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Just when you think it’s going to be a short, routine Board meeting, surprises happen!
Tuesday began with recognition of Graduation of the third St. Johns County 101 Citizens Academy Graduation. County Administrator Andrews shared there are 150 people on the wait list for the program; and 29 in the current graduating class.
Check out the County Announcement about the class, with a link to the program information, at this site: Citizens Academy Graduation
Regular Agenda Items
Agenda Item 1 – Sebastian Oaks
“Request to amend the conditions of REZ 2023-16 (Ordinance 2024-09) to eliminate the requirement to construct a roundabout at the southern intersection of Old Lewis Speedway and Lewis Speedway and replace it with a condition that the developer shall adhere to St. Johns County’s standard requirement for proportionate fair share transportation mitigation, as outlined within Part 11.09.00 of the Land Development Code. The Planning and Zoning Agency (PZA) heard this request at their regularly scheduled public hearing on November 6, 2025. The Agency made a motion to recommend approval, which failed with a vote of 3-3. Support of the approval motion was made by members Spiegel, Matovina, and Perkins. Dissenting votes were made by members Olson, Hilsenbeck, and Labanowski. Member Green was absent. Discussion from the Agency members and the public was centered on the history of the project and the proposed roundabout that was included with the approval of REZ 2023-16 on 3/5/2024.”
This project was approved in March of 2024. One of the key elements in the approval was to include a roundabout for traffic calming on Lewis Speedway. The applicant is now requesting to eliminate the roundabout and pay the proportionate fair share transportation mitigation fee.
During discussion at the Board there were many questions raised about the location of the roundabout and if it would be appropriate to remove the roundabout and change back to paying the mitigation fees. There was a bit of confusion as some public comments were urging to not approve the project. This was not about the project – it is approved. It is only about the change on the roundabout. A motion was made to defer the discussion to the December 17 meeting to allow time to gather answers to the questions. The motion was approved 4:1 (Joseph.)
Agenda Item 2 – Second Reading – Amendment to Impact Fee Ordinance
This is second and final reading of the Impact Fee Ordinance. Details are at this link: Impact Fee Ordinance Change
This was approved 5:0.
Agenda item 3 – Second Reading of Ordinance amending the St. Johns County Park Ordinance, adding definitions; adding prohibition of smoking and vaping in St. Johns County beaches and parks; amending to include cigarette butts and vaping paraphernalia as defined litter.
Key Slides from the presentation:
Commissioner Whitehurst clarified with Attorney Lex Taylor that the State of Florida has a carveout for cigars so this ordinance will NOT apply to smoking cigars on the beach.
During Commissioner’s Reports, discussions took an interesting turn.
Commissioner Murphy began with reading a prepared response to the accusations levied against him at the previous Commissioner’s Meeting. He ended his remarks with a motion to recall Commissioner Joseph as Board Chair and nominated himself for the position of Board Chair. Commissioner Whitehurst seconded the motion.
After Public Comment, Commissioner Joseph spoke in rebuttal to his comments and reiterated the concerns she raised in the previous meeting.
After more discussion at the Board, vote was cast 3:2 (Joseph, Taylor voting No) and Commissioner Murphy became the Board Chair for the coming year.
As usual, I do encourage you to watch the full discussion at this link rather than rely on soundbites and edited clips that may be out of context of the full discussion. Commissioner Murphy Comments and Discussion
After this surprising twist there was little else to be share by the Commissioners.
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Tuesday began with what is typically a straightforward agenda item — the annual re-organizational meeting of the St. Johns County Board of County Commissioners. In recent years, however, this meeting has become less predictable, with outcomes that depart from long-standing practice.
Traditionally, the Vice-Chair has been elevated to the role of Chair, with the Vice-Chair position often assigned to a newer Commissioner as preparation for future leadership. Since 2023, that tradition has shifted. Commissioner Joseph, elected in 2022, did not serve as Vice-Chair during the 2022–2023 or 2023–2024 terms. For the 2024–2025 term, she was elevated directly to Chair, and newly elected Commissioner Murphy was selected as Vice-Chair. Many observers assumed this year’s reorganization would follow past precedent, with Commissioner Murphy moving into the Chair role and Commissioner Taylor potentially stepping into Vice-Chair.
Following the Invocation and Pledge, County Attorney Kommando outlined the procedures for the re-organizational meeting. Commissioner Taylor nominated Commissioner Murphy for Chair, and Chair Joseph nominated Commissioner Whitehurst. Chair Joseph then asked Commissioner Murphy whether he would support Commissioner Taylor for Vice-Chair; he responded, “No.” Chair Joseph stated that she could not support Commissioner Murphy for Chair.
