social media.
  • Both councilmembers discussed the upcoming Vice President election, with Johnson noting that there are four candidates who "care deeply about Jacksonville." Lane acknowledged the pledges of support but remarked that pledges "mean nothing" based on advice from former council members. Johnson indicated he would be observing candidates' votes and stated that "whoever wins, I'm gonna support them and applaud them."
  • The date of the election was noted as May 26, 2026, which is also Johnson's 50th birthday.
  • Councilmember Johnson raised a concern about the lack of a council liaison for certain bodies like Elder Affairs and the Disability Council, and he has been in conversation with the General Counsel about having legal representation at CPAC meetings due to procedural issues.

Key Outcomes

  • No formal votes were taken. The meeting served as a preliminary discussion of leadership priorities and an exchange of views on governance style.
  • Councilmember Johnson committed to sending a follow-up email to Chairman Lane requesting his vote, and Lane indicated he would consider it.
  • The public comment by John Nooney led to a brief discussion among the councilmembers, with Johnson stating he would work on moving forward the issue of restoring public participation and has already been in conversation with the General Counsel about OGC presence at CPAC meetings.

Meeting Transcript

All right, let's call this meeting the order. I think it is. Oh, we got a minute. Mike, we're on time. No, we're gonna be out real quick. No, I don't think we'll go that long at all. You got a notice meeting at three? Uh, I'm meeting news for Jacks. Gotcha. And boom, let's call this meeting to order uh with Chairman Lane and Introductions, Rockland Johnson, District 14. Will Lane and District 3. Mr. Chair, thank you for coming to meet with me. This meeting, of course, is about leadership. Um, there was uh, you know, this is as you know in the speech I gave uh about moving into this space, uh, I think it's important that we have conversations with our colleagues, and this is something we don't get to do often. Um, and so I would like to you know be able to do it. So the question for you, I guess first question um what do you think it takes, or what do what would you be looking for? And I hope we see you in the space um to be, you know, I'm I'm big fan of yours, you know, as one of your committee members. Um, and and of course, your fiscal accountability and responsibility. A lot of us defer to you, and I don't know what other councils did because they didn't have a Will Lannon on their council. But what do you think is needed at this time for the number two? Yeah, sure. And and and first, just to uh you mentioned me in that space one day. I feel like I have been from the beginning. Yes. In fact, uh I was one of the first, I think it was the only year one vice chair of neighborhoods, and then I've been a chair every other year, um, including VAB chair if you count that. I think we count that. Uh yeah. Also floor leader, and then I've been uh I've been very clear that uh I only want to do this job for two terms, no aspirations after that. And my highest political ambition is to be the finance chair, maybe even a couple of times. So I hope that's coming uh uh sooner rather than later. Because that's really uh, as you know, that's the part of our government function I've been most involved in. And so kind of what I'm looking for in the next couple of years is uh really two things, less drama and more numbers and less words, because again, like I view that as our most important function. People ask me like three years in now, uh, tell me about the job, and I say, well, it's 90% about the budget, uh, five percent about land use and zoning, and five percent noise. And that's really how I feel about the because it's uh again, like the budget is the big piece of our responsibility. It's making sure we're taking in enough revenue and that our expenses we are really only spending that revenue on what is required to run a city of a million dollars. Uh and then LUZ, yours may be different. I can tell you district three, I have one item on the agenda tonight, and that's a rarity. You have your what's the best way to put this? I'm kind of a more uh settled district. You're more of a growing district, I believe. Um, and so I think that means you have it may be 80, 15.5 for you, whereas it's 95.5 for me is kind of how I describe that. So again, that's really kind of what I'm hoping. Uh I just want to see uh uh stable leadership to where we're focused on the real priorities uh of the city going forward because uh we only I mean at most we do this. Uh there's a couple special election council members, so they may do it for nine or ten years, but most of us are gonna do this for eight years, so I want to make sure that uh every year counts. And it's interesting you say that while I'm not gonna commit to saying I'm only gonna do this, because I don't know. I don't know what the future holds. I'll tell you, interestingly enough, the question I get all the time is like, what are you gonna do next? Absolutely. I guess all the I got that year one.

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