One vision for Hemming Plaza: A grassy lawn, performance stage

[thelakelander]

Ketchum presented her beautification concept to the Downtown Investment Authority at its community redevelopment plan workshop last week. On Monday, she said that the club's vision includes a grassy lawn on the side of the park closest to MOCA and the library — event space for the organizations — and a stage for performances near the Skyway station.

A mental health counselor by trade, Ketchum said there's no question that beautifying an area could drive economic development.

full article: http://www.bizjournals.com/jacksonville/news/2013/11/19/one-vision-for-hemming-plaza-a-grassy.html

[jason_contentdg]

So what happens to the terraced grassy lawn on the opposite side of the library?

[fsujax]

sorry, that is not going to drive economic development.

[KenFSU]

I know I often ask myself, "What can we do to make downtown Jacksonville just a little bit flatter?"

[CityLife]

A fixed or movable stage near the Skyway is essential to programming the park imo, but not sure about the grassy lawn concept. I'd like to see a rendering before making a judgement.

[thelakelander]

If you want a grassy lawn, just pull up the pavers in the courtyard/stage area and install grass in its place.  If grass is desired closer to Laura Street, you're talking about ripping out the fountain.

[CityLife]

Isn't the idea of the grassy lawn to have a place for people to sit to watch performances on the stage at the Skyway? I wonder if its possible to install the lawn, while removing some of the pavers and planters and keeping the trees/fountains.

[Scrub Palmetto]

I'm all for more green. It would be nice if it could possibly lead to restoring the name to Hemming Park and make the plaza idea a mere 40-year diversion in its long life. I'm also all for a stage, in part for maybe bringing back some of that tradition of hosting great political speakers. If I had my way, I'd see that Hemming's history be the driving theme in all its future changes -- not just modernizing it, but modernizing it in a way that brings out its history. I go to St. Augustine's Plaza de la Constitución and get a sense that it's been a public space for well over a hundred years. I go to Hemming, and I feel like it's no older than the Orange Park Mall, and that should not be the experience of the city's oldest park.

[jaxlore]

So what happens to the terraced grassy lawn on the opposite side of the library?

You mean the place where an actual building used to be I wish they would do something with that as well. Not sure about the whole grassy lawn idea though.

[IrvAdams]

I was looking at old photographs of Hemming Park and at one time it was all grass and trees, I think returning to that would be natural, enticing and easy to care for. In fact, maybe close of one or more of the surrounding streets and make the park area larger. Why do we need traffic on all four sides anyway? Get people to walk a little. Picnics in the park...

[edjax]

^^agree. Seems like the streets in front of the library/MOCA and City Hall would be better closed and turned to part of the park space.

[thelakelander]

Gotta give people something to walk too. I think just as much time should be spent on Hemming's "outer square" as the "inner square".  Right now, city hall is a blight to the park in that the entire park's north end has dead space interacting with it.  Before the 1990s, that park has always had a mix of uses (residential, hotels, retail stores, etc.) integrating with it on all four sides.  Now we have a series of adaptive reuse projects with single entrances and limited hours of operation.

[Scrub Palmetto]

^Before typing my more serious post above, I was going to write something facetious like, "What would really be nice is if we could have a dozen or so retail establishments and a department store in that lovely building to the north.... oh, wait."

But then I thought about it. There are mixed-use city halls, right? St. Augustine has one.

[thelakelander]

Yes, there are mixed use city halls and St. Augustine's is a nearby example.  You could also stick a retail kiosk/small cafe in a section of the park.  Such a use, generates revenue and foot traffic. 


Campus Martius Park - Detroit


CityGarden - St. Louis


CityGarden - St. Louis

[I-10east]

^^agree. Seems like the streets in front of the library/MOCA and City Hall would be better closed and turned to part of the park space.

Closing off Laura and Duval streets (particularly Laura), the most vibrant streets in the square? I totally disagree with that. Besides, it's not like you're gaining a ton of real estate to the plaza by doing that. Just my opinion.