Commissioner Whitehurst thanked Chair Joseph for the nomination but expressed a desire to uphold the traditional progression of Vice-Chair to Chair. He withdrew his name from consideration and indicated support for Commissioner Murphy.
Chair Joseph then asked Commissioner Whitehurst about his certifications and training as a Commissioner, specifically referencing Ethics training. She expressed concern that Commissioner Murphy had not attended the required training and therefore could not support him for Chair. Commissioner Murphy responded that he had completed the Ethics training over the summer, leading to additional discussion about the training and about his reasons for not supporting Commissioner Taylor for Vice-Chair.
Commissioner Murphy countered that he HAD attended the ethics training over the summer.
What followed was some debate about whether Commissioner Murphy had attended the training and why he would not support Commissioner Taylor for Vice-Chair.
During Public Comment a suggestion was made to keep the current chair. After Public Comment, the first vote was called for Commissioner Murphy. That vote failed in a 3-2 vote with the No votes being Taylor, Joseph, and in a surprise move, Commissioner Murphy himself.
Because Commissioner Whitehurst had withdrawn from consideration, Commissioner Taylor followed up on recommendations from Public Comment and nominated Commissioner Joseph to be Chair. During a long pause, Commissioner Joseph asked Commissioner Whitehurst if he was sure he didn’t want to do it; his response was to indicate he supported her for Chair.
That vote passed 3-2 with Arnold and Murphy voting no.
I encourage you to watch the discussion, public comments and following vote at this link: Re-organizational Meeting
The special meeting was adjourned and followed by the Regular Board Meeting.
Key Highlights from the Regular Board Meeting were:
Agenda Item 1 – Request to split precinct 209 and add precinct 214; reequst to reconfigure precincts 501 and 502 and add precinct 512 to allow for efficient operations on Election Day. Supervisor of Elections Vicky Oakes presented the request and it was approved unanimously.
Agenda item 2 – Total Earned Unused and Undistributed Revenue – “In compliance with Florida Statute, 218.36, the St. Johns County Tax Collector, Jennifer Ravan, will present a report of unused earned revenue collected for the 2024-2025 fiscal year. Please note that these unused revenues have already been estimated as part of the County budget process and therefore they do not necessarily represent additional County revenue.” This was approved unanimously.
Discussion on E-Bikes – Chair Joseph recognized Director Martin of the St. Johns County Sheriff’s Department to address the Board about e-bikes. He shared they have made great progress with the educational piece. House Bill 243 (HB243) has been filed with our Representative Kim Kendall being a co-sponsor of the bill. Sheriff Hardwick is participating on a committee for the bill, sharing learnings from St. Johns County.
The Sheriff’s department has purchased e-bikes of their own so they can meet the riders where they are. The focus is to make contact with riders and educate them on safety rules when needed; holding accountable if necessary.
Agenda Item 3 – this was a very lengthy request to “appeal the Planning and Zoning Agency’s (PZA) denial of a Special Use Permit to Section 2.03.26 of the Land Development Code to allow for the construction of a 150-foot monopole communication tower and support facilities within Open Rural (OR) zoning, located specifically at 1152 Fort Peyton Drive, came before the Planning and Zoning Agency for public hearing on July 17, 2025. The Planning and Zoning Agency denied the application with a vote of 6-0, Member Green was absent.”
Motion to deny the appeal was approved unanimously.
Agenda Item 4 – Epic-cure Warehouse “Request to rezone approximately 0.90 acres of land from Open Rural (OR) to Commercial Warehouse (CW) with conditions to provide consistent zoning across the overall 2.82 acre property. This request was heard by the Planning and Zoning Agency at their regularly scheduled public hearing on Thursday, October 16, 2025, and was recommended for approval by a vote of 5-0.”
This was also approved unanimously.
Agenda Item 5 – Project Dark Horse – a request to rezone approximately 11.86 acres of land from Open Rural to Planned Unit development for a 21,000 sq. ft. health/fitness facility and a 12,250 sq. ft. covered turf field on the north side of Greenbriar Rd. approximately 1.25 miles west of Longleaf Pine Pkwy.
There has been some publicity about this project as local basketball star turned ESPN broadcaster, Steffi Sorenson, is the owner of the project.
The rezoning was approved unanimously. See coverage of the project here: Dark Horse News Coverage
We’ll now jump ahead to the Commissioner’s reports:
Commissioner Whitehurst offered Happy Thanksgiving greetings and shared his views that there are still many opportunities in this country for those who work hard to succeed.
