New Era. Can Springfield Fix what Ails it and Move forward?

[shawnsoldit]

Here are some things happening in Springfield as I know them to be. Today we opened the first and only GLBT center in all of Northeast Florida right on Main Street Springfield and Wow! We had almost 40! volunteers today! YES I said 40! Our community filled a 20 cubic yard dumpster in 1.5 hours, we hung a flag on Main Street Springfield, I met 30 new Jax GLB and straight people (we missed having someone from the Transgendered community...), we sparked additional hope for GLBT people of Northeast Florida and Main Street while beginning to create an Oasis for GLBT People of N.E. FL...and we did that ALL IN ONE DAY! I do want to say a special THANK YOU to our straight allies who live here in SPRINGFIELD!

City Kidz ice cream just opened a month ago. Mike and Waffas is kickin. Uptown Market is slated to open in a brand new state of the art building and kitchen. Upscale housing has been created for Proton Center patients and is now ready for occupancy. The wine Bar- The Cellar at Three Layers opened 3 months ago. I personally had 4 real estate closings this month..that is 4 new residents just from my sales and we have several fine neighborhood realtors that too have had sales this month as our neighborhood provides affordable housing!  Operation New Hope is slated to build Leed Certified Homes.  A new home is being built on 9th and Hubbard by Signature Homes of North Florida.  Our animal rescue SACARC just put on a successful festival at a Springfield Park -Dog Days! Hola Mexican Cafe owner  Vic says he has never been busier. Three Layers is growing by leaps and bounds. Springfield Area Merchant Business Association SAMBA has been ramping up their efforts to help small businesses.  SPAR has secured many grants for Main Street Beautification and has a FULL TIME person working on commercial corridor development. SPAR is actively seeking grants for park improvements and Museum plans. Trees are being planted by the city  along most streets on the East Side of Springfield. October 3rd and 4th is Autumn a 2 day outdoor Springfield Music Festival www.autumnmusicfest.org , Zombie Bike shop is awesome! Southern Living Magazine is actively writing and article about Springfield and how it is one of our nations best neighborhood comeback stories...the article will feature Zombie Bikes or Burro Bags (cant remember which), a Three Layers Photo shoot, and a Photo Shoot with the BEST mommies group in all of Jacksonville...the Springfield Mommies Group!  We have the oldest and most active (Springfield) woman's club in all of Jacksonville if not Florida a whole. We are nationally known and well respected as a historically preserved community. We have the largest active wine society in ALL of Jacksonville. We have a Main Street that is finally nearing a COMPLETE renovation. We have THE BEST and MOST parks as a neighborhood in all of Jacksonville. We have an off leash dog park for not only small dogs, but a separate one for Large. We are blocks to the St. Johns River, can ride our bike to work,the Landing, the Riverwalk, Riverside Arts Market, and Jags games! When we walk on our wide SIDEWALKS we TALK to our neighbors under the beautiful oak trees as they sit on their LARGE front porches! We have natural gas in most homes, large lots, an alley system to provide most of us with off street parking. I have felt more community here and made more friends in two years than I did in Atlanta in 15. 

So people I ask you...what IS ailing this community?  as it is CLEARLY moving forward!  Perhaps it is an old way of thinking that needs to be changed, instead of chasing a phantom Ail that simply DOES NOT EXIST.

    If you haven't been to Springfield in a while, come on and take a Sunday drive to Three Layers a Coffeehouse or one of our other fine businesses and SEE our neighborhood in action.

I can tell you this, my family and I LOVE IT here!  We are enjoying and helping to create all the fine opportunity this neighborhood has to offer.

[sheclown]

http://www.youtube.com/v/S8_up5AvEEc&hl=en&fs=1

[fsujax]

Shawn thanks for sharing the good news! it is nice to hear sometimes.

[nestliving]

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=S8_up5AvEEc

hehe...nicely done. beautiful song and very timely.

[Gonzo]

Those of us who live in Springfield know that this is more than just a neighborhood. We know that there is more to the homes we have here than just wood, concrete and brick. We understand that there is a history here â€" both good and bad. But that that history is on a definite up swing. We know that we live in a community in the truest sense of the word.

I won’t tick off the many amenities we enjoy as others have already done this. I won’t complain about the things we are missing; again already covered. What I do want to talk about is how do we sway the opinions of others?

