Overview of the big-picture philosophy of the redesign, from Denver-based Cevitas:
https://youtu.be/Y6i1ovqLVPI?feature=shared
Good recap of the concepts by Jax Today, below, along with a video showcasing the three major design concepts (Tailgate Plaza, The Weave, and The Quilt).
https://jaxtoday.org/2024/06/25/heres-what-theyre-considering-for-metropolitan-park/
https://youtu.be/SmX7FqXhINQ?feature=shared
Gotta say, Riverfront Plaza and Shipyards West are getting all the attention, but I really love some of the ideas and thinking here by Cevitas. Wish JWJP was putting this much thought into the larger context. Met Park could end up being the sleeper of the three.
It's also clear based on the designs that the $12.5 million in the CBA for Met Park will (hopefully) need to be padded by some additional dollars from the general fund.
Love the idea for the much-needed pedestrian overpass. Love the tailgate zone. Love the sports courts, particularly if they're unique to Met Park and not duplicative to Shipyards West.
Pretty cool to see three national design firms standing up three unique riverfront parks on the Northbank, and even cooler to see them funded in partnership with the Jags alongside actually recurring maintenance funds.
One mayor talked about leaving the riverfront unrecognizable by the time they left office. The other making moves to actually make it happen.
Between the new stadium, Four Seasons, two new parks, MOSH, Doro 2.0, and expanded Baseball Grounds, the missing puzzle piece remains the Sports & Entertainment district to anchor the whole area 24/7. I hope we find a way to stand up that up quickly and build it on a parallel path with the stadium when the team is playing to partial crowds in 26 and is away in 27. Couldn't think of anything more exciting than opening the stadium, sports and entertainment district, and Met Park in conjunction in 2028.
I stopped by to see the three designs. I'll say I was pretty impressed. Two of them I'd be okay with as built (no exceptions). The "Quilt" concept didn't resonate with me, save for a couple aspects.
My ideal would be taking some of the Tailgate and Weave concepts and putting it together.
The tailgate concept also had a pedestrian walkway over Gator Bowl Boulevard which I actually liked in that area.....but not until something was developed for Lot J - perhaps a way to connect Lot J and the water together more. The issue is the thing would take up a lot of room on either end and with nothing right now on the north side of Gator Bowl Blvd - except game days and concerts, it seems like a waste for now.
It was really a good mix of a few uses.
We need to keep the elevated walking canopy throughout the park and the Carousel. There are basically zero "Rides" in Jacksonville. Would be a great asset with some kinetic energy!
Quote from: Ken_FSU on June 28, 2024, 08:57:21 PM
Love the idea for the much-needed pedestrian overpass.
I feel exactly the opposite. The pedestrian overpass just screams out that we (the City) failed in the reconstruction of Bay Street. I would prefer to see some money spent on making it an actual boulevard, with safe robust crosswalks!
I am pretty sure the end concept will be a hybrid of elements from each of the 3 that were presented.
^Agreed. It should be a humiliation that we spent tens of millions (including in federal dollars) on Bay Street and somehow failed to deliver a safe enough street to the point of justifying a separate crossing. The goal should be slowing or reducing car traffic to the point that pedestrians can safely cross between Metro Park and the stadium and using the money on the park itself instead of a bridge.
Quote from: marcuscnelson on July 01, 2024, 04:36:56 PM
^Agreed. It should be a humiliation that we spent tens of millions (including in federal dollars) on Bay Street and somehow failed to deliver a safe enough street to the point of justifying a separate crossing. The goal should be slowing or reducing car traffic to the point that pedestrians can safely cross between Metro Park and the stadium and using the money on the park itself instead of a bridge.
Problem solved: Elevate Bay Street so pedestrians can walk under it. Oops, we already had an option for much of that and tore it down. LOL. Reminds me of the graphic below:
(https://i.etsystatic.com/24637240/r/il/30694b/2646434138/il_570xN.2646434138_h3q2.jpg)
Quote from: Jankelope on July 01, 2024, 03:52:24 PM
We need to keep the elevated walking canopy throughout the park and the Carousel. There are basically zero "Rides" in Jacksonville. Would be a great asset with some kinetic energy!