Commissioner Murphy asked for consensus to extend December 26th as a Holiday for the staff in addition to Christmas Day. County Administrator Andrews added that she was going to ask if the County could follow the Governor’s new additional Holidays, November 26th, December 26th and January 2nd. This was granted by consensus.
Commissioner Taylor shared about the recent opportunity to meet Judy Benjamin, an 81 year old Alzheimer’s Survivor who completed her almost 3000 mile walk by touching the water in St. Augustine Beach. Read more about Ms. Benjamin and her journey on her website, Judy Walks Website
She also shared about the successful start to Nights of Lights and success from improvements made to this years event. Learn more here: Night Of Lights
County Administrator Report
Administrator Andrews had 3 updates for the Commissioners. The first was a response to a request from Commissioner Taylor about LAMP Funding. They are still reviewing opportunities for additional funding including identification of possible grants in collaboration with state and federal agencies. Second was an update on the $200,000 approved for the food pantries – $117,000 has been disbursed to the 10 agencies approved thus far.
The 3rd update was presented by Jamie Locklear and Christine Valliere. In relation to the World Golf Village properties, the new owners of the Renaissance Hotel have announced a $20 Million renovation project. This shifts the negotiating position of the county considerably as there is now private sector investment coming into play for the adjacent properties. A motion was made to reject the current bids for the WGV properties in order to continue negotiations.
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First, welcome to the many new readers and subscribers gained over the last 2 weeks! I’m grateful for your support and encouragement to continue reporting.
And second, we send good wishes to Commissioner Joseph who has returned to the dais after a recent health scare. You can read more about her experience here and her advocacy of early cancer screenings here: Article on Commissioner Joseph’s Health Scare
The October 7 BOCC meeting was one of the shorter ones in recent months. As the day started, Commissioner Whitehurst asked for a moment of silence recognizing the tragic death of Flagler County’s Deputy County Administrator and his wife, Jorge and Nancy Salinas, in an automobile accident last Saturday night.
Starting off the day was a Proclamation recognizing Domestic Violence Awareness Month and one that always makes me happy to see, a Proclamation recognizing National 4-H Week! 4-H was one of the great parts of my childhood. Our leaders were so influential on us as young people that at one time my career aspiration was to be an Extension Agent working with 4-H Clubs myself. I’m so happy to see it is still an important part of guiding young people in their development.
Following Proclamations there were no changes to the Consent Agenda.
Regular Agenda Items
Items 1 & 2 – Hyde Park PUD
“Request for a Major Modification to the Hyde Park PUD (Ord. 2009-42, as amended) to clarify allowed uses, add prohibited uses, increase building heights, allow fencing, clarify signage, correct typographical errors, update phasing, and update the Master Development Plan (MDP) Text to reflect all proposed changes. The site is located at US Highway 1 South and Faver Dykes Road. The Planning and Zoning Agency (PZA) heard this request at their regularly scheduled public hearing on August 21, 2025. The Agency recommended approval with the condition that the phasing paragraph in the MDP Text be revised to ensure compliance. The motion to approve received a vote of 4-3 in favor. Support was made by members Perkins, Matovina, Green, and Spiegel. Dissenting votes were cast by Hilsenbeck, Labanowski, and Olson. Discussion included topics such as phasing, central utility access, the current development trends in the area, the presence of gopher burrows, the proposed increase in building heights, temporary uses, prohibited uses, and compatibility. More information can be found within the staff report.”
This is a request for modification to a PUD that was approved in 2009.
The changes requested are:
To clarify/add allowed uses
Temporary seasonal sales
Temporary display and sales vendors
Other similar uses
To add prohibited uses
Adult Uses
Vape Shops (added based on PZA recommendation 8/21/25)
To increase non-residential building heights to 45 feet
To allow fencing within the Residential area
To clarify allowed signage
To allow road improvements (alleys, decorative roads, roundabouts, etc.)
To allow clearing, grading, and agricultural activities
Correct typographical errors throughout the text
Extend the phasing; the PUD is currently active (revision provided based on PZA 8/21/25)
Update the MDP Text for all proposed changes
Both requests were denied 4-1 (Whitehurst)
Agenda items 3 – 4 NEQ Townhomes
“Request to modify the St. Johns Development of Regional Impact (“DRI”) Development Order (Resolution No. 1991-130, as amended), revising the Land Use Exchange Table to accommodate for a proposed 295 townhome units by increasing the maximum number of allowed residential units via conversion of Industrial entitlements, revise maps, update prior unit conversions, revise transportation mitigation, and update phasing expiration dates based on recent Development Order extensions pursuant to Section 252.363, Florida Statutes. This is a companion application to MAJMOD 2025-02. Located at the Intersection of International Golf Parkway and Interstate 95. This request was heard by the Planning and Zoning Agency at their regularly scheduled public hearing on Thursday, September 4, 2025, and was unanimously recommended for approval by a vote of 6-0, Member Matovina was absent from this meeting. There was a discussion among PZA members, the applicant team, and local residents regarding the potential traffic impacts of the proposed development, as well as the effectiveness of buffering and screening measures.”
