Share and Follow
JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – The city of Jacksonville is renaming Mandarin Park after former City Council member and mayor, Tommy Hazouri Sr., who died last year at age 76.
As first reported by the Florida Times Union, the park at 14870 Mandarin Road will be known as the Thomas L. “Tommy” Hazouri Sr. Park in recognition of his accomplishments and service to the city. The legislation was passed unanimously Tuesday by the City Council.
Tommy Hazouri has been a household name in Jacksonville, having held four different state and local elective offices over five decades.
Hazouri was elected to represent Jacksonville’s District 20 in the Florida House of Representatives in 1974. While in the Florida legislature, Hazouri chaired the House Committee on Education and was also a member of the House Committee on Appropriations Subcommittee on Education Funding. He was appointed by Gov. Lawton Chiles to the Florida Ethics Commission and led the Sheriff’s Task Force on Mental Health.
Read Related Also: 4-year-old girl dies after fiery crash on I-10 in Columbia County: FHP
Trying to follow iconic Mayor Jake Godbold’s two terms, Hazouri defeated former State Rep. John Lewis in a bitter Democratic primary election and then easily beat Republican Henry Cook to become the third mayor of the consolidated city of Jacksonville in 1987.
Hazouri would run for mayor of Jacksonville twice more but lost in primary elections both times. In 2004, he was elected to the Duval County School Board and was re-elected in 2008. He served as vice-chairman of the board in 2008 and as chairman in 2009.
After six years as a private citizen and president of a private consulting firm, Hazouri and Associates, he ran for an at-large seat on the Jacksonville City Council in 2015 and was re-elected in 2019.
