The Jacksonville City Council met on Tuesday, April 14, 2026, at 5:00 PM in the Council Chamber, City Hall. The meeting was called to order by Council President Kevin Carrico and adjourned at 8:33 PM. The agenda included quasi-judicial rezoning ordinances, a consent agenda, public hearings, third- and second-reading bills, and introduction of new legislation. Nineteen council members were present for all votes. Key actions included approval of a major economic development incentive for Johnson & Johnson Vision Care, funding for infant safety devices ("baby boxes") at 14 fire stations, renaming of Confederate Street to Rose Arbor Way, and several land-use changes, some over opposition.
For like three seconds, it's a five. Good evening, everybody. If we could find our seats, we are now calling this meeting to order. Welcome everyone. It is five o'clock. And we are started. All right. Thank you, everybody for settling down. It's Tuesday, April 14th. Welcome to the city of Jacksonville City Council meeting. Glad you're all here today. We've got a packed house, it looks like a lot of great things going on. So we're very happy to see you all. Mr. Floor Leader, take it from here. Thank you, Mr. President. Our first order of business is the invocation and pledge of allegiance. Please recognize our council chaplain, Councilmember Kennemar. All right, Chaplain Amoro. Thank you, Mr. President. Mr. Floor Leader. Tonight's invocation will be delivered by Chaplain Donner Zimmerman, a proud native Floridian, born in Miami, who moved to Jacksonville when she was 14, which she considers her home. She went to Bishop Kenny High and received her bachelor's and master's degrees from UNF. She worked for the State of Florida Health and Human Services Department, then later at Lutheran Social Services. There in 1992, she started AIDS care and education, the first professionally provided service in the community for those with HIV AIDS. It is still in operation. After retiring, she did chaplain C internship at Baptist Hospital during the height of the COVID pandemic, where she was honored to stand in place of family to hold the hands of the patients as they left this earth. Now she attends and spends her time as a member of Buckman Bridge Unitarian Universalist Church on the worship team and the pastoral care program. Please receive chaplain Donald Zimmerman for tonight's invocation. Thank you, Ken. Let us take a moment of quiet reflection to center ourselves. God of many names and mystery beyond all our naming. You, the members of our city council, come together from various traditions and with different beliefs to ground yourselves in the shared purpose of creating a city that can flourish and a community where everyone can thrive. May you be guided by wisdom, justice, and compassion. In my Unitarian Universalist faith, we have core values that inform and define our approach to each other and to the world. We believe that every person has inherent worth and dignity and deserves the right to be heard and the opportunity to succeed. I urge you to approach your decisions and use your resources to build strong and inclusive communities, working to dismantle barriers created by systems of power and privilege. As you begin the business of this meeting, I ask that you listen to one another with open hearts, truly hearing the diverse experiences and needs of all residents, especially those whose voices are marginalized and seldom heard. Build consensus through respect and understanding. May you have the courage to make decisions with integrity, always keeping the best interest of your constituents at the heart of your work. Let your work today help build a more just, equitable, and peaceful world for all. May it be so man. All right, roll call. Next up is the approval of the minutes for the regular council meeting of March 24th. I move the approval. I've got a motion second on the approval of the minutes. All in favor of approving the minutes, signify by saying aye.