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This comes as members of Jacksonville City Council aim to make changes to the way tickets from city venues are distributed.
JACKSONVILLE, Fla. — Some council members in the City of Jacksonville are looking to make changes to the way tickets from city venues are distributed to council and the mayor’s office.
Last week, Councilman Ron Salem introduced an ordinance that would require all tickets gifted to the city to be distributed equally between city council and the mayor’s office.
Council President Kevin Carrico wants to take it a step further with what he’s calling the ‘DEEGAN Amendment.’ This would eliminate all “taxpayer subsidized Jaguar tickets.”
Right now, the city receives tickets as part of its lease agreements and contracts with various venues. Those venues include Vystar Veterans Memorial Arena, including Icemen and Sharks games, Daily’s Place, Jacksonville Center for the Performing Arts, the Prime Osborn, Jumbo Shrimp Games at Vystar Ballpark and EverBank Stadium.
These agreements have been in place for years and for multiple administrations. A spokesperson for city council said these tickets are not considered personal perks for city council; they are meant to host constituents, community leaders, organizations and can even be used as a reward for city employees.
The tickets are managed by the Office of Sports and Entertainment. Here’s a breakdown of the number of tickets available per venue, upon request:
- Jags games: There are 24 tickets available in the City Suite per home game. These are split 50/50 between the administration and city council. There are 10 terrace suite tickets, 40 club level tickets and six Lot N parking passes available upon request per home game. A spokesperson for the mayor’s office said the policy with club-level seating changed this year to make them available upon request, versus splitting them 50/50 with city council. The spokesperson said the reason for the change was to ensure transparency and “that ticket distribution is not abused.”
- Jumbo Shrimp games: 20 tickets are available for the suite, 40 tickets are available for the lower bowl and four parking passes are available per game.
- Sharks games: There are 16 suite tickets and eight lower bowl tickets available per home game.
- Icemen games: 16 suite tickets are available per home game, along with 50 lower bowl tickets.
- Vystar Memorial Arena: There are 16 suite tickets and eight lower bowl tickets available per event.
- Daily’s Place Amphitheatre: There are 20 tickets available per show.
- Jacksonville Center for the Performing Arts: Six to 12 tickets are available per event, depending on the tenant.
Tickets can also be requested for The Players Championship at TPC Sawgrass.
Carrico’s amendment to Salem’s proposed ordinance targets Jags tickets. In a statement, Carrico said “taxpayers should not bankroll politicians’ tickets,” writing, “with recent policy changes and the Council’s continued effort to cut government waste, I am proud to file the DEEGAN Amendment to officially end the practice of free Jaguar tickets for elected officials.”
According to data obtained by First Coast News through a public records request, city council, including their staff, requested 116 tickets across all venues last year. For the 2024 football season, council members requested at least 86 tickets for home games, Salem requested at least six and Carrico requested at least 10 tickets.
Members of the mayor’s office requested 66 total tickets across all venues in 2024. At least 17 tickets were requested for Jags games for the 2024 season. Deegan did not request any Jags tickets, according to information provided by the city.
Deegan responded to Carrico’s ‘DEEGAN Amendment’ with a statement, writing, “While I’m flattered this amendment was named after me, I’m not the one asking for more tickets. I’ve been a Jaguars season ticket holder for decades. I’d be happy to return to my longstanding north end zone seats, which I still pay for.”
First Coast News reached out to Salem and Carrico for more information about their proposals, but did not hear back. Salem’s ordinance will be discussed at next week’s city council meeting.