Problem solved: U2C will be providing "Rides". It could also, potentially, cross the street safely.
See, it's truly ahead of it's time - solving the draft Metro Park design conundrums years ahead of their actual, potential realization. Money well spent.
Quote from: tufsu1 on July 01, 2024, 04:28:40 PM
Quote from: Ken_FSU on June 28, 2024, 08:57:21 PM
Love the idea for the much-needed pedestrian overpass.
I feel exactly the opposite. The pedestrian overpass just screams out that we (the City) failed in the reconstruction of Bay Street. I would prefer to see some money spent on making it an actual boulevard, with safe robust crosswalks!
I am pretty sure the end concept will be a hybrid of elements from each of the 3 that were presented.
As someone who drives that stretch of Bay Street twice a day, five days a week, I can confidently say that - yes - we failed spectacularly in the reconstruction of Bay Street. That entire stretch of confusing signals, blind stops, partially demolished ramps, and unintuitive traffic patterns is a daily vehicular accident waiting to happen, many of which I have witnessed or narrowly avoided. Despite this, people still treat this stretch like a runway coming on and off the Hart Bridge.
In a perfect world an overpass wouldn't be necessary. But there's just no universe where pedestrians should be encouraged to cross Bay Street as constructed. It's recipe for an absolute disaster. Toss in the fact that a fairly sizable chunk of the population leaving events at the sports complex are probably under the influence, and the need to efficiently move event-day traffic in and out of the area, and I just don't see how you safely and efficiently move thousands of people between the Sports Complex/Entertainment District and Met Park, the Four Seasons, and Shipyards absent some form of dedicated over or under pass. We're talking potentially thousands of people on big event days. Also feels like an accessibility issue for those who have difficulty sprinting across six lanes of highway.
While I agree the street design sucks, I also think that even if the street was designed well, the overpass could be nice for game days and concerts and events when it comes to traffic flow and such. Yes, I do agree that a downtown street shouldn't favor cars over people, but 65,000 descending on the stadium can necessitate some changes in design.
Now that said - I think it would be much better if it connected to something over there that is used every day.
^I disagree Steve, plenty of other NFL stadiums have many attendees including drivers and don't need an overpass because they made better use of street level. We should fix Bay Street like we said we would instead of relying on a crutch.
Look at Nashville's new stadium:
(https://i1.wp.com/citynownext.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/06/image-88.png?ssl=1)
Or Los Angeles:
(https://i0.wp.com/knock-la.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/01/Aerial-Image-of-SoFi-Stadium_PC_Decaseconds_Flickr_CC-BY-NC-2_0-e1642645468819-1920x1036.jpg?resize=1920%2C1036&ssl=1)
Or Philadelphia:
(https://a57.foxnews.com/static.foxnews.com/foxnews.com/content/uploads/2023/10/896/500/philly-sports-complex.jpg?ve=1&tl=1)
So we are going to fix Bay St. with what? Parks & Parking? Good luck lol.
Those don't have the highway close by and running near the river or parks and Bay Street is essentially a highway that connects to the bridge that leads to another highway and runs through downtown to another highway. Isn't bay street part of evacuation route for the city escaping a disaster ? so shrinking it and having a median isn't going to work. 6 lane for evacuation that will divert traffic through and utilize that overpass to help traffic get through downtown onto the other highway. Millions evacuate through our city and downtown so a pedestrian overpass is needed and if the parking lots are going to be used for development then more parking garages are going to be built in that area and everyone leaving vystar arena baseball football are going to be packing that road. So shrinking it will make millions want the heads that planned it that way when everyone is evacuating or leaving the area. And adding more development and entertainment along the riverfront to the stadium and met park will add more congestion to that area on top of what's happening around there like sports games.
I'm not sure those are good examples. All of those sports complexes are adjacent to an interstate highway.
