JAX #1.....in a good way

[fsujax]

http://www.news4jax.com/news/24770217/detail.html

[Jason]

Now, let's keep it there!

[simms3]

Oh please we have talked about this.  Has a reporter from Parenting Magazine even been to Jacksonville?  DOUBTFUL!!!  We are nowhere near #1 people.  We are only #1 because the city either owns land for conservation or has a negative easement on a ton of land to prevent development.  We don't have one good park.  Big/Little Talbot and the Timucuan Preserve are OKAY at what they do (at least they preserve).  This is the silliest thing.  I live two blocks from one of the best and largest urban parks in the country (and even the world): Piedmont Park.  I used to live two blocks from Centennial, which isn't bad either.  Atlanta needs more park space but is LIGHT YEARS ahead of Jacksonville (so far ahead we'll never even get to where it is today).  NOBODY uses Jax parks because they are so crappy, unsafe, not well maintained, poorly planned, lack of good access, etc.  I can't believe another article that comes out of Parenting Magazing because of this.

Jax city leaders are going to see this ***BOGUS*** ranking and use it as an excuse to not do anything.  It's pathetic.  We should have been ranked last where we belong so at least there is a prod to do something.

[CS Foltz]

simms3............I am with you! This is such a crock of excrement, I would need a snorkle to breath! Not sure just how "Parenting Magazine" came to this conclusion, but obviously they have never been to one around here......what about Metropolitan Park? Pumps don't work and we are having to take up a collection inorder to replace those pumps............unless Johnny comes off of some more money! He seems to come up with something for his pet projects but the heck with the rest of the world!

[SunKing]

I agree about Atlanta, they have some great large parks.  The big ones particularly Piedmont and Chastain are not maintained by the city as much as the foundations that were started by concerned citizens.  Piedmont used to be a dump back in the day.

[tufsu1]

simms3............I am with you! This is such a crock of excrement, I would need a snorkle to breath! Not sure just how "Parenting Magazine" came to this conclusion, but obviously they have never been to one around here......what about Metropolitan Park? Pumps don't work and we are having to take up a collection inorder to replace those pumps............unless Johnny comes off of some more money! He seems to come up with something for his pet projects but the heck with the rest of the world!

Is there anything you're happy about? Can this city do anything right by you?

[SunKing]

simms3............I am with you! This is such a crock of excrement, I would need a snorkle to breath! Not sure just how "Parenting Magazine" came to this conclusion, but obviously they have never been to one around here......what about Metropolitan Park? Pumps don't work and we are having to take up a collection inorder to replace those pumps............unless Johnny comes off of some more money! He seems to come up with something for his pet projects but the heck with the rest of the world!

Is there anything you're happy about? Can this city do anything right by you?

Word.  I am just saying folks need to not expect the city to take care of everything.  Bitching doesnt solve anything.  Raise money, do it yourself, be proactive.  Stop whining.

[I-10east]

We don't have one good park.

That is laughable. How bout Memorial Park? I guess that you hate that park too.

[simms3]

Seriously people, Memorial is average for city parks across the country and probably the best for our city.  Riverside is sub-par but better than average as far as Jacksonville parks go.  Stockton Park is pretty good for a farther out neighborhood park.

If you think our parks are great, you have never been to any cities in the NE, Atlanta, even Charlotte, upper Midwest cities, etc.  I have to pinch myself to remind myself that we are considered #1 for parks by some prominent magazine in this country.  THAT IS LAUGHABLE when it is impossible to deny that there are at least 25 city/metros with EXPONENTIALLY better parks and park systems than ours.

As for "bitching" and not doing anything about it, most of you guys are the ones with jobs and income.  Put your own money where your mouth is.  Don't tell me the college student with no income to "do something about it."  I plan on it when I can, but in the meantime why don't you do the same?  The parks that are somewhat decent for this city (Memorial, Stockton, Baker, Riverside, and a small handful of others) are all kept up and redone by money donated from people I know and others on this board know.  We all know the city does JACK S**T which is also why Jax should not be ranked #1 of all places.  We have discussed this at length before; organizations such as the Garden Club, Root Ball, and other organizations raise a good bit of private money and do lots for the community.  The city is the one that drops the ball on this.

[I-10east]

IMO city parks (even the ones in the "upper echelon cities") are generally boring. You walk or jog past park benches, lampposts, pretty foliage, and garbage cans; Some damn college hipster kid sprawled out on a burm reading a book; Ride a stupid duck boat in some lake. Wow! Hell, atleast Jax has plenty of adventurous nature trail type parks for bike riding, and other activities, and a good mix of urban parks too. So just take our #1 park title too; Someone is always raining on Jax's parade! Please simms, explain what's so great about a park in a city like Charlotte that you've mentioned; Why is it so vastly superior to a park like Memorial? 

[tufsu1]

We don't have one good park.

That is laughable. How bout Memorial Park? I guess that you hate that park too.

ok...try Timucuan Preserve...do other cities have parks like that?

[SunKing]

I have been all over the world and seen some better parks than in Jacksonville but why does there always have to be a comparison?  Hyde Park in London, Golden Gate Park, Central Park and yes your beloved Piedmont Park.  Beautiful parks but they are missing one component, a river!  Or how about our miles of beaches?  If a city is landlocked then it needs a large urban park for open space.  Jacksonville is not like those cities and most people appreciate that.  I know a lot of folks that move from Atlanta to Jacksonville, permanently.  I lived in Atlanta and as I recall everyone fled the city on summer weekends.  I mean everyone that had the ability to.  Where did they all go?  They went to the beach or up to Lake Lanier.  to the water.  We have an ocean and the St. Johns River and you can go all over the world and not find any place that compares in my opinion.

[Non-RedNeck Westsider]

Timicuan Preserve (Tillie Fowler?) is an amazing place to go and spend a day.

The Talbots

Can't think of the name of the big park between Ponte Vedra & Velano (too lazy to look it up now)

Boone Park

Riverside Park

Even Hemming Plaza is a nice park if you can look past the Urbanians

Ringhaver (if you want wide open fields to play)

There's another park that is awesome off of Soutel several acres of tree lined paths, ballfields, soccer fields, pavillions etc....

[tufsu1]

Can't think of the name of the big park between Ponte Vedra & Velano (too lazy to look it up now)

Guana Tolomato

[acme54321]

Timicuan Preserve (Tillie Fowler?) is an amazing place to go and spend a day.

Tillie Fowler is across from NAS Jax, and there is usually looking for some "action" there.