This place matters also: 436 Walnut Court

[Gunnar]

While I think it's great that this save is the recipient of the 2016 COJ preservation award, I find it a bit strange that the city on one hand does a great job (helping) to destroy old building fabric but on the other hand has a preservation award. Kinda like IS giving out a religious tolerance award.

[ChriswUfGator]

You sort of have to understand the city and how it works, to get how and why this semi-organized schizophrenia exists. They're divided into what're basically little fiefdoms that are usually headed by lifelong/career employees. Each department is assigned its own attorneys/advisers by COJ's office of general counsel, and they're mostly advised as though they were an independent entity. The work is billed out as though they're an independent entity. They operate mostly autonomously. The mayor and the council have some control, because they have control over the funding, obviously. But with the neighborhoods department, it's a little more complicated. They're more autonomous than most, because they applied for, received, and have continued to renew, a slew of federal grants under the federal NSP and CDBG programs that have paid for most of their activities.

In COJ-speak, this is a successfully run department, even though in reality it's a train-wreck. That's because, in the city's collective consciousness, they aren't sucking up a bunch of money, and what money they do suck up, they've figured out a neat way to get somebody else to pay for it. And for the administration and the council, this is the most relevant criteria for coming under any sort of scrutiny.

So what you have is one part of the city (neighborhoods) that views itself as at war with PSOS, for whatever reason. All we're trying to do is save historic architecture, but they really despise us for it, you'd think we kidnapped their baby or something. Then you have other segments of the city that say, "hey, good job!". We've had councilmembers try and help us in the past to get legislation through, etc., but at the end of the day the rest of the council didn't show much interest because that department runs a tight budget, courtesy of passing the buck to the feds.

The feds, who you'd have thought would be at least somewhat interested in 9 figures of their money being misspent, showed some initial interest, and made the city pay back +/-$1mm after we complained, but then promptly called it a day, forgot about it, and moved on to something else.

This is the background against which we work. Unfortunately for us, the way the city runs, we make little or no sense to the parts of it that matter, mainly because we're advocating for a position other than whatever's the cheapest option at the moment.

[02roadking]

And speaking of the Neighborhoods Dept.
http://jaxdailyrecord.com/showstory.php?Story_id=547296

[Gunnar]

Thanks, that was enlightening and saddening at the same time.

[mbwright]

If he really cared about neighborhoods, he would get fire Kim Scott, and get somebody for code enforcement that cares.  Does environmental cover improper demo practices?

He'll make $142,000 leading the department, a bump from the $115,000 he made with the courts.

Curry also announced other parts of the Neighborhoods restructuring Monday. They are:

• Kim Scott as operations director.

• Diana Seydlorsky as chief of housing and community development.

• Monica Cichowlas as customer service manager of 630-CITY.

• Bryan Mosier as chief of municipal code compliance.

• Melissa Long as chief of environmental quality.

• John Shellhorn as chief of mosquito control.

• James Crosby as Animal Care and Protective Services interim head.

[sheclown]

2016 Preservation Award for the "Great Save"

Thank you HPC!

[vicupstate]

^^ Who are the recipients and what was their project?

Now that I have had my coffee, I realize their project is 436 Walnut Court.

[sheclown]

Preservation SOS
Pat and Alannah Daly (the original owners who donated to PSOS with seed money)
Steve Heykins, the owner who did the rehab.

[PATSY/AUTUMN]

Congratulations!!!