This was approved 3-2 (Joseph, Taylor)
Agenda Item 5 – 155 West Genung Street
“Request to rezone approximately 10.86 acres from Planned Unit Development (PUD) and Residential Single Family (RS-2) to Open Rural (OR), located at 155 West Genung Street. The Planning and Zoning Agency (PZA) heard this request at their regularly scheduled public hearing on September 4, 2025. The Agency recommended approval with a vote of 6-0. Support was made by members Perkins, Hilsenbeck, Green, Spiegel, Labanowski, and Olson. Member Matovina was absent. Discussion at the hearing was limited. Public comments expressed support for the project, including appreciation to the applicant for their decision not to develop 15 homes on the site. An Agency member highlighted the scenic qualities of the property and noted that the decision to recommend was straightforward.”
This was one of the easiest votes in awhile – a couple wishing to preserve their land and prevent commercial development in the area. Approved Unanimously.
Agenda Items 6 & 7 – Elam Family Legacy – a request for a Small Scale Comprehensive Plan Amendment to change the Future Land Use Map designation of approximately 5.74 acres of land from Rural/Silviculture (R/S) to Residential-A (Res-A), with a site-specific Text Amendment limiting the number of residential uses allowed on the subject property to a maximum four (4) single-family residential dwelling units.
We’ve seen a request related to this property previously as noted in the application.
“This is a request to amend the Future Land Use Map (FLUM) designation from Rural/Silviculture (R/S) to Residential-A (RES-A) for property located on Pine Island Road. The property contains approximately 5.74 total acres. The applicant is providing a text amendment to limit the site to a maximum of four (4) dwelling units. The summary provided states the property will be divided into four lots, and each will be developed with a single-family home. The applicant’s full Summary is included in Attachment 2 – Supporting Documents. The subject property has been previously approved for a Non-Zoning Variance (NZVAR 2024-19) by the Board of County Commissioners to provide relief from fines and other penalties imposed due to violations of the Land Development Code Sections 4.01.05.E.3.a, b, f, and g regarding the removal of protected trees without a permit. The applicant is requesting another Non-Zoning Variance (NZVAR 2025-15) for relief from Subdivision, Platting, Roadway Improvements, Easement, and Stormwater Management requirements as stated LDC Sections 5.01.01.C.1, 6.04.07.M.1, 6.04.07.B.2.(a), and 6.02.09. That request is currently scheduled for the Tuesday, October 7th meeting of the Board of County Commissioners, and will be dependent upon the Board’s approval of this request.”
After much discussion Commissioner Murphy made a motion to approve the variance request. It was not seconded and therefore failed. Commissioner Whitehurst then motioned to continue the discussion to the October 21 meeting. That motion passed 4:1 (Murphy)
Direction was given to meet with the neighbors prior to the next meeting.
Agenda Item 8 – Confirmation of Christine Valliere as the Economic Development Director. Ms. Valliere is a returning St.Johns County employee having served in the Legal Counsel office for many years. This was approved unanimously.
Commissioners Reports
Commissioner Whitehurst – Provided a report out on the Florida Association of Counties 2025 Innovation and Policy Conference held in Alachua County. He was particularly impressed with an Indoor Athletic Facility that had been built and paid for by tourism dollars. He is going to be pursuing the possibility to do something similar in St. Johns County. He is also interested in pursuing an idea of making executive staff have information exempt from public record requests because of some of the rising vitriol and threats against public figures. He then asked Public Affairs to run a couple of film clips from the September 16 County Commissioner Meeting. He shared concerns about social media posting leading to increasing political violence across the country and shared a post advocating violence against our public officials. He wanted to reiterate that we should not be tolerating mis-statements or encouragement of violence against public officials.
Commissioner Arnold shared information about the new Children’s Resiliency Impact initiative for improving the lives of children in St. Johns County. You can learn more about this initiative here: Children’s Advocacy Group Announcement
Commissioner Taylor offered prayers for Commissioner Joseph and talked again about SB180 that is “handcuffing” our county and preventing home rule. She again asked fellow Commissioners to consider joining the lawsuit against enactment of SB 180. Commissioner Arnold asked if there had been outreach to our state legislators who had all voted for SB180. Commissioner Taylor indicated that when she reached out to Representative Kendall, she shared that she did not know about that last second addition to the bill before she voted on it. Commissioner Taylor stated that Representative Kendall “had no idea this was stripping away home rule.”
