What will happen to Springfield, SPAR if SRG goes under?

[untarded]

With the implosion of the housing market and the subsequent bankruptcy of so many developers what will happen to Springfield if SRG goes under?  What impact could this have on SPAR?  What about all of the vacant lots currently owned by SRG? 

Lets not turn this into a SPAR bashing thread please.

[vicupstate]

If every concerned homeowner in S'field paid $50-150 a year, would that not cover the budget?

How long has SPAR been funded by developers?  Is this documented or speculation?

[AlexS]

If every concerned homeowner in S'field paid $50-150 a year, would that not cover the budget?

How long has SPAR been funded by developers?  Is this documented or speculation?

Currently a single membership is $50. Assuming SPAR currently has 120 members (was about accurate when I was on the board a year ago) this would make $6000 annually. I would estimate the current non restricted funds required to operate at about $60k annually. So membership fees would only be about 10%.

[sheclown]

What are the expenses of the organization? 

[tufsu1]

How long has SPAR been funded by developers?  Is this documented or speculation?

I think you know the answer.

[strider]

If anyone would like to see where the funding comes from, at least as reported to the IRS, the non-profits 990's are public record.  There is a site on the net at which you call up any 990 there is (Or at least close to all).  Some of the info is hard to decipher though as it seems to be in CPA Speak.

http://dynamodata.fdncenter.org/990s/990search/esearch.php

Input Springfield Preservation And Revitalization, Florida and 32206 and they should come up.

Page 13 of 20 for 2005 is what we are looking for, if I understand what it is about correctly.

What is interesting is that it does appear that there is a fairly large jump in income from 2001 to 2003, but, of course, you can not tell where the funds come from (At least I can't...) .  Part of this is that the merger happened in July of 2002 and SPAR went from no grant to a 50K per year grant from the HSCC side of things.  Then there is another jump between 2003 and 2004.  SRG, for instance, got SPAR Council to start the "Security Fund" I believe in early 2003. Then there is another jump in 2005.  It levels off pretty much until 2007 when the 50K grant was no longer received. I suspect that it drops again for 2008 as the developers begin to have issues themselves. Of course, it could be nothing but a coincidence....


You can also see a list of the directors.  I looked up my year and didn’t recognize several of them.  Old age perhaps?

[Springfield Girl]

Well first off I will say SRG is still building and selling homes, albiet at a slower pace. The biggest problems I see is that there would be no more $10,000 donations to restore the fountain or large sponsor dollars for the Holiday Tour (Women's Club) or Spring Tour (SPAR). People love to bash the developers but who do you think everyone goes to when they need funds for something. Guess who sponsors the tours, The Women of Springfield Calendar (whose proceeds go to The Bridge), the crime fund, the litter patrol, the symphony in the park, Dog Days or anything else that goes on in the neighborhood. SRG has donated money to just about every organization and fundraiser in Springfield. They did this because they lived in the neighborhood and believed in it. The main shareholder has moved out of Springfield (he was bashed relentlessly for every real or made up ill in the neighborhood) mainly to live a normal life like we all want, free of hateful intrusions into his and his families lives. He still believes in Springfield and will continue his business ventures but was tired of everything always being about him. He is a smart man and knows Springfield does not need him to succeed. He just wanted to be part of the revitalization of this neighborhood that we all see so much potential in. I don't know what is wrong with Jacksonville and our society in general that it always wants to focus on the negative and petty instead of reaching for the sky.

[sheclown]

You are right.  He gave a lot of money to SPAR.  

A quick look at the 990s tell us that contributions to SPAR for the year 2002 were $54,956.  In 2003, they jumped to $120,502.  In 2004, the contributions totalled $178,604.    In 2005, they were $170,998.

Previous to Mack's entrance into the neighborhood, SPAR operated on about $50,000 a year, more or less.  

[sheclown]

If you figure, at the height of property values, an empty lot in Springfield cost about about $50,000.

...for a little bit more, he got a whole neighborhood.

[sheclown]

But this isn't about a developer who was very good at what he did.  He developed.  He never pretended to be something he wasn't.

This is about an organization that lifted its skirt and let him have his way. And pretended to be something they weren't.