Is the pedestrian overpass truly a necessity? Definitely not. That said, I think it could give people on gamedays and event days an easier way to explore pre- and post-game.
So which is it, folks? Do the other stadiums not "have the highway close by and running near the river or parks" or are they "adjacent to an interstate highway"? I don't think they can simultaneously be both.
In the event of a disaster-related evacuation, I don't imagine anyone will be using the park or stadium anyway (unless the stadium is serving as a shelter of some kind). Disasters generally preclude football games, and we have a well-funded Sheriff's Office that should be more than capable of doing the emergency road reconfigurations that any other city would also do in service of disaster evacuation.
If we thought that there was so much road demand that there could be no at-grade crossing, why did we even tear down the Hart Ramps in the first place? Or why wasn't a pedestrian bridge funded by the road project instead of by a park project? Better yet, why is there only an overpass in one of those design options instead of all of them?
In a world with constraints, it would make more sense to improve the crossing we already decided to build and focus on the park with park funding instead of trying to redo separation with an overpass.
If you want to look at an example of stadiums where the highway comes down to street level, take a look at Camden Yards (both football and baseball). No ped overpasses!
Quote from: Steve on July 02, 2024, 08:43:13 AM
I'm not sure those are good examples. All of those sports complexes are adjacent to an interstate highway.
Is the pedestrian overpass truly a necessity? Definitely not. That said, I think it could give people on gamedays and event days an easier way to explore pre- and post-game.
It also gives Met Park more flexibility with festivals and other events that might need the stadium parking areas for overflow space.
My take is that Bay Street, as a complete street, is screwed unless we're willing to take out the rest of the Hart Bridge expressway ramps, put a grid of streets/traffic signals in between APR and the Hart Bridge and include infill development to make it a pedestrian centric node.
The likelihood of doing that is a decade plus and a couple of hundred million (in addition to the stadium deal money) away at this point. It also doesn't help that the Four Seasons project is autocentric along Bay, instead turning its focus primarily internally and to the river.
From this perspective, we'd be better off putting it in a trench and/or building over it to connect the Four Seasons / Metropolitan Park area with Lot J and the stadium. That would create a more pedestrian centric condition in that area than trying to make an expressway a complete street. Doing such would also assist with moving traffic in and out on game day.
Columbus, OH has some great example of capping expressways with overpasses that seem like an extension of a cohesive neighborhood at street level. Here are a few pictures of the High Street overpass at Interstate 670:
(https://photos.smugmug.com/Cities/Columbus---July-2023/i-CNpnsft/0/NCgs8PXL7N3FjQNLgnfW3vXDbCdJ5j9D464rpShRk/X3/20230707_143242-X3.jpg)
(https://photos.smugmug.com/Cities/Columbus---July-2023/i-RDLxk3C/0/Km9tB339c8bjsqcrJF8vV8kF44x7sp9mjZcGNSkZM/X3/20230707_143305-X3.jpg)
(https://photos.smugmug.com/Cities/Columbus---July-2023/i-tBzRk7K/0/LhFB3VJHBZsVRBpNLWbRxvtxWmxfcBfsmfSWCNjGW/X3/20230707_143320-X3.jpg)
(https://photos.smugmug.com/Cities/Columbus---July-2023/i-hFXjxq3/0/MJCrjTBJLNcDsxvWmf3Zhn3q3Tbxt27dhjnhM3qFJ/X3/20230707_143338-X3.jpg)
(https://photos.smugmug.com/Cities/Columbus---July-2023/i-Jp2TdLM/0/LnzmVF8fNZWTgPH3D2fwhNcrr7LV7MJkNr6Jtq6h4/X3/20230707_143413-X3.jpg)
(https://photos.smugmug.com/Cities/Columbus---July-2023/i-tKfnNJM/0/KmNFrW8Tgb7c3FZ5b3qp5hc3wTZZm8W38PhwP2Zj3/X3/20230707_143432-X3.jpg)
Another Columbus, OH interstate overpass. This one is a linear park:
(https://photos.smugmug.com/Cities/Columbus---July-2023/i-ZbRqg8q/0/NDRK879d5ZLnHbGStdvmNMs2Px4CCpsFtTfZ4HvWH/X4/20230709_125040-X4.jpg)
(https://photos.smugmug.com/Cities/Columbus---July-2023/i-WgbS4Xv/0/LJ3hddjHXk5d3tS5sGhtgvRbCkL6wWhpkkBzq4rjp/X4/20230709_125205-X4.jpg)
(https://photos.smugmug.com/Cities/Columbus---July-2023/i-fL5zcFB/0/NDkKpN4Tzzn2rvNTK43Zgnw23rj73pVX22LZKSCw6/X4/20230709_125353-X4.jpg)
(https://photos.smugmug.com/Cities/Columbus---July-2023/i-LjS9pJV/0/M4GbJPDvcGJvCtDp8gvbrGdfvc8jWNwsCQWRXT5s5/X4/20230709_132523-X4.jpg)
The linear green space is actually a building pad for future infill development when the market can support it.