Commissioner Whitehurst indicted he did not want to join the lawsuit, primarily because by the time a lawsuit made it’s way through the judicial system, the law would be sunsetted. He also indicated that if Representative Kendall is opposed to the law, the county can ask the legislative delegation to repeal the law.
Commissioner Murphy has been contacting Representatives Sapp and Greco to talk about the repeal or change of SB180. He agreed with Commissioner Whitehurst that a lawsuit would be too drawn out and cuts the legs off for our Representatives. He wants to give our Legislators an opportunity to do something about this in the next session.
Commissioner Taylor also shared about a Nights of Lights informational meeting that was held to discuss the going forward plans to address traffic and parking for the next Nights of Lights event.
Commissioner Murphy shared about the Every Bottle Back program for recycling of plastic bottles from the Florida Beverage Association. He asked for and received consensus for County staff to explore this further. Learn more about the program here: Every Bottle Back
He also raised the topic of the septic to sewer issue in Treasure Beach. Consensus was granted for staff to look into this further.
Lastly he brought up the topic of the Leash Law and how it impacts training of dogs. He asked for future discussion of a possible change.
Commissioner Joseph brought up a request from the Ponte Vedra Condo Association about a pedestrian bridge they maintain. They would like to see changes to their agreement with the county prior to making these repairs. Consensus was given for staff to look at possible changes. And she added thanks for all the cards and prayers.
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Tuesday had the very meaty topic of Impact Fees on the Agenda along with several other items. You can watch the entire meeting at this link: September 16 BOCC Meeting
The blog update today will focus on the 3 most critical items of the day and cover an overarching them of the day; turn down the temperature.
Commission Chair Krista Joseph was absent and Commissioner Whitehurst served as Vice-Chair for this meeting. No comment was provided about why Commissioner Joseph was absent although there were hints in closing remarks of the day.
The Meeting opened with a Proclamation Recognizing Constitution Week.
In public comments there were calls to be more civil and to be kind in remarks. This popped up a few times during the day.
Agenda Item 1 – Impact Fee Schedule Update
Please take the time to watch the discussion on the Impact Fees. Impact Fees are widely misunderstood. Soundbites presented on social media are often inaccurate. This was pointed out during the discussion on Impact Fees. Do your own research. Don’t rely on social media posts that may sound confidently correct.
There is a new Conservation Impact Fee that was proposed. All the Commissioners were in favor of the Conservation Impact Fee. However, there are still questions lingering. They wanted to understand these questions before raising the fees to the maximum allowed under state law.
Commissioner Whitehurst recommended cutting it in half, with the idea that it could be raised in the future, to give people time to get accustomed to the new fee. If we think this through, there are probably already developments in the works that have built their budgets and plans based on current fee structures. They will need to adjust for this additional fee.
There was also discussion to clarify some misunderstanding about how to set impact fee rates.
Commissioner Murphy indicated he was comfortable that the proposed impact fee increases would satisfy the concerns about paying for new development without going to extraordinary circumstance.
There was consensus to go with the 50% increase and not follow the Extraordinary Circumstances
Commissioner Whitehurst then took the time to address some erroneous information that had been spreading on social media. Watch what he had to say and the explanations here: Commissioner Whitehurst’s Comments on social media posts
Specifically he was addressing some comments that Commissioners had lowered impact fees in 2018. Director Roberson addressed the misunderstandings about what had happened in 2018.
In 2018 the Board chose to implement maximum impact fees. They also chose to ease the transition to the new fees by implementing only 75% of the maximum fees for the first year, from March of 2018 through the end of 2018 (about 9 months.) However, in 2019, the full impact fee kicked in. And in 2019 they implemented the 40% buy down for non-residential impact fees.
Affordable Housing Waiver – 50% reduction for housing built for residents with 80% of AMI
Consensus was reached to apply the Affordable Housing Waiver
Eliminating the Non-Residential Buy-downs
In 2018 the Board established a maximum rate for impact fees and implemented a “buy-down” program for commercial development. The intent was to create incentives for more commercial development in the county and help shift the reliance on residential for Property Tax income. It has not achieved the desired result and the ratio of residential to commercial remains about the same; 85% residential to 15% non-residential. After some discussion confirming that they could still issue economic incentives on a case by case basis, they agreed to eliminate the buy-down.
It was pointed out in the closing discussion on the dais that Impact Fees are NOT borne by the developer but by the end user, the purchaser of the home. Impact fees are paid by the builder, and they passed on to the initial buyer of the home. That increases the cost of a new home for residents in the county. This does not create a scenario of the Developer paying for new construction.
