Downtown advocates call for new master plan and vision

[thelakelander]

On first glance, I would say no to a new plan and vision.  Then once, I thought about it for a couple of seconds, we really never had a coordinated overall plan and vision for the public realm or properties owned by the city.  No long term plan of tying mass transit and adjacent neighborhoods with downtown or even a plan for the future uses and roles of our urban parks and publicly owned buildings.  There has also been no thought to the negative impact of public policy on small business growth and survival.  This is something that will be interesting to see debated.

Two Downtown advocates who disagreed on some of the issues facing the city core did agree on at least two needs at a Thursday night forum.

Those were the need for a new Downtown master plan and, with an imaginary $20 million to spend on just one project, the need to invest such funds to develop Downtown entertainment.

“We need a new vision. We need a new master plan,” said Ed Burr, a developer, chair of the Jacksonville Regional Chamber of Commerce Downtown Revitalization Committee and a member of the private Jacksonville Civic Council, which issued a task force report focused on Northbank redevelopment.

“We do need one now,” agreed Ron Barton, executive director of the Jacksonville Economic Development Commission. The Downtown Master Plan was approved by City Council in May 2000 and the Downtown Action Plan to implement it was created in 2007.

“We need to recalibrate,” said Barton. “We may have to even redefine what Downtown is.”

http://www.jaxdailyrecord.com/showstory.php?Story_id=533282

[Jason]

....here we go again!

[copperfiend]

The Neverending Story Part 3

[Dashing Dan]

For a very long time, downtown Jacksonville has lacked a realistic market analysis and a human-scale transportation plan.  Maybe this plan will give us those two things.

[wsansewjs]

The Neverending Story Part 3

-Josh

[danem]

The Neverending Story Part 3

So...straight to video then? 

[Demosthenes]

How hard is this!!! First and foremost, there needs to be people living downtown. The problem with that isnt anything other than, there is nowhere for them to live. Lots of empty buildings, and no residents. You put residents downtown, the rest will start to fall into place. (and no, I do not mean higher end crapola places like Berkman. I mean affordable lofts, workforce housing, ect. I guarantee that in this area, you can find 10,000 people who are willing to live downtown. Lets GET them there!!!

Event based goals only provide temporary bumps in activity, and is little more than a gimmick to make a dead area seem alive.

In regards to downtown transportation, any major plan is probably untenable without a large residential population, and with a workforce dwindling, the number of people who care about downtown is dropping literally daily.

If you absolutely insist on focusing on transportation first (I think it should take more of a #1b, or #2 position), you are almost better focusing on the southside where the majority of our residents live, work, and play. At least then it has a chance of working.

[Jason]

Those were the need for a new Downtown master plan and, with an imaginary $20 million to spend on just one project, the need to invest such funds to develop Downtown entertainment.

That is a dangerous statement.  We've all seen what happens while chasing the next big mega-project to save downtown.  Just look at LaVilla, Shipyards property, Brooklyn, etc...  This will get us nowhere even if the money were real.  That 20 million would be better spent on a group of smaller projects in a concentrated area, perhaps to reconnect Springfield to the core.  Reinvest in the Springfield parks and work towards helping buisnesses grow in the no man's land to fill the gap.

[danem]

How hard is this!!! First and foremost, there needs to be people living downtown. The problem with that isnt anything other than, there is nowhere for them to live. Lots of empty buildings, and no residents. You put residents downtown, the rest will start to fall into place. (and no, I do not mean higher end crapola places like Berkman. I mean affordable lofts, workforce housing, ect. I guarantee that in this area, you can find 10,000 people who are willing to live downtown. Lets GET them there!!!

Lots of chickens and eggs talked about on this site. I agree people need to be there for anything to happen. A good question is where do you start for getting people to move downtown? When I look for a place to live, I want the essentials somewhere nearby: the grocery store, lots of places to eat out, and close to work. Is any of that in place? My perception is that it's not. Maybe I'm mistaken and it's not clear that it is.

Or maybe the cost of moving downtown needs to be discounted. Free rent for half a year? Who knows.

[vicupstate]

Asked where they would invest an imaginary $20 million for just one Downtown project, Barton and Burr agreed on entertainment, but Cloar disagreed.

Cloar, based in Washington, D.C., with experience in Downtowns in Tampa, St. Louis and Dallas, said he would put his $20 million windfall into residential development.

Count me in the 'residential' column. 

There were plenty of residential projects proposed for DT a few years ago.  The problem is the money dried up, and the demand (which was geared to high-end only, for the most part) was insufficient. 

The answer will be, and can ONLY be, bring permanent residents into the core.   

[Captain Zissou]

Lots of chickens and eggs talked about on this site. I agree people need to be there for anything to happen. A good question is where do you start for getting people to move downtown?

A medium sized, mixed use, affordable, well executed project would address both the chicken and the egg and would get the ball rolling in the right direction.  Projects like this are a dime a dozen in more progressive urban areas, but we have none in town.  100 units of residents, a ground floor grocer/market, and a ground floor fast casual eatery would be perfect for downtown.  

The main problem right now is doing something like this in Jax is impossible for a number of reasons.  One reason is that you'd need 30%+ in cash and 50%+ units sold prior to construction to ever get financing from a bank.  In this city and this economic climate, that's impossible.

[johnnyroadglide]

Is there a list or website somewhere that lists all of the downtown housing thats available? I have heard of a few places but I'm sure there are more that I don't know about.

[comncense]

I'm pretty sure I can name all of the housing options downtown (Northbank that is). The Berkman, Churchwell Lofts, 11 E. Forstyth, The Carling, W.A. Knight Lofts, Metropolitan Lofts, Parks at Cathedral, City Place (if you wanna count them). I think that's about it.

[thelakelander]

Or maybe the cost of moving downtown needs to be discounted. Free rent for half a year? Who knows.

This is what they are doing in downtown Detroit

Even floundering downtowns are attracting more young people. For example, Detroit, which has faced a 25 percent drop in its population since 2000, has added 59 percent (or 2,000) young and educated residents during that time, according to Impresa Inc., an economic consulting firm.

Looking to keep the young vibe going strong, Detroit even has recently launched a campaign â€" ”15 by 15” â€" to bring 15,000 young, educated professionals to live in the downtown by 2015. To do that, they are offering cash incentives: A $25,000 forgivable loan to buy a home in downtown and stay there for at least five years or $3,500 on a two-year lease.

Read more: http://www.ibtimes.com/articles/130345/20110404/urban-areas-see-jump-in-young-buyers.htm#ixzz1IfQJA2r2

[Garden guy]

How about a temporary moratorium on multi-dwelling building permits until downtown has a 60% residency rates?