The planets are aligning for the negotiations on a new stadium in Jacksonville. And the Jacksonville City Council has hired a consultant who knows a thing or two about the Jaguars.
Via Hanna Holthaus of the Florida Times-Union, the council has selected former Jaguars executive Michael Huyghue to represent its interests in the looming discussions.
Huyghue will directly advise the City Council. New mayor Donna Deegan will hire a separate consultant to advise the city.
The former UFL Commissioner will charge $325 per hour, with total expenditures of up to $150,000.
But here’s the most interesting wrinkle. Huyghue is also a consultant with the NFL. Per the article, “Huyghue referenced his existing relationships as a consultant with all 32 NFL team owners and the commissioner — who would have to approve any Jaguars’ stadium renovation plans — as benefits for the city consulting position in a finance committee meeting prior to the full vote.”
Hey, Jacksonville, that’s also known as a conflict of interest. How can Huyghue be expected to zealously represent the rights of the taxpayers of Jacksonville if he has a separate consulting relationship “with all 32 NFL teams and the commissioner”? The league’s interests and the Jaguars interest when it comes to squeezing maximum public money for a renovated stadium are fully aligned. And now the City Council has now agreed to pay the proverbial fox a whopping $325 per hour to build a bigger henhouse.
More amazingly, Huyghue was approved by a unanimous vote. Which means that the Jacksonville City Council is either entirely oblivious or entirely unconcerned about the very clear disconnect between what the Jaguars/NFL want and what Jacksonville is willing/able to give.