In public comment following the impact Fee discussion, a point was raised that the Commissioners seemed to be listening to each other and having positive dialog on the item in a positive change from recent meetings. Appreciation was expressed for this change in tone during discussion.
Agenda Item 2 – Robinson Improvement Company land Use and Environmental Dispute Resolution Act – “On November 5, 2024, the Board denied Robinson Improvement Company’s request to rezone 2,763 acres to PUD (PUD2024-09). Robinson Improvement filed a request for relief from the denial under the Florida Land Use and Environmental Dispute Resolution Act (“FLUEDRA”). Pursuant to FLUEDRA, the parties mediated the dispute and agreed to ask the Board to schedule a new rezoning hearing. The Board declined. The parties then proceeded to a public hearing before Special Magistrate J. Michael Traynor. Special Magistrate Traynor issued his Report and Recommendations on August 19, 2025. FLUEDRA now requires the Board to consider accepting, modifying, rejecting, or not taking action on the Report and Recommendation.”
Discussion among the Commissioners resulted in Commissioner Whitehurst making a motion to postpone to seek more information. There was a 2-2 vote which is a technical denial meaning the item will now come back before the board for a hearing.
Agenda Item 3 – Presentation of Phase 1 Proposals for the World Golf Hall of Fame
The Board voted to move both proposals to Phase 2 for consideration.
While there were several other items on the agenda Tuesday, these were the most critical items and I’ll jump to the Commissioner’s Reports to wrap up the day.
Commissioner’s Reports
Commissioner Taylor shared that she has gained consensus from St. Augustine Beach to support a letter to congress regarding funding for the Guana Preserve. And she shared information about the joint meeting she had with Sheriff Hardwick on the topic of e-bike safety. Sheriff Hardwick and Representative Kendall are pursuing state level legislation around e-bike safety. She also revisited concerns about Nights of Light funding and a desire to have more accountability for how the money is spent. She wanted to form a task force to address these concerns. More information is needed before that can move forward as legal will need to review and make recommendations.
Commissioner Whitehurst reported he is headed to the Innovation and Policy Conference. He has been appointed to be Vice President on the Water and Environmental and Sustainability committee. He will be working with other counties on best practices before the upcoming legislative session. He also took the time to raise concerns about rising violence over the past year the rising number of people willing to justify killing in the name of politics. He brings this forward because he is shifting to a stance to begin bringing forward when people are being ugly and threatening in their rhetoric and asked to “lower the temperature and be more respectiful.”
Commissioner Arnold invited all to the Ceremony to celebrate the Black History Museum at 9:00 on Thursday. She also thanked Commissioner Murphy for a smooth, productive and drama free meeting noting that the people in the room and watching could feel and see the difference.
Commissioner Murphy made a motion to provide 10 – 12 loads of available milling asphalt to the American Legion on Pearl Street. Approved 4-0. He also added his own comments piggybacking on Commissioner Whitehurst’s comments about the heated rhetoric. He is also concerned about the uptick in rhetoric that purports to violence on the political scene. His concern is that we should be able to discuss differing opinions if not peacefully, nonviolently.
County Attorney’s Report
Attorney Kommando only asked to keep Commissioner Joseph in your prayers.
Commissioner Murphy added that while respecting her privacy, please keep Commissioner Joseph in your prayers for health.
Editorial Comment: Tuesday’s meeting was noticeably calmer, with repeated reminders to treat one another with respect. Many left hopeful that civility could finally replace the constant conflict.
Yet, instead of honoring that call, some voices online have chosen to double down on personal attacks and spread inaccurate claims. In the meeting itself, Commissioner Joseph’s privacy was respected and prayers were offered for her health. The suggestion that anything else was said is simply false — and continuing to stir anger only harms our community.
With the 2026 election ahead, St. Johns County deserves better than agendas driven by outrage. We need conversations rooted in truth, not distortion; in collaboration, not division. Turning down the heat is how we protect our county’s future and ensure decisions are made with clarity and respect.
Because in the end, progress doesn’t come from tearing each other down — it comes from connecting people and solving problems together.
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As it becomes clear who is running in 2026, i will be providing links to their websites and FaceBook pages so you can follow them, learn more about them, and make up your own mind. Links will be posted to the right on my blog page. If you see links I should add, send them over.
The August 5th Commission meeting was long and included items that were not only important; they were contentious. We’ve been seeing fallout on social media for the past 2 weeks in response to the meeting. My intent here is to provide you links and data so you can read, watch, and come to your own conclusions based on your own impressions and not just soundbites you may see on social media.
