Two Downtown Parks in my sights..

[DetroitInJAX]

I've had this on my mind for a while and finally remembered to actually POST it, so here goes..

Has anyone been past Jesse B. Smith Memorial Park lately?  Its that little "pocket park" across from the Florida Theatre.  I honestly dont know any normal people in their right mind that would come anywhere near this park, as the proliferation of Jerry Moran's downtown vagrant brigade seems to have made this place their home base.  Every time I drive/bike past the plot, I can almost SMELL its inhabitants.  Why isnt anything being done about this?

Secondly,  Drove by the main street pocket park on the way home, you'll be glad to hear that its already looking great with plenty of plastic bags, newspapers, and other assorted trash blowing around in it (nary a human in site to A) clean it up, or B) actually ENJOY the park).  Brilliant.

Third, does anyone else agree with me when I say that this city is short in the statue/monument department?  When I say short,  I dont mean build statues of Peyton around town.. I mean we need some more monuments.. Parks should have a focal point, and monuments/statues do that.

Just my monthly gripe.. You'll now be turned back to your regularly scheduled programming.

[thelakelander]

The Jessee B. Smith Memorial Park is the same one Tri Vu suggested the city renovate to actually make it work a few years back.  Personally, I wish we could have kept the mid rise building that used to sit on the site.

A few of us stopped by the Main Street Park a few weeks ago, to see how it was progressing, only to find out the ground was littered with Popeye's Chicken remnants and Milwaukee's Best cans.  I came back the next day with a camera, but the site had been cleaned.  Tufsu1, mentioned that the city was thinking about turning the Main Street think into a sculpture park.  Hopefully, they do something to give it a theme and drawing power, because what's there now is unacceptable.

[bianco56]

I go by the park several times a day, there is not a law that prohibits sitting on benches, and that is exactly what they do. But, if we are talking about sleepers or open containers then we have something...
Calling JSO for starters, they can issue a no tresspass for the sleepers (1-year) and the open containers they are subject for arrest.[/font]

[big ben]

i have noticed a lack of monuments in the area.  the park on the river in riverside that i can't remember the name of has a nice one. 

i think a sculpture park could be a good idea, but because of the bad choices in sculpture picking at the school i went to and the seemingly poor public decision making i keep hearing about around here, i wonder if we might end up with something ugly and too expensive to replace for thirty years.

[DetroitInJAX]

Parks need focal points.  The city here doesnt understand that a bunch of trees, a few benches, and some nice flowers dont make a park...  They need something more.

A few examples from my hometown.

[big ben]

Parks need focal points.  The city here doesnt understand that a bunch of trees, a few benches, and some nice flowers dont make a park...  They need something more.

A few examples from my hometown.

a few from mine, although it's hard to tell that they're in a park.  there was also a giant arch, but everyone has seen that.

[Ocklawaha]

Where is Jacksonville???

I was looking at the fine photos in this thread thinking, how short our city is on sculpture or statues. We have SO MANY famous people who were born, lived or worked in Jacksonville, but we turn our backs on their memorys. From Jean Ribault (he brought his own monument) to Ronnie Van Zant, we have a parade of fame. Events from Fort Caroline, to today, something like 444 years! From this we get next to nothing? Contrast this with the so-called "3rd World" in the Colombian City of Medellin:

















So if Medellin is in the third World, where the hell is Jacksonville???

Ocklawaha

[hanjin1]

Just wanted to update on anyone thinking that the Main Street Park doesn't get any use. Here are some pictures to prove you wrong.







See, Peyton and his gang do know what they are doing!

This doesn't include the hotdog stand and the other homeless people I couldn't fit in the picture.
But you know what, at least it takes the homeless and vagrant away from Hemming!



WRONG AGAIN!! Oh yea, I couldn't fit all the homeless in this picture either, but I thought this one hit it on the head.

[thelakelander]

This doesn't include the hotdog stand and the other homeless people I couldn't fit in the picture.
But you know what, at least it takes the homeless and vagrant away from Hemming!

Nope.  Like sticking five restauarants next to each other, it just creates a critical mass of vagrant vibrancy. 

[Lunican]

The city is also using prisoners to pick up trash in Hemming Plaza. It adds a nice touch on a Saturday afternoon. For some reason the prisoners are allowed to fraternize with the vagrants.

[jbm32206]

Yeah, I saw those lovely orange t-shirt'd folks just hanging out in Hemming Plaza yesterday, along with all those that homestead there...seemed like such a comfortable mix, don't you think?

[hanjin1]

I thought the orange t-shirt people were some kind of Downtown Ambassador assistants.

[tufsu1]

I thought the orange t-shirt people were some kind of Downtown Ambassador assistants.

the Orange T-shirt people (w/ beige hats) are the Downtown Ambassadors....but the City has been using prisoners for almost a year to help w/ street cleanup on Sat. mornings....it helped offset the budget cuts and insurance issues that Downtown Vision had in doing trash pickup

[RiversideGator]

What?  No smartass defense of the Peyton administration or their new "park" on Main Street, tufsu?  I am disappointed in you.   

[tufsu1]

What?  No smartass defense of the Peyton administration or their new "park" on Main Street, tufsu?  I am disappointed in you.   

no need and not productive....I still think the park has potential...especially if it gets used as a sculpture garden for MOCA....time will tell!