In a few years, we will have speculative autonomous vehicles going up & down this road, with an uber exclusive resort, combined with parks that have parking designated for the majority of the frontage.
Some other things are: A parking garage for the Shipyards, and frontage for mandatory parking that spans more than 1,500' (conservatively).
Bay St. will be a stroad with almost zero activation for the long long future. That's the plan anyway, our leaders have made sure of that.
(Good luck to the MOSH.)
It certainly won't be the Embarcadero. That ship sailed a couple of mayoral administrations ago.
Quote from: Jax_Developer on July 02, 2024, 06:00:50 PM
Bay St. will be a stroad with almost zero activation for the long long future. That's the plan anyway, our leaders have made sure of that.
(Good luck to the MOSH.)
Shipyards West is currently designed to have some Bay Street activation as well, with a cafe of some kind and the historic fire building fronting Bay. Though, I'm not sure how realistic that is, considering it'll be across from Maxwell House. And eventually, some kind of future development pending market demand, possibly the ever-green (yet still elusive) food hall idea.
As an aside, I believe the former fire museum operators aren't interested in resuming that role. So that building could be something more engaging, potentially.
Quote from: fsu813 on July 02, 2024, 08:57:37 PM
Quote from: Jax_Developer on July 02, 2024, 06:00:50 PM
Bay St. will be a stroad with almost zero activation for the long long future. That's the plan anyway, our leaders have made sure of that.
(Good luck to the MOSH.)
Shipyards West is currently designed to have some Bay Street activation as well, with a cafe of some kind and the historic fire building fronting Bay. Though, I'm not sure how realistic that is, considering it'll be across from Maxwell House. And eventually, some kind of future development pending market demand, possibly the ever-green (yet still elusive) food hall idea.
As an aside, I believe the former fire museum operators aren't interested in resuming that role. So that building could be something more engaging, potentially.
Yeah... Shipyards West is the best we are going to get. No idea if they are actually going to save any portion for a future building pad. (I would guess not). Still, Shipyards West will 100% face issues with the jail's proximity, in addition to Maxwell house having zero street activation across from the park.
What's even more ironic, is that Shipyards West parcel(s) will be required to provide 200 parking spots, according to the Jags agreement. So, very conservatively, the city will spend roughly $5M on just parking for this park to look like this in any form. We will start to see VE & a reduction of scope once the decision makers put 2 & 2 together.
https://www.shipyardswest.com/
https://www.jacksonville.gov/getattachment/Mayor/Stadium-of-the-Future/Stadium-of-the-Future_Economic-Framework.png.aspx?lang=en-US
Still like the Jags deal everyone? We keep shooting ourselves in the foot. It's sad to watch. This is one of many examples. The other being that the MOSH is required to build 600 parking spots. So, that's (very conservatively) $15M. There are terms that allow for the city to allocate spaces elsewhere, yet we only have 300 spaces max to pull from. So the city needs to magically procure another 500 spots for 30-years (do we have another 5 acres lying around the Stadium that we can prevent building on for 30 years?)...
