ATLANTIC BEACH CANDIDATE FORUM

 

WEDNESDAY, SEPTEMBER 2 AT 7PM

Beaches Branch Library

600 3rd St

Neptune Beach

Candidates:

Mayor: Curtis Ford (incumbent), Nancy Staats

Commissioner - Seat 4: Lisa Herrold, Jennifer Lagner

Important: Enter through the NORTH Library entrance ONLY. The south entrance will be locked. Parking is available in the north parking lot



As a service to beaches voters, Beaches Watch hosted a candidate forum for the District 2 School Board candidates on the August 18 primary ballot. 

There are 3 candidates running for the District 2 School Board seat and all 3 candidates participated in the candidate forum:

• Donovan Bradley
• Terence Myers
• Donna Westrich

You can see the candidates' websites and responses to a short questionnaire HERE.

You can watch the candidate forum video below to hear their responses to questions about issues important to District 2 students, parents and teachers.

The primary election will be held on Tuesday August 18, 2026, 7am to 7pm.

Early voting will be held Friday, August 7 through Sunday, August 16, 10am to 6pm at the following beaches locations:

• Beaches Branch Library: 600 3^rd St, Neptune Beach
• Jacksonville Beach Community Center: 2508 S. Beach Parkway, Jacksonville Beach (NEW location)

“Beaches Watch promotes citizen education on local issues and participation in local government,” said Beaches Watch president Maria Mark. “The election of our school board representative is important to ensure our beaches schools, teachers, and students have representation on the Duval County school board. Through this forum, voters can learn more about the candidates and make an informed decision when they vote.”

The Beaches Watch organization does not endorse candidates and has been sponsoring non-partisan candidate forums for Atlantic Beach, Jacksonville Beach and Neptune Beach since 2004.  



Beaches Watch hosted the annual Beaches Police Panel to help our beaches residents understand more about public safety issues addressed by our beaches police departments.

Jacksonville Beach Police Chief Gene Paul Smith, Neptune Beach Police Chief Michael Key and Atlantic Beach Police Chief Vic Gualillo provided updates on successes and challenges in the past year, crimes statistics and trends, recent large events such as July 4^th and Memorial Day, staffing updates, department needs and more.

To learn more, watch the meeting video here:

The beaches have a new source of news and information and it's called the Beach Gazette!

From the Beach Gazette website:

Beach Gazette is an independent, nonprofit, community-owned publication. It launched in June 2026 to ensure those who live, work, and play in the Beaches community have access to local news to stay engaged and informed.

To learn more about the Beach Gazette: Frequently Asked Questions

About the Founders

Jennifer Ashley (editor) and Georgette Dumont (publisher) co-founded the Beach Gazette when they learned The Beaches Leader was shutting down. Both passionate about their community - the governance and the individual connections between individuals that make communities thrive - they decided to start a nonprofit news outlet to ensure the Beaches would continue to have coverage of what was happening in their own neighborhoods.

Ashley and Dumont bring decades of experience in public and nonprofit organizations. Currently, Ashely is the Director of Health Promotions for Feeding Northeast Florida and Georgette is an Associate Professor and Director of the Master of Public Administration program at the University of North Florida.

Support the Beach Gazette

You can support this new publication in several ways:

Become a supporter to get full access to the website and an email when new weekly content is available.

Become a Founding Patron

The beaches city staff and elected officials have begun evaluating the potential impact from the loss of property tax dollars if the property tax amendment passes in November.

Learn more about recent discussions in Atlantic Beach and Jacksonville Beach from Beach Gazette articles:

Jacksonville Beach Staff to Council: a potential $4.86 million hole and no painless way to fill it

Atlantic Beach weighs budget options ahead of property tax vote

LEARN HOW YOUR TAX DOLLARS ARE SPENT

You'll be voting on the property tax amendment in November. So, it's important to understand how your tax dollars are spent. The best way to do this is to attend the upcoming budget workshops planned in your beach city. These budget workshops are expected to provide more detail about the impact of the property tax amendment and opportunities for budget reductions.

BUDGET WORKSHOPS SCHEDULE

ATLANTIC BEACH BUDGET WORKSHOPS

Monday, July 20 at 6pm

Wednesday, August 19 at 6pm

Location: Atlantic Beach Commission Chambers

JACKSONVILLE BEACH BUDGET WORKSHOPS

Friday, July 31, 2-4pm: Budget Tour

Monday, August 3, 4-5:45pm: Executive, Legal, Finance, HR, IT

Tuesday, August 4, 5-7pm: Police, Beaches Energy, Parks & Rec

Monday, August 10, 5-7pm: Public Works, Planning, Redevelopment

Location: Jacksonville Beach City Council Conference Room

NEPTUNE BEACH BUDGET MEETINGS

Finance Committee Meeting: Wednesday, July 15 at 8am

Budget Workshop: Monday, July 20 at 4pm

Location: Neptune Beach City Council Chambers

The Florida Legislature held a special session the week of June 1 and approved a ballot amendment to reduce property taxes on all homesteaded properties.

You can read the proposed property tax changes here: HJR 1-F 

The proposed property tax cuts are a constitutional amendment that will be on the November 3 ballot as Amendment #3 and all Florida voters will have the opportunity to decide on the proposed changes.

To help citizens understand the various legislation approved by the 2026 legislature during the legislative session, Beaches Watch hosted a meeting on June 3 with the three beaches City Managers. Guest speakers were Jacksonville Beach City Manager Mike Staffopoulos, Neptune Beach City Manager Richard Pike, and Acting Atlantic Beach City Manager Kevin Hogencamp.

