JACKSONVILLE, Fla. -- The new interim CEO of JEA stepped up to the plate in front of City Council for the first time on Thursday morning, a place where Paul McElroy stood once a week for about a month until he resigned.
Aaron Zahn stood at the podium, as JEA's CFO Melissa Dykes sat in the audience behind him. Dykes was briefly interim CEO, until Zahn vied for the position and almost immediately won the support of the council in a vote.
Zahn told the council they were unprepared for talks of privatization. He believes neither JEA, the council nor the mayor's office has enough information to go into the valuation that was led by PFM at the beginning of the year.
Council members were quick to fire questions in response.
Councilman Hazouri said he's concerned about the continuous "mistrust" that revolves around Zahn getting unanimously voted into the position as a newcomer, over the 6-year-long employee and CFO.
On another issue, Zahn addresses a previous venture with his company BCR NuTerra that led to a series of complaints by residents in Haines City. He said he walked away from the business on his own and admitted to "failing".
First Coast News' sister station in Tampa, Fla. WTSP reported on this situation at length in January of 2017.
In an answer to a question from First Coast News about creating a "strategic plan" for JEA, Zahn admitted that there is already a plan in place, but said it demands to be updated and correlate to the changing times in the industry.
Council members circled back to the question of his position, asking if he intends to be the permanent CEO. They demanded a simple 'yes or no', but Zahn never responded with a 'yes or no'. He said if the board finds that his credentials fit the buck, then he would accept a position permanently if offered.
Council members also asked that Zahn make any private meetings over JEA, especially with potential buyers, public. Zahn responded by saying he will do his best to supply that information.
In an interview with First Coast News, Zahn said the Special Committee Meetings on JEA held each week put pressure on JEA employees.
After he left the meeting, Dykes stayed behind to give the presentation on their finances. She was applauded by Council members Garrett Dennis was providing the information in an understandable and complete fashion, something Dennis said hadn't been done yet.
As the meeting was wrapping up, the Jaguars' State of the Franchise was taking place at TIAA Bank Field, at which Shad Khan was asked about his opinion on JEA. Khan said he thought privatizations was a "terrible idea".