^ how much money are the Jags contributing to Shipyards West, MOSH, and Metro Parks?
^
Mosh = $5M from Khan himself
Everything else, $118M over 30 years with zero guidance on where/if these funds will ever be used for these purposes or other. But, anybody with a slight clue of how money works understands that this isn't $118M for *these* parks.
The city is funding these parks almost 100%, point blank period. The notion that a $3.9M payment beyond 2044 will impact these parks at all, is completely false. That's even if ALL of the Jags money goes just to these projects, which we know not to be the case. By the time we reach 2044, the 2025 outlay the city has will eclipse any Jag contribution. Inflation will also make that money worth 2/3's of today's value when it's all said & done.
We as the taxpayer, who are fully on the hook to maintain the required spaces, will see zero parking revenue from all team events. So, with the exception of the FL/GA game, those 50 acres will basically sit empty for the next 30 years, besides game day parking. These parking lots will be a massive net loss for the city over these next 30 years.
You really can't make this stuff up. I might even pay CityNerd to bring this insanity to light lol.
We got a deal though!
Yes, the city is paying for the downtown parks, as it always has been. What we're doing now is committing the extra $56 million to get them done by 2028. Not only does that get them done sooner, it saves money by getting them done before costs rise, and it got the Jags to put in extra money. Old heads know that the way to not spend so much money on these parks would have been to not tear down the Landing and turn it into an empty lot for 4 years.
Where the Jags money goes is to be determined between the mayor and the Jags. That would be done by now except City Council pulled part of the CBA out of the stadium bill. Now it'll be decided depending on how the rest of the CBA unfolds, which should be done by September. Our current thinking is that part may go to maintenance for the new parks. It's about how best that money can be put toward meaningful projects.
I am curious as to why parking agreements were included when the Sports district was split out. It seems much of the agreed-upon parking will need to be renegotiated if and when the entertainment district happens. This is probably more appropriate in the Stadium thread, but with the interconnectedness of all these plans, it's hard to imagine it won't directly impact Met Park.
^Both the city and the team are committed to seeing the entertainment district developed, but the moving pieces in that made it unfeasible to include with the stadium deal. When that moves forward, the parking agreement and any needed changes to it will be part of the talks. The current agreement is there to make sure we know what we're doing with parking for at least the next few years. That's especially important as the parking revenues is part of the funding source for operations and utilities, which saves the city a ton of money. It also gives the city and Jags an incentive to book more non-game events as that helps fill that well as it were.
Quote from: jaxoNOLE on July 03, 2024, 09:16:14 PM
I am curious as to why parking agreements were included when the Sports district was split out. It seems much of the agreed-upon parking will need to be renegotiated if and when the entertainment district happens. This is probably more appropriate in the Stadium thread, but with the interconnectedness of all these plans, it's hard to imagine it won't directly impact Met Park.
Because he can get a much more lucrative deal, now that our hands are tied behind our backs.
Here's how it'll go:
Khan will execute the ROFO parcel credit, when the parcel is appraised well under $25M (in 2025)... Then, he will roll that $25M credit into Lot J, or another adjacent parcel. (
In fact, Lot J would be interesting. The city would lose another 1,309 spots from him doing that, which he has the right to do.) Then, he will use DIA incentives, with a sprinkle of completion grants thrown in the mix, to have the taxpayer (basically) fully fund his parking garage & the auxiliary "Sports District."
Then, Khan will be agreeable to amending the parking & district agreement. In which, he will let the city utilize his parking garage(s) for all Everbank/Daily Place events, but only if StadCo keeps 100% of the revenue for all events (team & city). The DIA's ROI calc will be under 1.1x for the incentives, but the City will be literally forced to do this deal, because of: their prior obligations made under the original deal, the MOSH agreement, and the amount of funding allocated to the parks along Bay St. (MOSH & Shipyards West are also starting in 2025, what a coincidence.)
