Jacksonville Review – June 2025 Issue

Police Chief Towe to Retire—Police Chief David Towe announced his retirement in a social media post on May 7, saying in part, “May 8th will mark my 34th anniversary with the city of Jacksonville. This seems like a great time to say thank you to all the citizens of this great little town for all your support over the span of my career. I have informed the City Administrator of my intention to retire at the end of the year…we recently went through an aggressive hiring phase to get the department back to full staff. The plan is to have Matt Hannum who is currently our Sergeant, move into my position when I leave. Matt has almost 20 years of police experience but in my opinion has a great understanding and love for this community and department. Matt and I have spent the last year and a half getting all his credentials in place and in October he will have the last piece of the puzzle in place. I just want to say what an honor and a privilege it’s been to be your Chief these past 32 years…In closing thank you for your support, your love and understanding these many years. It’s been one amazing ride!”

Downtown’s “Living Room”—At its May 6 meeting, council members weighed in on two proposed concepts for the proposed 3rd Street pedestrian block, a Pedestrian Plaza and a Festival Street Plaza. Both plans call for the partial or total closure of 3rd Street south of California Street to C Street and both provide limited vehicular access. Described as an “experiential space” and as a “Living Room in Downtown,” possible uses include a site for farmers markets, dances, concerts, art shows, music events, exhibitions and more outdoor activities. Based upon 179 survey results, 74% from Jacksonville residents, respondents favored the Pedestrian Plaza concept that essentially had more restrictive vehicular access and included more trees and event spaces. The next steps for this proposed project include reviewing results of the May 31st Pedestrian Plaza Pop-up Day, during which a “trial” run of the concept was held and public input was solicited.

Court Closed—The Pheasant Meadows pickleball and tennis courts are being completely reconstructed, forcing the closure of the area from May 12 for several weeks. When reopened, the surfaces will include 1 tennis and 2 pickleball courts. Despite pleas to have 4 pickleball courts, the city has decided to allow play on only two. The matter has been publicly debated for years and is the subject of Mayor Donna Bowen’s column on page 8.

Budget Committee Meeting May 15—The full Budget Committee and City Council reviewed the proposed fiscal year budget—please read staff’s annual Budget Letter on our website at https://jacksonvillereview.com/city-budget-letter-fy-2025-2026/.