The highlight of the opening was a presentation in Remembrance of Bobby Hall, former St. Johns County Fire Chief.
There was an interesting dialog about additions and deletions to the Regular Agenda for the day. Commissioner Joseph asked to move Agenda Item 9, the Second Reading of proposed Amendments to the Land Development Code – Trees, to the August 19th Meeting. She indicated that they had just received a legal document an hour before the meeting and had not had time to read the document. Commissioner Taylor motioned to move the item to August 19 and Commissioner Murphy seconded.
A question was raised in Public Comment about whether they could hear it at this meeting and push the vote to August 19 because many people had planned to be at the meeting to speak about the ordinance. The County Attorney advised that since this was a noticed Public Hearing, the Commission has to hear Public Comment.
There was implied that the papers that had been delivered referenced a lawsuit against the County. Commissioner Whitehurst asked the county Attorney if anything in the document would change the information he had provided to them in their briefings as they prepared for the meeting. Attorney Kommando advised this was no different than public comment or an email from any other resident.
Commissioner Murphy suggesting amending the motion that if Commissioner Joseph needed to leave, they defer the hearing to the next meeting.
Commissioner Arnold suggested moving the item to Agenda Item 1, just in case Commissioner Joseph needed to leave.
Commissioner Taylor also pointed out she hadn’t had time to read the documents provided to her that morning.
Commissioner Arnold wanted it put on the record that the documents were delivered the day before, (August 4) and not just that morning. And asked again why it couldn’t be moved to the morning because it was not a time certain on the Agenda.
What was interesting about this debate was the question of when the referenced materials were received. On August 4, in the afternoon, there was a big push on social media for people to show up at a time certain of 1:00 to push back against the developers threatening to sue the County. There were posts complaining that the Developers had not given the residents time to organize against this late threat of a lawsuit. The question then is, how did a member of the public get this packet of information prior to Tuesday’s meeting if it was not delivered on Monday? And why was there a push to show up at a time certain of 1:00 when a time certain was not published on the agenda?
We don’t have the answers to those questions.
The motion to move the item to the 19th failed, 3:2 with Taylor and Joseph being the Yes votes.
“A resolution promoting safety for operators of e-bikes, e-scooters, and other electronic motorized devices; encouraging safe usage practices, education, and enforcement efforts; and providing for an effective date.”
This is really more than just a Resolution and it’s important to understand everything they are doing in conjunction with the Resolution.
Director Martin from the Sheriff’s office shared a recap of what they have been doing regarding e-bikes over the summer and what the plans are going forward. SJSO has increased 1 X 1 communication with e-bike riders, created and updated pamphlets about e-bike safety, added QR codes that can be shared to help parents find information. They have had contacts with over 200 e-bike readers over the summer for enforcement or education. One of the big areas of education has involved educating parents to know what they are buying, before they make the purchase for their kids.
They shared that their current actions are to give education and a warning at first contact and enforcement at a second contact. The example provided was an e-bike rider who had been stopped and educated about wearing a helmet previously, was stopped again and this time given a ticket for not wearing a helmet.
They have also partnered with the School District to create opportunities to teach e-bike safety classes within the schools.
The schools have started with education in school assemblies, levels K-8. Commissioner Murphy has been leading a team to work on education solutions for our residents. A curriculum has been developed and the goal is to get that into the school system before Christmas of this year. This will be delivered to all 3 middle school grades before the winter break this year. They are also discussing e-bike camps for hands-on education. Additionally, they are working on web-based education that can be made available to anyone to view; parents, children, trainers, anyone with an interest.
The Resolution was approved unanimously.
Agenda Item 2 – Presentation of St. Johns County’s Annual Comprehensive Financial Report
“The Clerk of the Circuit and County Comptroller’s Office recently published the County’s Annual Comprehensive Financial Report (ACFR) for the Fiscal Year ending on September 30, 2024. The ACFR is prepared in accordance with Sections 218.32 and 218.39, Florida Statutes, and requires acceptance from the Board of County Commissioners. The County received an unmodified opinion on the fair presentation of its financial statements. The Board should accept the FY 2024 ACFR as audited by Forvis Mazars, the County’s auditing firm. This presentation will allow the Board the opportunity for further discussion with the auditors. The ACFR and SAS 114 letter are available on the Clerk’s website: Financial Report”
The auditors presented a clean audit report:
“The independent accounting firm of Forvis Mazars, LLP, whose report is included herein, has audited the county’s financial statements. The goal of the independent audit was to provide reasonable assurance that the financial statements of the county are free of material misstatement. The independent audit involved examining, on a test basis, evidence supporting the amounts and disclosures in the financial statements, assessing the accounting principles used and significant estimates made by county management, and evaluating the overall financial statement presentation. Based upon the audit, Forvis Mazars, LLP concluded that there was a reasonable basis for rendering an unmodified opinion that the county’s financial statements are fairly presented in conformity with accounting principles generally accepted in the United States of America for the fiscal year ended September 30, 2024.”