As mentioned above, Springfield has a reputation. People have forgotten that the neighborhood was once one of the most prosperous in the city and remember only the darker days. And, even though we are making great strides, even though the neighborhood is safer than it has been in 40 years, long-time residents of Jacksonville insist that Springfield is a “bad area.”

How do we change the opinions of these people? How do we get realtors from outside the area to stop telling clients that they don’t want to live in Springfield because it is a bad area? How do demonstrate that we are a great community for families, for couples of all orientations and for businesses?

Untarded hit the nail squarely on the head when he talked about marketing. We need to market our community to the widest possible demographic possible. Think about cities and communities that do this well: Daytona markets itself as Mecca for motor sports and beach-goers, Kissimmee markets itself as the friendly, accommodating and less-expensive neighbor to Disney, St. Augustine markets itself as the oldest city in the country thus grabbing historically-minded tourism.

What can we market? First and foremost, that we are a community which cares for and supports one another. That our homes are rich in historic significance and are among the most beautiful and architecturally diverse in all of north Florida. That we have incredible amenities and the potential for many more. That we are progressively-minded yet protective of our historical fabric.

How do we market the neighborhood? Through many more in-community events geared to bring visitors from far and wide. The Autumn Music Festival at Three Layers, Dog Days in the Park and the Christmas Home Tour are excellent examples. But we need to do more; we need to create several iconic festivals perhaps one in spring and one in the fall. We need to utilize and highlight our parks and, when completed, our Main Street corridor.

Perhaps in conjunction with the Christmas Home Tour we could create a Christmas Village on one of the lots on Main Street. I have been to one of these on the streets of New York and it was magical â€" particularly in the evening with colorful lights, a wood burning fire, hot cocoa and brightly lit vendor tents. How about a fall Harvest Festival in the parks with vendors and activities like a hay bale castle and hay rides for the kids. Apple cider, pumpkin pie and other foods associated with autumn and live country music acts including high-profile star. How about a juried art festival in Confederate Park in the spring to bring in local as well as touring artists? Again with a musical component such as acoustic artists or swing and big band sounds.

To raise the awareness of our neighborhood we have to share its treasures. We have to remove the stigma of the past and emphasize our culture, our beauty and our community. We have to be willing to sponsor large events and advertise the heck out of them. And we have start the marketing wheels turning.  

[strider]

While we are mentioning assets, we need to mention these as well:

The area includes residents from the most basic blue collar worker, retail workers  and stay at home moms (and dads) as well as that highest level professional. 

Historic Springfield can not stand alone.  We have the Metro Edge study to help us understand that and to see the area we need to be concerned with.

The pawn shops on Main Street have been here for years and have helped keep Main Street from being totally deserted. 

Carl’s Restraunt has been a stable as well.

The labor pools ( Main, Ionia and 8th streets) which allow the basically unemployed to get work, and put a roof over their heads and food in their stomachs. 

The tax places have helped  keep a few store fronts active rather than sit in decline.

There are a few other retail areas like Pearl above 8th that have remained active.  This includes a barber shop, a thrift store with a fish market and jazz club coming.  On that same corner is a successful unifiorm store.

There is also a place on Market and 4th (?)  that houses a thrift store and has had a restraunt before.

There is a clothing store on  3th and walnut? that hasn’t been open long.

The new thrift store on Main is the first new retail on Main Street in years, I believe.

I’m sure I have missed some, like Tommy’s, the various convenience stores ( 3rd and Main, 6th and Market, Liberty BP, 3rd and Market, Speedway) that serve the majority of the residents needs.  Let’s include Springfield Superette as well.

We also need to nod to Valarios used appliances,  the print shops , the auto repair locations, the car dealerships, Catlins and more. As we need to cover the commercial area, we can include Pascos as well as more restraunts and smaller stores.

Chans, Yangs and all the barbeque places.

The folks that offer low income housing also provide a much needed service and must be included as an asset.

The point of this is that while some of these places are well received by many, many are not so very much accepted by others, yet they all play a very important role, if not vital role, within this diverse community.   

All of them have to be including in the plans and marketing for Springfield to be truly successful.

