The Rest of the State attends Federal Rail Rollout Meet, But Not Jacksonville!

[stephendare]

Eight Billion Dollars?  Jacksonville could care less.

Ocklawaha and I went to a meeting attended by the Mayors of Tampa and Orlando and South Florida, a massive number of our state senators and reps, the Florida Department of Transportation Secretary, the heads of the big railroad, the National Contractors who build transit systems across the country, The President of the Federal Railroad Authority, many members of the national press, the heads of the transit authorities across the state, and the Union heads of Rails and the structural engineers for the industry.

In the gigantic room, every table was taken and crowded, and there was standing room only at the back of the room.

At stake was Florida's share of this years 8 billion dollar rollout of the federal rail authority and the Vice President of Amtrak joined dozens of the top rail honchos in the country to discuss the why's and wherefores of how to get the money and become part of the national rail network.

This meeting was clearly a workshop in which many of the apparent intricacies of the federal qualifications were explained step by step.

At my table, the FEC Union boss, the head of Hillsborough Transit, the builder of the Blue Line, Chicago's long range transit authority planner.

Feet away delegations of mayors.

This is where things started happening.

Guess how many people from Jacksonville were stuffed into this huge gathering of people?

2.

Me and Ocklawaha.

In the discussion of the rollout of both freight and passenger service and rail improvements, Jacksonville was not mentioned one time in any plan or eventuality.

Bob Mann and I were the sole people from our city, and we made our voices heard.

But where in the holiest of hells was our transit authority?

No return phone calls on the subject from either James Boyle or Scott Clem of JTA.

Boys, we'd like to hear a good explanation.

Eagerly yours.
Stephen Dare
Bob Mann
Metrojacksonville.

[vicupstate]

WOW !!! Truly Amazing.  If this doesn't confirm that this city is complete adrift, I don't know what does.

[JeffreyS]

I guess for some of the statewide events more of we sideline sitters will have to make the roadie just to get Jax a better head count.  Maybe we can fool some of the other groups into believing Jacksonville is interested in improving itself.

[JeffreyS]

BTW To Stephen and Ock thanks for representing us at the event. Viva Metro Jacksonville.

[JaxNole]

Thank you for representing JTA and the City by proxy, Stephen and Bob.

If any of these meetings occur on the weekends, count me in.  If not, I would need a week's notice to attend.

[JeffreyS]

Stephen that would be a great op ed from MJ to the TU.

[JaxNole]

Maybe the T-U would be open to a weekly piece from Metro Jacksonville in the Life section or whichever targets the arbitrary 18-34 age group.

[fsujax]

I  heard James Boyle and Scott Clem were spending the day with the keynote speaker (Marilee Utter http://www.citiventure.com/what.htm) from Reality Check yesterday talking to her and taking her on a whirlwind tour of the city. The meeting and tour centered on TOD's and improving transit and connecting it to futue developments in Jacksonville. I heard they met with several local developers including reps from Bay St Station, Avenues Walk and Jackson Sqaure to get Marilee's  views and thoughts on TOD's as well as the planned JRTC in Downtown. Also at the meeting that lasted all day were folks from the JEDC and the City Planning Department. From what I know James really wanted to go to the meeting in Orlando, but could not make it because of today's meeting. I agree there should have been someone there from Jacksonville. Maybe they can make the meeting in Charlotte that will focus on the same issues. I also here James and Scott will be meeting with FEC officials at the highest levels very soon to discuss commuter rail and Amtrak.

[Ocklawaha]

I'm still as stunned as Stephen as to where or why our "authorities" (and boy is that a stretch of the meaning of the word) were missing? Authorities? (still makes me laugh) yeah, like JTA? But what about JAA? JPA? JEDC? COFC? VISION? COJ PLANNING?

Come on y'all this isn't some cop out that follows, "Well it wasn't about us, it was about the Florida HSR corridor."

BULL SHIT!

Every agency, of every government, in every corner of the state (EXCEPT NORTHEAST) was there. Planners learned "Train Speak" and how TOD'S play into the HSR Vision. Economic Development folks found out what a driver Amtrak could be in their economic plans. Airports and Ports got a view of an intermodal future with higher speed trains as a component. Everyone got to see renderings of massive new Terminals planned in several Florida Cities. Even Gainesville and Lake City got it. We didn't.

Talk about no shows, everyone, and I do mean EVERYONE that spoke to me wanted to meet the Jacksonville delegation.

So do I, (hopefully in a dark alley - and Don't bring a knife to this gun fight!) Damn Jacksonville! Simply Damn!

OCKLAWAHA

[JaxNole]

So what options do we have to emphasize how important our participation is?  How do we instill a sense of urgency in these agencies?

