Cuppa Jax - Kay Ehas, Groundwork Jacksonville

Cost $15 -- Breakfast provided by Village Bread Cafe

Wednesday, March 29

8 a.m.- 9 a.m.

Riverplace Tower Skyline Room

Kay Ehas is CEO of Groundwork Jacksonville, the City of Jacksonville’s nonprofit partner in creating the 30-mile Emerald Trail and restoring McCoys Creek and Hogans Creek.

Jacksonville is one of 21 Groundwork Trusts across the country focused on environmental equity, resilience and stewardship, and transforming the natural and built environment in low-resource and climate-vulnerable communities

Since joining Groundwork in 2107, Kay Ehas has been relentless in her pursuit of achieving Jacksonville’s long-held dream of a vibrant, connected urban core. Kay quickly went to work developing the Emerald Trail Master Plan which was adopted by the Jacksonville City Council in early 2019. Now, just four years later, more than 1/3 of the trail is in construction or design. The first 1.3 miles of trail, the LaVilla Link, will open this year.

Kay has 15 years of experience in local government, most recently as chief administrative officer for the Duval County Property Appraiser. She also has more than 11 years of private-sector human resources experience.

From 2004 – 2015, Kay served on the Riverside Avondale Preservation (RAP) board including three years as Board president. Under Kay’s leadership RAP created the Riverside Arts Market (RAM) and planted more than 1000 trees along neighborhood streets, among other accomplishments.

Kay came to Jacksonville as a Volunteer in Service to America (VISTA) where she worked with public housing tenant associations and a low-income senior citizens group. She earned a master’s degree in communication and graduated with distinction from the University of Florida. Kay earned a Bachelor of Arts degree in social welfare from Kutztown University of Pennsylvania.

To get in touch with Kay please email [email protected]

We meet at Riverplace Tower, also known as the Ameris Bank building. This is a walkable location along the Southbank Riverwalk and also convenient to the First Coast Flyer and the Skyway Riverplace Station.

There is limited free street parking, and paid parking is also available in a neighboring surface lot and garage.

Entering from the Riverwalk: take the stairs or elevator next to Village Bread Company up to the Skyline Room.

Entering from Riverplace Blvd: take the escalators and walk toward the back of the building, behind the Ameris Bank offices.

Entering from the garage: make a right at the first bank of elevators and another right into the hallway between the Ameris Bank offices.

Entering from the driveway between Riverplace Tower and the Doubletree: Walk down the hallway to the left, and make another left toward Village Bread Cafe. Take the elevator or stairs near Village Bread Cafe to the meeting space.

Cuppa Jax holds gatherings for neighborhood and community leaders that are open to everyone in Jacksonville. Join us on Wednesday mornings in the Skyline Room in the Riverplace Tower on the Southbank to discuss important issues facing our city.

Scheduled speakers will talk for 10-15 minutes. The rest of the time is spent with Q&A and discussion of relevant issues brought up by participants. We also encourage attendees to make community announcements at the beginning of the program.

No membership fee. Unlike many other discussion forums in Jacksonville, there is no membership fee to attend or participate in Cuppa Jax. We do ask attendees to cover the cost of coffee and breakfast provided by Village Bread Cafe. If you cannot attend due to the cost of the event, please email [email protected] with a request for a scholarship and we will be glad to cover your ticket.

Topical and timely. We are seeking local thought leaders who can discuss and educate about important community issues to speak at future dates. We don’t accept offers to speak about or pitch organizations. Cuppa Jax is non-partisan, and does not endorse candidates or issues. An offer to speak does not constitute an endorsement. It is simply an opportunity for the community to have a meaningful discussion.

Host or Publisher Cuppa Jax