[thelakelander]

Preserve the building fabric that's still standing, allow for denser development along the major streets and make sure All infill and adaptive reuse projects are designed to include these walkability principles.

http://www.urbandesignla.com/walkability.htm

[vicupstate]

^^ I agree, particularly on the first point.

From my 400 mile distance view, the biggest problem I see with Springfield is the very thing that makes/made it special is being destroyed.  The continuing pace of demolition is VERY disturbing. I have no problem with appropriate new construction on all the vacant lots, but many significant buildings have been lost in just the very recent past.  New construction cannot match the character of what is being lost.  I realize that not everything can, or even should, be saved, but MOST of the recent demos COULD and SHOULD have been.   

What is worst of all is that the CITY is often the initiator or instigator of these demos.  If that were the case in today's 'cover story' city, Charleston, there would be riots in the streets.  History isn't preserved by 'market forces' or 'good will', it is through diligence and popular support that demands political support.   

Sometimes it seems as if even SPAR has thrown in the towel.     

[sheclown]

I think something which contributes to the demo is the fact that folks don't quite understand the different construction techniques.  A building may look as if it will fall down, you may even get an engineer to agree; however, these old houses were built using "balloon construction" a really cool and sturdy way to build a house.  The wall joist go from the bottom sill to the roof rafters.  They don't stop for the second story.  Add this to the fact that the wood is old, hard, and true and houses can stand a long time after you think they ought to fall.

That is why so many are left.

I agree, Lake & Vicupstate.  Once these houses are gone, they're gone.  The inferior building materials of today won't hold up --and tomorrow? --the new houses will be gone long before some of the old ones.

[thelakelander]

To tell the truth, I'm more worried about the historic commercial structures than I am with the houses.  When the old brick commercial buildings go down, they usually do so without a sound.

[sheclown]

That is a very good point.  Which ones are in danger?  Are there any green-tagged?

[strider]

Since 1998, how many commercial buildings has Springfield lost?  It seems to me that it is only 4 or 5, and a couple of those were "in-fill" rather than on main commercial avenues. Still, perhaps too many, and you are right in that they normally go down without a community fight, but far fewer percentage wise than the residentital structures.  The city seems more likely to leave that old commericail building stand while lately the city seems very quick to take that old house.  Now, if you count the houses like the ones at West 7th and Main zoned CCG-S that we lost, then the total is higher.

I do agree that a big part of any "fix" is to keep the remaining historic structures in place. As we are being told the next crash is commercial, keeping the remaining historic structures becomes even more important as new will be less likely to be built.  The existing, even if it has to changes hands for some reason, should be able to offer more affordable rent.

[strider]

The Bakery building on 8th.
the Fire Station on 8th.
The Silver Dollar on Main Street
The Deco Church on Main Street.
Three corners of 8th and Pearl Street
The Southeast corner of 8th and Hubbard.
The old hotel on Hubbard

Those are just on the main streets.


And I think Im missing a couple more on 8th Street by Shands.

I stand corrected.... many more than I remembered.  Very sad.

Perhaps we could help with a summit...I would think we could get a good venue for it on Main Street.

[sheclown]

8th street lost a lot.  10 years ago, there were buildings between Silver and Pearl on 8th.  Funky buildings, remember Strider?  We were going to rent one and we looked them over.  Not to mention the laundry on the corner of 8th and Pearl, just feet from Home Away From Home.  Cool looking place that was operational in the 90s.  Brick building, I think. Van Horn "accidentally" knocked that one over.

And, the loss of the hotel on Hubbard between 1st and 2nd is immeasurable.  I almost bought that building, but couldn't get a clean title.  It was filled with wrought iron mantles.  And, it was definitely sound enough to restore.

Ahh...Just as well...we probably would have turned it into a "rooming house" 

[strider]

Stephen, remember when you were on Main with Boomtown, how the area from 9th to 6th became a very walk able stretch of Main Street.  Many of the issues that are complained about and seen as a detriment to the commercial development just sort slid away as people began just using the streets again.  Not "taking back" the streets, but just using them.  The dealers and such move on, the guys sitting out by the street just having a good time seem to go unnoticed and the street takes on a good vibe again.  I guess this took a little over a year of hard work and persistence to get that way?

With what is already there on the 7th to 8th streets block of Main, can this be done again?  Should a concentrated effort be made to get more into the same block rather than further up or down Main?