Transportation, Energy & Utilities Committee Meeting - June 16, 2026
Transportation, Energy & Utilities Committee Meeting - June 16, 2026
The Transportation, Energy & Utilities Committee of the Jacksonville City Council met on Tuesday, June 16, 2026, at 9:30 AM in the Council Chamber. The meeting lasted from 9:30 AM to 10:09 AM. The agenda included one legislative item (2026-0358, an ordinance regarding towing and storage of vehicles and vessels) and an educational presentation from the Lights Out Northeast Florida initiative. The committee also received public comment.
Public Comments & Testimony
- Carnell Oliver spoke critically, stating that animals receive more respect than human beings and arguing that local legislation on the towing item is unnecessary. He characterized the council and mayor's administration as ineffective and warned that many council members would not be reelected.
- Marshall Adkinson submitted a public comment card for the towing item for questions only, but Chair Lahnen noted that since the item had already been taken up, the card was set aside.
Discussion Items
1. Ordinance 2026-0358 – Towing & Storage of Vehicles/Vessels (Amend/Approve)
- Introduced by Council Member Gay (co-sponsored by Council Member Peluso), the ordinance repeals and replaces Parts 12 and 13 of Chapter 804 of the Jacksonville Traffic Code to update nonconsensual towing and storage provisions.
- Amendment (NCSPHS): Modified insurance requirements for participating wreckers to align with a modified Florida Highway Patrol wrecker program model: $300,000 garage keeper's general liability, $50,000 off-hook property liability, and $100,000 on-hook property liability. Also corrected scriveners.
- Key changes in the underlying ordinance include: updating references and definitions based on state statutes; adding “vessels” as a separate vehicle type; expanding non-business hours from 8 pm–7 am to 6 pm–8 am; allowing additional service charges for unique vehicles/vessels (e.g., electric vehicles, heavy equipment, notice fees); and clarifying JSO practices.
- The amendment and the bill as amended were approved unanimously (6-0).
2. Presentation – Lights Out Northeast Florida
- Elizabeth Filippelli (Vice President, Duval Audubon; Conservation Director; co-leader, Lights Out Northeast Florida) and Mike Taylor (Curator, Jacksonville Zoo & Botanical Gardens; co-leader) presented on bird collisions with buildings.
- Key statistics cited: Over 1 billion birds die annually from building collisions in the U.S.; 2.9 billion birds have been lost in North America since 1970; over 7 million birds flew over Duval County in a single night; $107 billion is spent annually on birding nationwide.
- Jacksonville lies in the Atlantic Flyway, the second largest flyway in North America. The Lights Out initiative has operated for about seven years, conducting 14 seasons of collecting deceased birds downtown.
- Filippelli and Taylor recommended measures to reduce bird collisions: bird-friendly glass (e.g., patterned glass, exterior fritting), turning off non-essential lights during migration (11 pm–6 am), dark-sky compliant lighting, and free bird-friendly building audits.
- Examples of local adopters: Jacksonville Zoo, University of Florida Herbert Wertheim College of Engineering, Stetson University's Sandra Stetson Aquatic Center.
- Questions from council members:
- Council Member Carlucci suggested presenting to the Chamber of Commerce and Downtown Vision; asked about window blinds (Taylor explained interior blinds do not reduce reflection; external solutions needed).
- Council Member Clark-Murray inquired about Canada geese as an invasive species. Taylor clarified they are not classified as invasive; FWC cannot differentiate between native migratory geese and released barnyard geese. He noted Georgia has a nuisance geese program and USDA may have a wildlife control branch. Chair Lahnen directed Bill Delaney (Mayor's Office) to research city services for geese complaints.
- Council Member Amaro asked about cost of bird-friendly windows (retrofit costly, but minimal added cost if designed into new construction) and the cause of bird population decline (Taylor attributed it to human causes: glass collisions, artificial light, telephone towers, cats – second largest factor).
- Filippelli offered to share additional materials, including a California study on geese and dogs. She presented a slide listing bird-friendly policies adopted in other cities.
Key Outcomes
- Vote on 2026-0358: The NCSPHS amendment was moved and seconded, then approved unanimously (6-0). The bill as amended was also approved unanimously (6-0).
- Directive: Bill Delaney (Mayor's Office) will investigate city services or programs for addressing Canada goose complaints and report back to the committee.
- Next Steps: The presentation was informational; no formal action was taken. The committee noted that Lights Out Northeast Florida will continue outreach and partnership-building. The next regular TEU committee meeting will be held Tuesday, July 21, 2026.
Meeting Transcript
Good morning, everyone. We'll go ahead and get started with the last meeting of the council year of the Transportation Energy and Utilities Committee. We'll go ahead and get started with introductions starting to my left with Mr. Delaney. Good morning, Bill Delaney with the mayor's office. Stephen Lebee, Council Research. Carla Shell, Office of General Counsel. Edward Linsky, Council Auditor's Office. Will Lane and District Three. Good morning, Tyrone O'Clack Murray, District 9. I'd like it. Everybody here in the back. Oh, we'll make sure. District 2 just visiting. All right. Good morning, everyone. So this may be a first. We have a total of one item on the agenda combining first and second read. So the order we're going to do today is we are going to take up that item first. It's a bill of council member gay, so we're going to take that up first. We then have a presentation. We have some folks here from Lights Out Northeast Florida, and they're going to give a 10 to 15 minute presentation on that. Then we'll do public comment at the end if we have anyone. And then at the uh end of the meeting, we'll go ahead and wrap up our last uh TU committee meeting of this council year. So with that, we will go to item number one, 2026 0358. Can I get a motion on the neighborhoods amendment? Okay, motion second on the neighborhoods amendment. Mr. Linsky, could you walk us through that amendment, please? Through the chair to the committee. Uh the amendment before you today was approved in NCS yesterday, and uh modifies the city's record model, uh, their insurance requirements to follow a Florida Highway Patrol model, similar to that, but inclusive of $300,000 for garage keepers general liability. Uh five uh sorry, $50,000 for on hook property liability and then $100,000, sorry. $50,000 for off hook. 100,000 for on hook. Thank you. I have no one in the queue. All those in favor of the amendment, please say aye. Aye. Any opposed, say nay. Amendment passes. I got motion second on the bill as amended. Councilmember Gay, do you want to say anything? If not, uh we see the voting record that uh the other two committees have, and I have no one in the queue. Questions only. Councilmember gay is here for questions only on his bill. I have no one in the queue. Open the ballot, record your vote. It is not coming up for me. Legislative services. I am a yes.
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