Stockton Street Town Center

[MissMinda]

Hasn't COJ learned yet that medians run completely counter to natural traffic movement and cause more problems than they solve? Wow...they ruined Springfield with those now they're coming over here I guess.

The medians will not interfere with interesections or alleys, so traffic movement should not be affected.

Actually, one of the medians is at the Gilmore intersection. A left turn lane (and light) there for the school, Central Riverside Elementary, would make sense. You will have a bottleneck of traffic every morning as parents bring their children to school. Poor planning, people!

[Ocklawaha]

If I could find a tinker, an LED electronics geek, and industrial designer looking for a start-up, we'd start making reproduction traffic lights for historic districts around the country.

OCKLAWAHA

Historic or not you'll need a yellow.

Not really, a lagging red would serve the same purpose, however as modern codes might require yellow in some communities there is no reason a yellow couldn't be added.

btw I couldn't find a photo of the little 'stop' and 'go' semaphore arms that fit into the side of these lights. Really cool like something out of Laurel and Hardy or the roadrunners ACME supplies.

My main point though is that Jacksonville NEVER seems to do the unique anymore, everything is a knock off of what Charlotte, or Baltimore, or Houston or ....... fill in the blank is doing. I just think it would be knock em dead cool if we actually broke away from the pack and created a REAL 1920's era Stockton Street.

OCKLAWAHA

[thelakelander]

I don't think the knock statement applies to Stockton Street. Half of what's in it appears to be common approved materials that COJ is comfortable working with. A Houston or Charlotte knock off would include streetcar/LRT tracks.

[Ocklawaha]

LOL! Maybe I should have used Duluth but then they have a decent transportation museum...

OCKLAWAHA

[RiversideHusker]

Actually, one of the medians is at the Gilmore intersection. A left turn lane (and light) there for the school, Central Riverside Elementary, would make sense. You will have a bottleneck of traffic every morning as parents bring their children to school. Poor planning, people!

I completely agree. On the flipside, the dedicated left turn lanes at Stockton & College are big enough for maybe one or two cars, but the arrow lasts much longer. I really hope they improve the streetlight timing on Stockton; it doesn’t matter if I am going north or south, I almost always hit at least 2 red lights, even when I am the first car through the intersection.

I also don't understand why they put a median on Stockton between Rosselle and I-10. Now when people are going south on Stockton, many are staying in the left turn lane thinking they can go straight through the intersection, so when the light turns green both lanes play chicken!

I think it’s nice they are doing this streetscape, but I wish they would have first focused on making the traffic flow more efficiently, putting the power lines underground, then spend whatever is leftover on beautifying the area.

[cline]

Actually, one of the medians is at the Gilmore intersection. A left turn lane (and light) there for the school, Central Riverside Elementary, would make sense. You will have a bottleneck of traffic every morning as parents bring their children to school. Poor planning, people!

I think it’s nice they are doing this streetscape, but I wish they would have first focused on making the traffic flow more efficiently, putting the power lines underground, then spend whatever is leftover on beautifying the area.

The mandate of the Town Center program is NOT to improve traffic flow.  It is to improve aging infrastructure and beautify the area (focusing more on pedestrian and landscape features).

[RiversideHusker]

The mandate of the Town Center program is NOT to improve traffic flow.  It is to improve aging infrastructure and beautify the area (focusing more on pedestrian and landscape features).

Interesting, did not know that. I wish they could have found a way to both improve traffic flow and make the street/sidewalks look nicer. It's such a shame they can't put the powerlines underground, they look so ugly Hopefully the plan includes funds for regular street sweeping.

Oh well, any improvement is better than none and at least I can curse in my car while looking at pretty trees and nice sidewalks LOL

[cline]

The mandate of the Town Center program is NOT to improve traffic flow.  It is to improve aging infrastructure and beautify the area (focusing more on pedestrian and landscape features).

It's such a shame they can't put the powerlines underground, they look so ugly

This is an issue throughout the neighborhood.  JEA claims it is too expensive to put the utilities underground.  So instead they go through the neighborhood and butcher the trees about every three years or so.  It would be nice if they would begin to phase in putting them underground. 

You can read more about the Town Center program on the city's website.
http://www.coj.net/Departments/Planning-and-Development/Community-Planning-Division/Plans-and-Studies/Town-Center-Program.aspx

[Dog Walker]

+1 on the power lines!  We were all disappointed when that wasn't part of the project.  The parts of town where they are underground look a lot better.

I wonder how much of JEA's reluctance and "cost estimates" are based on the fact that they are best equipped and trained to work on overhead power lines rather than underground ones and don't want to upgrade.

[iMarvin]

I like medians in the street but only when they're landscaped. It makes the whole area look much nicer.

[Dog Walker]

Landscaped medians are also a "traffic calming device."  When your lines of sight are narrowed you slow down.  Same as with parked cars on the side.  Makes it safer for cars coming from the side streets and people crossing the street.

[cline]

+1 on the power lines!  We were all disappointed when that wasn't part of the project.  The parts of town where they are underground look a lot better.

I wonder how much of JEA's reluctance and "cost estimates" are based on the fact that they are best equipped and trained to work on overhead power lines rather than underground ones and don't want to upgrade.

JEA will put them underground if you pay for it and convince your neighbors to do the same.  I believe this is what was done on part of Edgewood.  It is tough to pull something like this off on a widespred basis since not everyone can/or wants to pay.  I have no idea how much they would charge residents (customers) per mile to do this.  I would think it wouldn't be cheap.

[Ocklawaha]

Actually if it's a TRUE historical look you are after, you should add a few dozen cross arms and another hundred lines or so. Back in the day a phone line was a phone line, and two phone lines equaled two phone lines...etc... Add to this electric service, street lighting, and oh yeah, streetcars and you get an idea.

OCKLAWAHA

[Ernest Street]

So when this year will they finish asphalting Stockton Street?   They planted Sago palms but left the road still mangled up..(springfield...springfield... )

[acme54321]

+1 on the power lines!  We were all disappointed when that wasn't part of the project.  The parts of town where they are underground look a lot better.

I wonder how much of JEA's reluctance and "cost estimates" are based on the fact that they are best equipped and trained to work on overhead power lines rather than underground ones and don't want to upgrade.

JEA will put them underground if you pay for it and convince your neighbors to do the same.  I believe this is what was done on part of Edgewood.  It is tough to pull something like this off on a widespred basis since not everyone can/or wants to pay.  I have no idea how much they would charge residents (customers) per mile to do this.  I would think it wouldn't be cheap.

It's not cheap, I looked a few months ago.  JEA has it on their website somehwere.

~$4000 up front, and ~$25 a month for 30 years onto the JEA bill for each residence along the street where it was buried  IIRC.