Quality of Life Issues

public safety=5 (spend anytime on Wells Rd.?)

roads=6 (score compared to drving anywhere else we have lived/visited in recent past)

parks & libraries=8

schools=8

additional entry???

cultural events=4

weather (based on today) PRICELESS

Key2life,

I like the idea of opening discussion to many facets of our county. Our everyday lives are touched by so much more than traffic and developments.

public safety:  6.  I am fortunate to live in a relatively safe section of the county, but know too well that many in our county do not feel safe.  Personally, I'm not convinced that increased crime is duval-spillover.  I think it reflects a failing overalls strategy of the sheriffs office. 

affordability:    7.  While there are a lot of overpriced homes in developments, there are still options for the rest of us.

roads/traffic 4.  According to the recent report, we're the worst in the state. Ouch! Poor planning has led to an inexcusable lack of coordination to handle the cars on our roads.  On the forward thinking side, the Outer-Beltway will start to attract business and send some traffic south.  I will be disappointed though if the County doesn't simultaneously address existing problem areas.

parks/libraries 8.   Love the Camp Chow acquisition and new libraries.  Still room to improve, though.  We need to do a better job of opening our waterfront to all county residents, not just waterfront owners.

taxes  9.  This score is because of the large tax cut the county put through.  There's even more tax relief to come from the State Leg.  Let's force local government to work lean. 

cultural events:  5.  I think the County needs to do better than the Fair and the Ham Jam for culture.  I really see improvement to come on this front with the arts center.  There are some great productions coming to our county. 

schools: 7.  Compared to other Florida counties, I would have to say that our schools are performing above-average. I'm not sold on our school leadership though.  They seem very resistant to change and have not handled the population shifts well.  Some schools are bursting at the seams and others sit half-empty.  We need some leaders to step up and make some tough choices. 

Looking forward to seeing everyone else's thoughts.

Margo

public safety = 7;  I feel safe most of the time but am worried about increasing crime;  fire & rescue seems top notch based on my limited exposure.

roads = 7; except during peak am/pm rush hours, I can get around Clay County fine.  I'm one of the fortunate ones who seldom leaves Clay County.  I drive from Mdbg, to Oakleaf, to GCS, to Fleming Island and back and forth all day long with no slow down.  AM/PM rush is very crowded.  In Mdbg we need more paved roads and Hibiscus needs to be re-paved - bad.  Traffic light at 218 & Blue Jay is needed - way more than Moody & Bliss.

parks & libraries = 8;  looking forward to new library in Mdbg area; parks & state forests in abundance; Black Creek, Doctors Lake, St. Johns are all great for kayaking

schools = 8; all 3 kids went through public schools K-12 and seem fairly normal, no harm done - just kidding.  Speaks for itself - many people who relocate to NE FL move here for the schools. 

cultural events = 7;  Thrasher-Horne is helping; OP Community Theater; GCS has various festivals; Mdbg has various festivals.  Clay County fair is top notch (hey - it's a cultural event to me).  Need to continue encouraging such events.

weather (based on today) PRICELESS -- It's why we all love Florida - not too hot, not too cold, but JUST RIGHT.

taxes  = 9.  This score is because of the large tax cut the county put through.  There's even more tax relief to come from the State Leg.  Let's force local government to work lean.  My comment:  I have no problem with lean, but you can't have it all - #10 in every category AND a super low tax revenue.  Somebody's gotta pay for all this great stuff.  Oh yeah, I forgot, impact fees are coming - that'll do it.

neighbors = 9;  sense of community is a major plus.  I get the feeling that most people who live here think Clay County is a special place to live and take a special pride in the "quality of life" here.

government = 7;  getting better; we've turned the good ol' boy corner and a professional manager has made great strides; open to those who want to be involved; I still get the feeling sometimes of an "us against them" mentality.  Upcoming election is going to be interesting.

Public Safety.....5  I've felt a whole lot safer in the past!!  Yes, cluelessinclay.. I spend a lot of time on Wells Rd. and you are NOT clueless about this!  And Margo.. I'm not convienced either that the increased    crime is a Duval-spillover!! 

Roads and Traffic.....3  No explanation needed!

Parks/Libraries.....8   Would love to see a clone of the park on Kingsley in another area in the Northern part of Clay.

