VoteJacksonville.com Coalition Launches Petition Drive to Return Navy Jets to Cecil Field
Effort to let voters have final say in bringing the Master Jet Base back to Jacksonville.
Jacksonville, FL (PRWEB) July 4, 2006 -- “The fight for freedom starts here.” That is the rallying cry of the VoteJacksonville.com Coalition as it begins a petition drive to move the U.S. Navy Master Jet Base to Cecil Field. The committee was formed to put the question of returning Cecil Field to the Navy before voters.
“As America pauses to celebrate our nation’s 230th birthday, we have an opportunity to remember the heroes who came through Cecil Field in the defense of our freedom,” said John Arnold, Chairman of the VoteJacksonville.com coalition.
Joining Arnold on the VoteJacksonville.com Committee are Tomas Jimenez, Ben Willingham, Dave Van Saun, and Chris Bartlett.
“In spite of fierce opposition from our Mayor and City Council, we strongly believe the 4th of July is an appropriate time to reach out to the people of our community and enlist them in the effort to return Cecil Field to the Navy,” said Van Saun, who also served as a Base Realignment and Closure (BRAC) Senior Team Leader.
The base, in 1999, moved from Cecil Field to Virginia. But now, as a result of the latest BRAC process, the Pentagon has completed its final BRAC report finding that Virginia Beach, Virginia – the current home of Oceania Naval Air Station – failed to meet the conditions that would have kept the base open.
According to BRAC law, Jacksonville now has the opportunity to bring the entire master jet base to Cecil Field. It would require that Jacksonville keep the promises made during the BRAC hearings.
However, on October 21, 2005, following discussions with City Council members and in the face of opposition from developers and 300 residents living near Cecil Field, the Mayor told the Navy that Jacksonville was no longer interested. Only three days prior, a study released by the University of West Florida’s Haas Center for Business and Economic Development showed that returning the Naval Air Station to Cecil Field would:
- Bring more than 31,000 high-quality jobs to Jacksonville with an average salary of more than $50,000;
- Increase the economy of Jacksonville by $2.6 billion annually; and
- Improve the opportunities and lives of thousands of Jacksonville residents.
Ken Underwood, the Registered Agent for VoteJacksonville.com, stated, “The Mayor and City Council’s opposition to bringing the Navy base back is completely nonsensical. I’ve seen mayors go to the mat for 500 jobs, much less 31,000. There must be something more to this than what we’re seeing. I mean think about it…we’re at war and we have a major metropolitan area in our nation that’s telling the Navy ‘We don’t want you.’ Everyone in Northeast Florida should be embarrassed, if not outraged, by the position that they have put us in. It’s just a matter of time until this is a national story.”
The petition drive aims to gather almost 24,000 verified signatures of registered voters by July 24th in order to put the issue before voters during the September 5th primary election. If approved by the voters, the charter amendment would become law and the city would provide free and clear title of Cecil Field to the United States Navy.
"Of course, it wouldn't surprise me to see the Mayor challenge the constitutionality of this democratic process," added Underwood. "I pleaded with the Mayor last week to support our ballot initiative, but he said that there was no need to do a referendum because he already knows what the majority of the people want and that he's not going to do it."
The campaign has established a website at www.VoteJacksonville.com where people interested in learning more about the issue and getting involved can find information. The website also features a “Where the Mayor and City Council Stand” section, along with appropriate email addresses and phone numbers. VoteJacksonville.com is one of many groups in the community that are fighting to bring the Navy back to Cecil Field.
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