Sec. 85.102. - Legislative findings and declaration.

The Council finds and declares that: (1) Violent crimes, juvenile delinquency, gang affiliation and family disruption continue to impact the City to the City's moral, economic, social, and academic detriment; and (2) In 2009, the Jacksonville Journey was established to address the unacceptable number of violent crimes and high crime rate in Duval County and find solutions and invest increased resources to identify and address factors that contribute to crime; and (3) Following the implementation of the Jacksonville Journey and substantial funding of crime reduction programs, accountability for administration of those programs, and implementation of intelligence-led and community-based policing, the City of Jacksonville brought homicide and overall violent crime in Jacksonville to a 40-year low in 2011 until funding for the Jacksonville Journey was reduced substantially and administrative budget cuts caused elimination of 147 police officer positions and 92 community service officer positions from the Jacksonville Sheriff's Office; and (4) Recently, due to the efforts of the Sheriff of Duval County, the violent crime rate has decreased and the City of Jacksonville is committed to working with the Sheriff to assure the improvement in public safety continues and all necessary steps are taken to resolve and eliminate the factors contributing to violent crime in the City; and (5) The City of Jacksonville should reestablish the Jacksonville Journey as the "Jacksonville Journey Forward," reconvene community stakeholders and leaders to address those factors and circumstances that contribute to crime, use the collective power of the community to resolve those factors contributing to crime, and sustain a commitment to assure all Jacksonville residents, neighborhoods and businesses that the City will provide a safe place to live and work; and (6) The provisions of this Section are found and declared by the Council to be a public purpose and in the best interest of the public. (Ord. 2024-635-E , § 2)