This is a great deal for Khan, because that parcel next to the Shipyards & Lot J, are two of the best parcels for parking at the Stadium or Daily's Place. They will be able to charge premium rates (secured & covered) & make an absolute killing from it, all at the taxpayers expense.
The "city" feels happy because they will get: two new parks, a small sports district, MOSH & the 4S. All the while, 40+ acres of land will sit empty for 30 years.
Very calculated by Khan & impressive of him to negotiate from a real estate angle. This is business to him after all.
I'll go back to stadium thread if the conversation continues.
The first domino falls. Still no news on the 500+ parking spots that are needed by the start of the 2025 season.
https://www.jaxdailyrecord.com/news/2024/sep/04/council-committee-votes-to-trim-20-million-in-funding-for-riverfront-parks/
One thing we know....the prices won't get cheaper in the future. Jax needs to decide if it wants a decent downtown or let it die.
But if we're going to go cheap, at least clean these spaces up, construct a few paths and get some decent landscaping done at the minimum. You can always figure out opportunities to later fund various amenities, understanding that peicemealing will likely cost you more in the long run, while limiting the positive impact in the short term.
QuoteSome members of the Finance Committee said that when they approved the agreement, they believed the $56 million would cover the remainder of the city's costs for building the three parks.
After discovering that total costs for the projects was $154 million as listed in Mayor Donna Deegan's proposed Capital Improvement Plan for 2025-29, committee Chair Ron Salem froze $90 million in parks funding and called the Sept. 4 meeting for more information.
The five-year plan called for $68.2 million for Riverfront Plaza, $60 million for Shipyards West Park and $26 million for Metropolitan Park.
QuoteCommittee member Raul Arias said the parks were too elaborate for the city to afford. He also questioned why there needed to be three high-priced parks on the Northbank, and why all of them were being developed simultaneously.
"We're dreaming too far, too high and we're not being realistic about what our current budget is," he said.
Quote from: thelakelander on September 04, 2024, 06:38:02 PM
One thing we know....the prices won't get cheaper in the future. Jax needs to decide if it wants a decent downtown or let it die.
But if we're going to go cheap, at least clean these spaces up, construct a few paths and get some decent landscaping done at the minimum. You can always figure out opportunities to later fund various amenities, understanding that peicemealing will likely cost you more in the long run, while limiting the positive impact in the short term.
QuoteSome members of the Finance Committee said that when they approved the agreement, they believed the $56 million would cover the remainder of the city's costs for building the three parks.
After discovering that total costs for the projects was $154 million as listed in Mayor Donna Deegan's proposed Capital Improvement Plan for 2025-29, committee Chair Ron Salem froze $90 million in parks funding and called the Sept. 4 meeting for more information.
The five-year plan called for $68.2 million for Riverfront Plaza, $60 million for Shipyards West Park and $26 million for Metropolitan Park.
QuoteCommittee member Raul Arias said the parks were too elaborate for the city to afford. He also questioned why there needed to be three high-priced parks on the Northbank, and why all of them were being developed simultaneously.
"We're dreaming too far, too high and we're not being realistic about what our current budget is," he said.
Completely agree. I don't understand the all or nothing attitudes but we certainly have an issue DT. Nobody is *actually* on the same page & the series of deals/agreements have created cascading effects that are now unraveling. I hope this is all solved smoothly.
This is an example of why master plans.....or implementation strategies since people disagree on what a real MP is, are critical. Road maps, originally built with community consensus and that everyone can follow, are much easier to implement efficiently. When there is a general agreed upon vision, moving forward with most parties on the same page becomes more realistic.
A few thoughts on this.
Arias's highlighted qoute is quintessential Jacksonville: dont expect great things, expect mediocre things, because this is Jacksonville. And the comment about why are these nice parks on the Northbank? Good grief. It's been a 4 year process to date.