Has anyone performed a RCA to determine why Jacksonville seems so insistent on road building and automobiles?  What exactly is preventing us from seizing these opportunities?

Why was the only presence by those who were neither appointed nor voted by the public?

There is a serious problem and it seems all we are getting are excuses.

[Ocklawaha]

But where in the holiest of hells was our transit authority?

No return phone calls on the subject from either James Boyle or Scott Clem of JTA.

Boys, we'd like to hear a good explanation.

From what I've been able to figure out, in typical STUPID mode, Jacksonville tied the hands of all of JTA's planners, spokespersons, etc. Making sure everyone had their own unique assignment to busy them all day long. THERE WAS NO ESCAPE! I'm pretty sure that Scott and James (of all people) would have been there. Frankly I'd even bet Mike Miller would have gone AND SUPPORTED RAIL, if his marching orders weren't dictated. Blaylock was probably somehow attached to the mayors program like heads of State meeting with the Iranian Government.

So while our mayor pee peed away the day talking about meanless plans for a someday, maybe, another mayor, and tied up all of our officials, the State was building a railroad. As Orlando, Tampa and Miami were torching our passenger Terminal we were hearing about fountains, and grassy flex spaces. Bringing up a revision of the old adage:

"PEYTON Peed while Jacksonville burned..."

I don't know why Blaylock felt Peyton was more important then the Secretary of Transportation, or VP of Amtrak. Perhaps he's afraid of him, perhaps he had no choice, perhaps? I don't blame the rank and file JTA managers, they live in a bureaucratic barf bowl, but the upper management sucking up to Peyton brings on some pretty sickening visions.

OCKLAWAHA

[lindab]

I'm really glad you two went to the meeting. I have been to some of the past meetings and you are right that even though no official reps are present, it is important that someone showing interest from Jax goes. I represented Sierra Club at the meetings and learned a lot, met interesting and helpful people and learned what is happening around the state. I'll probably go again when the legislative session is a distant memory.

[tufsu1]

I  heard James Boyle and Scott Clem were spending the day with the keynote speaker (Marilee Utter http://www.citiventure.com/what.htm) from Reality Check yesterday talking to her and taking her on a whirlwind tour of the city. The meeting and tour centered on TOD's and improving transit and connecting it to futue developments in Jacksonville. I heard they met with several local developers including reps from Bay St Station, Avenues Walk and Jackson Sqaure to get Marilee's  views and thoughts on TOD's as well as the planned JRTC in Downtown. Also at the meeting that lasted all day were folks from the JEDC and the City Planning Department. From what I know James really wanted to go to the meeting in Orlando, but could not make it because of today's meeting. I agree there should have been someone there from Jacksonville. Maybe they can make the meeting in Charlotte that will focus on the same issues. I also here James and Scott will be meeting with FEC officials at the highest levels very soon to discuss commuter rail and Amtrak.

interesting...how did you hera this?

I heard that the meeting with Ms. Utter was today...I was invited but had some other planning things to attend too.

Ock/Stephen...in a room full of almost 300 poeople, how can you be sure that nobody from jax. was there?

[tufsu1]

As cool as Reality Check might have been, it simply doesnt have the same impact as the billions in buildout that Jacksonville is missing out on.

Correct me if Im wrong, but how often do all those people together in the same place?

Not often, is my guess.

ok...you're wrong...Reality Check got 400+ regional leaders together...to talk about how our region grows over the next 50 years....its a good bit bigger than Amtrak, HSR, or rail in general.

It's what you all have been talking about...getting together and developing one vision!

BTW...my firm has been involved in HSR since 2001...and our main Prolject Manager wasn't at yesterday's rail meeting...so clearly not every rail planner in FL was there!

[Ocklawaha]

No frankly NOBODY from Jacksonville was there... Just us "Flying Monkeys".
We could tell who was and wasn't there as they had an open sign in and not a Northeast Floridian in the bunch.

Is Reality Check funded with $8 Billion in Federal give-away money? Not being my usual smart ass here, I wonder of all the Federal money floating out of the stimulus, what does Reality Check bring to our bank. Please understand I realize that both the $8 Billion for HSR and another $8 for Amtrak, and being told we top the chart for bucks, sounded pretty good to me.

Now as for the attendance, they did say Charlotte had a disappointing attendance... It was held Wednesday. It was THAT meeting Jax should have been in, but according to my inside voices, we didn't attend it either. We are the hub of TWO of the Southeast HSR lines (into Georgia). According to the Federal RSVP "This workshop is for all stake holders in all railroad regions of the United States..." Uh maybe Johnny boy can't read?

OCKLAWAHA