Live blogging DDRB Review of Parador Garage

[fieldafm]

"2600 sqaure foot faciity and a 4600 square foot opportunity for the two retail spaces"

[fieldafm]

The picture was just presented of what the future retail buildout will look like.  It looks like a one story concrete box fell out of the sky and just landed next to a five story building.

[duvaldude08]

I can only imagine if they were designing an actual building! What a mess 

[dougskiles]

Mike, you are making this too much fun, darnit.  I didn't go because I have too much work to catch up on.  Now I am glued to the blog and can't get any work done.

Too bad there isn't a way you can put your blog and the comments on a screen in the room.

[thelakelander]

So they really expect people to want to hang out and socialize next to a parking garage? Do they have any successful examples?

[fieldafm]

David Beurline from the TU and Max Marbut from the Daily Record are my guests today.  Everyone else here is presenting in front of the Board.

DVI was here for the first meeting, but not at the last two.

Here comes the 'I could see sculptures setting up shop in the plaza, which is common in urban areas"  He said that last meeting too.  Apparently he's more well traveled than I.  I've been to almost every major metropolitan areas in this great country and I've never seen that.

[Captain Zissou]

At least they're making it easy for you to get up there and shoot them down.

[thelakelander]

Are they offering to fund the construction of a sculpture park? Otherwise, why stop the vision? Hell, why not a 30' wide, 10 story Macy's and a flying lakelander?

[fieldafm]

I have too much work as well, but it was clear no one else could make it.. and I feel a public record of what is happening is far more important.  I'll just have to work until 10pm to catch up with my workload.

Like Tachale said, this may be the worst publicly subsidized building downtown in years... which is a dubious distinction.  At least the Courthouse wasnt in this prime of a location.  And you would also think.. we would have learned from previous taxpayers disasters.

I'm perhaps being too hard on the architect.  He's probably just trying to work within the cheap framework the developer wants.  Still, the comments about mirroring early century Jacksonville architecture was pretty insulting.

[fieldafm]

We are now watching 3D renderings.  It actually looks worse than I previously imagined.

[dougskiles]

Here comes the 'I could see sculptures setting up shop in the plaza, which is common in urban areas"  He said that last meeting too.  Apparently he's more well traveled than I.  I've been to almost every major metropolitan areas in this great country and I've never seen that.

I remember that one.  Once this project is finished, I am going to bring a generator, my welder, some scrap metal and set up shop.

The question is, will they be providing power?  And a place to lock up my tools at night?

If I understood correctly from the last meeting, he wasn't saying that it would be a place for the artwork to be displayed, he was saying it would be a place where artists could gather and create their masterpieces.

[fieldafm]

I have decided not to speak.  I've already said it twice.

John Fischer, 'design is much improved, especially the recess of the central panels.  nice articulation on the edges.'  Also impressed with 'choice of colors'  'I really like the way it looks when you build out the retail"  'archways in the concrete loosens up the feel'  'all in all, i think its a good design effort'

[Non-RedNeck Westsider]

I'm perhaps being too hard on the architect.

We are now watching 3D renderings.  It actually looks worse than I previously imagined.

Nah.  It's sounds like he's deserving of some harsh criticism. 

Are his power-point skills enough to consider him for the Director of JTA?

[fieldafm]

Logan Rink who was not at the lsat meeting, wants to defer before hearing from all the other board members

Jim Bailey 'i think you're discounting the alley you are creating'  wants a retail element in the alleyway.
'i dont know much about retail'  wants the retail along bay to have less depth so retail can be added in the alleyway.  'a tiny riverside arts market'  Architect has not explored that.  Jim says retail 'may be too deep'

design will have a little under 7000 square feet of retail in second phase

[fieldafm]

Roland declines to speak

john cruza=agrees with Jim.  In miami they have planters at the top of the parking garage, nice to soften up the facade with some 'green relief'  'overall a great job'

Andy Sikes 'agrees with John Fischer'  'maybe green up the wall in the alleyway to make it pleasing for people in the Suntrust buidling"