Schools.....7  Couldn't have said it better Margo, so won't repeat

Cultural Events.....6  Always room for more

Government.....5  Still a lot to do around that corner Baxley and hopefully we'll elect the right people in the upcoming election.

Weather.....9  only if we can clone today 

Way to go Jags 

From Callahan’s view point.

Public Safety-

Law Enforcement

 8 -  The spill over of Duval crime has always existed and always will.  We have our own share of home grown criminals that are committing just as much crime.  There has been a run of Duval criminal’s crossing over to do robberies on the Wells Rd corridor and it comes in spurts.  It’s going to happen the county line is just a hundred yards away and the area is ripe for the taking. There is a Mall, Fast Food, Restaurants, and Apartments. My advice is pack you some heat when you got to Wells Rd so you can defend yourself. I pack heat when I go to Home Depot in Middleburg.

Fire/Rescue

9  - They do an excellent job with the resources they have.  I would rather they pick me up than some other agencies in the area.

Roads

2  - One patch job on top of another.  There can be an accident at Blanding and I-295 or SR 17 and I-295 north bound and traffic is backed up for three hours.  The county is totally grid locked.

 Parks 2   - I scored them low because the County Recreation Department does nothing but mow.  Have you ever known the County Recreation Department to sponsor a Sporting activity?  If you know of one fill me in.  St. Johns and Duval has public swimming pools.  There is none in this county with the exception of GCS.    Libraries9  - No commentary.  Schools8  - No commentary. 

Community

7 - I am seeing some neighborhoods maturing.  I will try and be politically correct as much as I can.  There are some areas in the north end that are starting to have an inner city look and it will not be long that we will start experiencing some crime issues that Duval is dealing with.  Daily drive by shootings and robberies will start if strong code enforcement and problem orientated policing efforts are not put in place to address the issues.   

I have a suggestion for you ladys and gentlemen.  Go ride shot gun with the CCSO on the beat that covers Wells Rd and see first hand what goes on and how they deal with the issues in that area.  All you have to do is call the Operations Center in Middleburg and tell the receptionist what you would like to do and they can get you hooked up. Make sure you ride the night shift.  Ride any beat with CCSO and get yourself a front seat to a world that is different.  Just when you believe you have seen everything something will top it.  Trust me I have been there.

Magnum,

Several years ago, I rode shot gun with a deputy (not on Wells Road). He picked me up at 7 p.m. and the first opportunity he had to bring me back to the car was midnight.

I witnessed one of the most powerful events I've ever seen between emergency personnel and a couple with a newborn baby who had a congenital birth defect. They had secured a DNR (Do Not Rescusitate) power of attorney and wanted no invasive procedures administered to their daughter. Only oxygen - which the baby was struggling to breath. The emergency crew wanted to do more (an IV). The parents held steadfast in their decision. It was - in the same moment - an immensely loving scene and an intensely dramatic one.

They ended up transporting the baby to the hospital that evening (I followed up with a phone call the next day. I had to know.) The baby survived that evening but died a couple of weeks later.

I ran into the mother at church one Sunday and shared with her how powerful the experience had been watching the dynamics unfold in her home that evening. Even after her own personal loss, she was one of the most gracious women I've had the pleasure meeting.

That experience came from a Code Blue call on a ride along.

There were several more "interesting" experiences that night. I agree, if you want to know what Clay County is really like, ride along on the night shift.

Interesting reading the various comments & grades.

Guess what - we can have 10's on everything, if we're willing to pay more money.  I know all about the waste and fraud of previous administrations, but no one can complain about a 7 mil ad valorem rate.  At least not any sane person.  You may quibble with how it's being spent/managed, but we can not realistically expect a county government to operate on a lower tax rate.  Plus, always dredging up the garbage of the past is almost irrelevant, except for learning the lessons of the past.  The previous adminstration is just that - previous. History. And thankfully - gone.

While at the Middleburg Historical Festival recently, I picked up a County record of some kind that was talking about the upcoming budget.  It was from 1953, and one line I remember was, "Clay County is a growing county."  The proposed millage rate for 1953 was 7.53.  I appreciate that a lot of mathematical adjustments need to be made for inflation to accurately compare those numbers, but you've got to admit, it's interesting to see that 54 years later, this county is operating with a LOWER millage rate than it was back then - when the county was "growing".

Surely every area can be improved on.  But it takes money.