Former Jacksonville City Councilmember Matt Schellenberg. | City of Jacksonville
Published on November 13, 2026 at 4:43 pm
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Former Jacksonville City Council member Matt Schellenberg has died at age 73. No cause or date of death was immediately publicly available.
Jacksonville Mayor Donna Deegan announced the former two-term councilman’s death in a Friday statement to the media, sending condolences to his family.
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“Jacksonville has lost a devoted public servant,” Deegan wrote. “Matt Schellenberg loved this city, serving the families of Mandarin and the Southside with energy and conviction over two terms on City Council.
Schellenberg was the second of 11 children born to past city council member Bob Schellenberg and his wife Kate, on Dec. 2, 1952, in Washington D.C., according to his city of Jacksonville biography. The family moved to Jacksonville in 1962, and Schellenberg attended San Jose Catholic School and Bishop Kenny High School.
He won a golf scholarship and attended St. Johns River Community College, then graduated from the University of Florida in 1975 with a bachelor’s degree in political science. He worked as an investment advisor before moving to Movers Claims Services. Schellenberg married Ceil Pillsbury in 2018.
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His father, Bob, was general manager at WJXT before he was elected to the Jacksonville City Council in 1983.
Matt Schellenberg, a Republican, first ran for Mandarin’s District 6 seat on the City Council, defeating incumbent City Council President Jack Webb in 2011. He remained on the council until 2019.
In 2018, he was interviewed on WJCT News 89.9’s First Coast Connect about a number of issues, including his support of looking into privatizing JEA. In 2021, he filed to run for the at-large council seat that Tommy Hazouri had until his death, but withdrew, Florida Politics reported.
Schellenberg received a liver transplant in early 2000, according to The Florida Times-Union.
Throughout his business and council career, Schellenberg was involved in a number of charitable and civic organizations, including leadership roles with the Florida Association of Counties, the Florida League of Cities, and the environmental groups Keep Jacksonville Beautiful and Greenscape. He was also on the Bishop Kenny High School Advisory Board.
Schellenberg leaves behind his wife and two grown children. Funeral arrangements have not been announced.