The City Managers provided a short summary of the 2026 legislation that was approved that will impact our beaches communities and they also provided a presentation about the property tax amendment. 

You can learn more about the approved legislation and property tax amendment in the June 3 meeting presentation: June 3 Meeting Presentation

You can also watch the meeting video below.

Meeting video timestamps:

• Summary of 2026 legislation that will impact our beaches (begins at 6:00 minutes)
• Property Tax Amendment explanation (begins at 13:00 minutes)

Various organizations throughout Florida have provided information about the proposed property tax amendment on the November ballot. You can learn more about the amendment from these organizations.

Florida Policy Institute:

https://www.floridapolicy.org/posts/florida-property-tax-amendment-ballot-language-summary

Florida League of Cities:

https://www.flcities.com/floridaformula/

Florida Association of Counties:

https://www.fl-counties.com/understanding-floridas-property-tax-system/

Why Property Taxes Are Essential

• Property taxes fund the services that keep communities safe and functional. Property taxes fund core public safety and infrastructure, including police, fire, emergency response, and roads. These services make communities safe, insurable, and economically viable.
• Florida is already a national leader in taxpayer value. Florida consistently ranks among the best states for taxpayer return on investment, meaning residents receive strong public services for the taxes they pay. Local governments deliver disciplined, efficient spending even as costs rise, which is why Florida's effective property tax rate is roughly half that of Texas. This balance of affordability and service is a competitive advantage worth protecting.
• Property taxes provide stable and predictable revenue, particularly during economic downturns when sales taxes and tourism-related revenues are volatile.
• Florida's property tax system was designed by voters, not politicians. Florida voters already approved caps for annual homestead assessment increases at 3%, protecting full-time homeowners from sudden tax spikes even when market values soar. That's not a loophole; it's a voter-approved safeguard.
• Cities are partners in the state's prosperity. Cities are committed to fiscal discipline, local accountability, and keeping Florida an affordable and secure place to live.

What's at Stake

• This proposal is a tax shift, not a tax cut. Eliminating property taxes doesn't eliminate the cost of government — it shifts the burden onto renters and small businesses through higher fees, new taxes, or reduced services.
• Smaller communities face the steepest impact. An independent property tax study, modeling a $250,000 homestead exemption, found that some cities could see their tax base reduced so significantly that maintaining current levels of essential services would be at risk — with smaller communities facing the steepest impact.
• Many Florida cities would have to dedicate nearly all remaining property tax revenue to public safety and still face funding shortfalls.
• Eliminating property taxes without a sustainable replacement threatens the services residents depend on every day. Experts estimate it would blow a $43 billion hole in local budgets. To replace that revenue, Florida would need to double the state sales tax to 12% — the highest in the nation.
• Local governments have made long-term commitments and issued bonds for critical infrastructure projects. Those obligations remain regardless of changes to the tax structure.
• The proposal shifts financial decision-making from locally elected officials to Tallahassee, reducing local control and forcing cities to compete with each other for state funds. Florida voters have demonstrated their trust in local decisions, approving 89% of local tax referenda in the 2023-24 cycle.
• There is no guarantee that this newly created trust fund will not be swept like other trust funds have been throughout Florida's history.

LEARN FROM OUR BEACHES CITY MANAGERS: CITY BUDGETS 101

Eliminating property taxes is often presented as a way to provide financial relief for homeowners—but do you know what that change could mean for your city and the services you count on every day?

In February, the three Beaches City Managers gave an informative presentation explaining how city budgets work and what role property taxes play in funding local services. This City Budget 101 presentation is valuable information for every resident.

The presentation covers:

• How much revenue each city receives from property taxes
• How those dollars are used to fund city operations and services
• The potential impacts to local services if property taxes are reduced or eliminated

Watch the presentation and learn how the elimination of property taxes could affect your community.

You can also see a copy of the presentation here: https://bit.ly/2026PropertyTaxPresentation

Special thanks to Jacksonville Beach City Manager Mike Staffopoulos, Neptune Beach City Manager Richard Pike, and Interim City Manager Kevin Hogencamp for this very important and informative presentation.

If you are interested in serving on the Beaches Watch board, we are currently seeking persons with any of the following experience:

• Finance/accounting
• Membership recruitment/retention
• Public relations/Marketing

Learn more about board member expectations, the vision, mission and core values of Beaches Watch and the history of the organization: Board Member Expectations and Information

If you are interested in serving on the Board, please complete the Beaches Watch Board Application.

DONATIONS

In addition to your membership fee, donations are also appreciated to support the programs Beaches Watch provides to enrich our quality of life at the beaches.

DONATE TO THE FLAND SHARP MEMORIAL SCHOLARSHIP FUND:

A Jacksonville Beach native and graduate of Fletcher High School, Fland Sharp was a life-long resident of the beaches who loved his community and enriched the beaches quality of life through his community involvement and public service. The Beaches Watch Board of Directors believes the Fland Sharp Memorial Scholarship will serve to inspire a deserving Fletcher High School senior to follow in Fland's footsteps of dedicated community involvement. 

Your donation will be used in its entirety to provide a monetary scholarship to a deserving Fletcher High School senior.

MAIL YOUR MEMBERSHIP AND DONATION

If you would prefer to mail us your support, CLICK HERE to download the membership form. 

With your support, you will help us continue our mission to promote and facilitate educated and productive citizen involvement in local and state decisions that affect the quality of life of our beaches communities in Duval County.

THANK YOU FOR YOUR CONTINUED SUPPORT!