[fiatlux33]

after reading these boards for a while I figured I'd have to jump in to give my 2cents, especially on this issue.  It definitely appears that the "hero" posters on this neighborhood aren't even residents and it would appear that these people, sheclown, strider and stephendare really want to bring down SPAR and this neighborhood.  It appears that there is definitely some kind of vendetta going on between these individuals and this organization.  It would also appear that these people have some kind of coordinated effort going on to disparage this neighborhood and its actual residents. (i.e. your either with us or you're with the terrorists [spar])

I am not a resident of this neighborhood or of Jacksonville, but have to say that this whole thing is hilarious to an outsider like myself.  Running a rooming house for recovering addicts because you have a 'calling from god' much like the Blues Brothers, thats just plain funny.  I would guess that these advocates would like to turn this neighborhood into a big recovery center run from the comfort of a big easy chair in a gated suburban enclave somewhere.  All the while laughing as they are at the bank cashing their HUD subsidy checks and/or their "rent" checks from their addict/tenants.  Then getting on some message boards like this one and accusing people who actually live in this neighborhood of being hateful bigots because they don't want to live next door to a house full of 'recovering' addicts.  Its pretty ingenious actually.  Kind of reminds me of a Joseph Goebbels quote ""The most brilliant propagandist technique will yield no success unless one fundamental principle is borne in mind constantly - it must confine itself to a few points and repeat them over and over" which seems to be the mantra on this message board that being SPAR is bad and you are good.  With the amount of time spent on this message board by these three posters it would appear to someone like myself that you three don't really have much else to do, but I guess if I was collecting rent checks from people that I was on a mission from god protecting from themselves I would  have a lot more time to post on message boards also.

So there it is, I've got no doubt that the many "friends" of these three and these three themselves will have a field day going after me and pointing out in excruciating detail the folly of my logic afterall its either their favorite pastime or career.  Whichever one it is have at it, I will end with this, nobody wants to live next door to a half-way house full of recovering addicts, thats the truth, but I've got no doubt that these moral relativists will spin it another way, so go!

[sheclown]

So...this is your first post?  And you just joined?

hummm.....this thread has made quite a few people "join". 

Point One:  I've answered this before...I live a mile down the road.  Hardly a gated community.

Point Two:  I'm in recovery myself, so this is part of my deal.  

Point Three:  You cannot pick and choose your neighbors.  You do not have the right.   Especially true when you live in an urban area.  

Point Four:  Let's hope I can collect rent and pay the bills or everyone will be sitting in the dark.

[strider]

nobody wants to live next door to a half-way house full of recovering addicts, thats the truth, but I've got no doubt that these moral relativists will spin it another way, so go!

This type of statement is often used as almost a battle cry by many who oppose what we do.  Odd, it is not, that I have yet to actually hear that statement from someone who actually does live next to one of our legal rental houses.  We have had a few bake cookies and pies for our renters though.

Well first off I will say SRG is still building and selling homes, albiet at a slower pace. The biggest problems I see is that there would be no more $10,000 donations to restore the fountain or large sponsor dollars for the Holiday Tour (Women's Club) or Spring Tour (SPAR). People love to bash the developers but who do you think everyone goes to when they need funds for something. Guess who sponsors the tours, The Women of Springfield Calendar (whose proceeds go to The Bridge), the crime fund, the litter patrol, the symphony in the park, Dog Days or anything else that goes on in the neighborhood. SRG has donated money to just about every organization and fundraiser in Springfield. They did this because they lived in the neighborhood and believed in it. The main shareholder has moved out of Springfield (he was bashed relentlessly for every real or made up ill in the neighborhood) mainly to live a normal life like we all want, free of hateful intrusions into his and his families lives. He still believes in Springfield and will continue his business ventures but was tired of everything always being about him. He is a smart man and knows Springfield does not need him to succeed. He just wanted to be part of the revitalization of this neighborhood that we all see so much potential in. I don't know what is wrong with Jacksonville and our society in general that it always wants to focus on the negative and petty instead of reaching for the sky.

I have consistently said that what SRG has done with SPAR Council was smart business.  I have always been concerned though that what was good for their business may not always be what was best for Springfield.   

Yes, some of the donations have gone away, but there may be positives in that.  Perhaps a more sensible source for funding various projects will be found.  Ones that have potentially fewer strings and that  promote more inclusively than we have seen so far.

As far as focusing on the negatives….SPAR Council needs to look inward on that one.

[iluvolives]

for an "outsider" I think fiatlux33 sees it VERY cleary.

[iluvolives]

So because he doesn't agree with you he must be a a relative of one of the speculators? I'm not a relative of speculator but agree with his view point.