Jax Beach police chief: Eliminate 1st Street parking

Chief says parking along street part of problem leading to fights

JACKSONVILLE BEACH, Fla. – As Jacksonville Beach residents seek change following a brawl in the city's core on Memorial Day, Police Chief Patrick Dooley says part of the problem is people parking on First Street.

"It slows traffic, it stops it, and as a result of that we've had several incidents where there may have been some fights and things like that that result," Dooley said.

Dooley plans to help alleviate the problems by eliminating street parking on First Street from Beach Boulevard to Fourth Avenue North from 8 p.m. on Fridays until midnight on Sundays.

Traffic would still be able to flow down First.

"It's just one more tool in the toolbox," Dooley said. "It's not the magic bullet to fix any of the issues we have."

Some people who frequent the beach aren't a fan of the plan.

"I think that's a horrible idea because it's already hard enough for people to park, and that's just going to make it even worse and a big hassle I think," Evelyn Lopez said.

"We don't want to have to walk from Fourth Street," Kyle Boetcker said. "We want to drive and just park at our favorite spot."

Many people at Monday's City Council meeting said they'd be willing to pay more in property taxes to see more police uniforms on the street.

"As a police chief, I'm never going to turn down personnel," Dooley said. "Of course I want more officers, but we have to live within our budget and within our constraints, and those are political decisions that are made by the City Council, and whatever they determine is the adequate number. That's what we'll have to manage with."

Others want to make sure the taxes they pay go to what they call "good use."

"Well, how 'bout let's be a little bit more fiscally conservative and not spend our money redoing beautification of downtown Jax Beach twice," business owner Chris Hagist said. "Let's be able to do it correctly the first time with a local Jax Beach company, and then after we get it done right, let's say, 'OK, how can we allocate these funds that are coming in from the tax dollars we already have that's the best thing I think can be done with it?"

Dooley said he, too, is passionate about making sure Jacksonville Beach is a safe place to be.

"I care very much what the reputation of the community is," Dooley said. "I care very much about what happens to the businesses and the residents here. This is a great place to be, and I want to continue that."