Some items were brought up during Public Comment on this item that are worth clarifying. There is frequently a reference to a fraud event in the SJSO that was investigated and addressed in 2021. Under Auditing Standards, the auditor only includes items pertinent to the current audit period. This report was for the fiscal year ending September 30, 2024 so the 2021 Fraud event would not be included in the audit report unless it was on-going.
A question was asked about why an external auditor was paid to perform the audit. That is required by state statute (in addition to being best practice.) It’s important to have an independent audit firm conduct audits of any governmental or corporate organization.
The report was approved unanimously.
Agenda Item 3 – Enclave at World Golf (Workforce Housing)
“Request to rezone approximately 18.5 acres of land from Planned Unit Development (PUD) to Workforce Housing (WH), located at 3740 Pacetti Road. The Planning and Zoning Agency (PZA) heard this request at their regularly scheduled public hearing on June 26, 2025. The Agency recommended denial with a vote of 4-2, with support of the denial made by members Hilsenbeck, Spiegel, Labanowski and Olson. Dissenting votes were cast by Perkins and Green. Member Matovina was absent. During the meeting, the applicant provided an updated Traffic Study and pointed out the desire to develop up to 63 townhomes on the subject site. Discussion was made regarding area road improvements, the affordable housing units within Samara Lakes, the effectiveness of the Workforce Housing product, whether eligible renter/buyer households would need to have dual incomes, and the increase in onsite wetlands, traffic, proposed U-turns, and student safety.”
Location of proposed development
This was denied 5-0
Agenda Items 5 & 6 – Schneider Family Campground
This was a request to rezone 77 acres of land from Open Rural to Commercial Rural with conditions. The property is located at 8000 US Hwy 1 South and is about 2.25 miles south of State Road 206.
There was much interesting discussion on this item, including concerns about a completely separate RV Resort. It was ultimately approved 5-0.
Agenda Item 7 – Public Hearing on Proposed Increases to Solid Waste Special Assessments.
This is an item of import to every resident and there have been many questions and concerns about the increase. It is worth your time to watch the presentation and the Commissioner’s discussion before their vote.
I’m including slides here. Some important points that came out in the presentation:
All homeowners pay the same rate for Waste Collection services; it is not pro-rated based on assessed value of your home or size of your lot. It’s the same for everyone.
There is financial assistance available for those that cannot afford the fees. The County does not want to be in the business of placing liens on homes.
The verbiage in the letter sent to residents is required by law.
The fees included are the MAXIMUM that can be charged and the county will continue to work diligently to keep the costs low.
Further notes below.
Interesting note on Level of Service. The Level of Service in the bid was for Unlimited handling of each type of waste. Republic Service, that previously served the northern part of the county had already moved to automated service only for recycling and did not want to bid on Unlimited Waste handling for the full county.
Note that the 2nd lowest bid was significantly higher than FCC’s bid. Waste Management, who previously served the southern part of the county submitted a bid almost 2x the FCC Bid.
This is the full chart for 5 years. It is the maximum that could be charged.
The counties with an asterisk are in the process of evaluating their rates for 2026. Note that Clay County does not provide recycling pick-up.
During Public Comment concerns were raised about a few items:
Short Term Rentals are not paying their fair share. They pay the same rate while they may have many times more trash cans to be picked up. The County confirmed this is something they are looking at addressing in the future.
Some residents suggested eliminating recycling or changing it to every 2 weeks. This would increase the amount of waste tonnage to be dealt with so there would be little cost savings associated with such a move. Residents who do recycle heavily would also be negatively impacted.
There were suggestions to go to every other week on yard waste. For many neighborhoods this would be an unacceptable level of service.
The motion to accept the maximum increase was approved 5-0.
Agenda Item 9 – Proposed Amendments to the Land Development Code – Tree Ordinance
The County consultant presented the proposed updates to the Tree Ordinance
As anticipated based on the discussion at the beginning of the meeting, this was a contentious discussion. It is important to watch the discussion yourself and hear the explanations provided before coming to a conclusion about the final vote.
The first motion, to approve all 3 changes was voted down, 2-3, with Murphy, Arnold and Whitehurst being the no votes.
After more discussion, the first two items, Specimen Tree Measurement and Tree Bank Fund Increase were approved 3-2 with Whitehurst and Arnold being the No votes.
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Beth Tate 