The St. Johns River Ferry
Langton Consulting Senior Vice President, Lisa King, began her service to the ferry as a volunteer and Vice President of Friends of the St. Johns River Ferry.
This citizens’ advocacy group credited with galvanizing public support for the ferry at critical junctures when public agencies threatened to close it. The Ferry Commission was formed to find a permanent funding solution for the ferry and which ultimately included the ferry’s transfer to the Jacksonville Transportation Authority (JTA). Langton Consulting, led by King, came under contract with the Commission, to assist with securing funds to keep the Ferry operational, writing the following successful grants and consulting on appropriations requests to the Florida Legislature on behalf of the ferry yielding an aggregate of $11 million.
• 2013, Federal Transit Administration, Passenger Ferry Grant, Ferry Slip Wall/Fender Replacement $3,973,099• 2013, Federal Highway Administration, Federal Lands Access Grant Program, Ferry Operating Subsidy, $900,000
• 2017, Federal Transit Administration, Passenger Ferry Grant, Ferry/Slip Wall and Safety Improvements, Phase 3, $3,356,900br>
“Without their commitment and hard work to secure more than $11 million in grant funding for ferry operations and capital improvements over a 3-year period, I don’t know if the ferry would still be operating today. Which would have been devastating to both the citizens and communities it serves.”
John Crescimbeni, Jacksonville City Council member, At-large Group 2 and Chair of the Ferry Commission