Doing a fantastic job at Riverfront Plaza and Friendship Fountain park, then moving on to other parks in future years would be fine. But the timing of construction on stadium, Four Seasons, and Park Service land swap, may accelerate the timeline and expectations for Metro Park and Shipyards West.
Would be great to see the JAX Chamber engage again on this.
https://www.jaxdailyrecord.com/news/2022/apr/11/jax-chamber-president-downtown-parks-good-for-development-property-values/
It is very strange to see council think it can do a better job than the DIA to throw more tax money to the Trio but nickel and dime this parks stuff to death. This should be a classic example of why downtown revitalization has taken so long.
Does anyone think this opposition to park spending by the Republican council members would exist if one of their own were in the mayor's office?
Quote from: thelakelander on September 05, 2024, 09:54:56 AM
It is very strange to see council think it can do a better job than the DIA to throw more tax money to the Trio but nickel and dime this parks stuff to death. This should be a classic example of why downtown revitalization has taken so long.
Quote from: Charles Hunter on September 05, 2024, 11:14:48 AM
Does anyone think this opposition to park spending by the Republican council members would exist if one of their own were in the mayor's office?
Would add opposition to homelessness initiatives here as well here.
It's likely some politics are at play. But I do think the Mayor's office is open to criticism given the price tag increase being almost 3x the anticipated cost in the formerly proposed budget. Council claims they weren't informed prior of the rising costs (mainly how much it increased by). These percentages are not representative of "construction cost increases." The issue is either the actual scope of work or who is doing it. Something major has changed from last year to this year and numbers don't lie!
If there is a concern about budget, then cap the cost and work within that budget. In no world does reducing the budget make sense. I hope they are just as financially prudent when talks of paying for a billion dollar jail start up.
Not going to get into the budget discussion until it's done later this month, but the $20 million reduction isn't that big a deal. That's money the parks and Public Works departments identified, not just a willy-nilly cut. I do think this shows the folly of demolishing the Landing. That is a mistake we'll be paying for for a long time.
Final design for Met Park seems to be locked in.
https://jaxtoday.org/2024/12/18/metropolitan-park-final-design-2/ (https://jaxtoday.org/2024/12/18/metropolitan-park-final-design-2/)
Interesting to see that, after all the public workshopping, it seems like what the public really wanted was an improved, maintained version of the original Metropolitan Park that keeps the vast majority of the existing canopy.
(https://jaxtoday.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/12/20241218_143619-2048x1513.jpg)
Here's the video:
https://vimeo.com/1040894721 (https://vimeo.com/1040894721)
Of the three Northbank Riverwalk parks, this is the one that I'm the most mixed on. Definitely more passive than our other parks being planned, which may make sense given its location and budget. Riverfront Plaza and Shipyards West do a really nice job engaging with Bay Street/Independent Drive. Visually, I don't know how this guy's gonna look at street level with the parking lot fronting Bay Street. Was envisioning more of a sweeping view of the park and river from Lot J and the Sports Complex, inviting people to wander over, versus more of a hidden view like we see now where it might not even be obvious that a park exists. I'm also curious to see whether the Four Seasons development opens up to Met Park, or is blocked off from it aside from the Riverwalk. Interesting to see the smaller performance Pavilion directly adjacent to where the Four Seasons pool will be. Feels like it could be a noise pollution issue for hotel guests. It'll also be interesting to see how the performance lawns at Riverfront Plaza and Met Park are programmed relative each other. Love the restrooms, while also thinking all of these parks should have some form of permanent food & beverage, especially in the summers when temperatures peak.
For Shipyards West, Met Park, and even the MOSH/Orleck, I think the Sports & Entertainment district is going to be the key supporting amenity that makes the difference between these Riverfront Parks between a place that you park at then leave vs. a place that you come and spend the good chunk of a day. 100% works if it's built on Lot J. Don't think it does if built at the Fairgrounds.
Will be a HUGE accomplishment if everything comes online park-wise alongside the new stadium in 2028.
https://www.metrojacksonville.com/forum/index.php/topic,13124.45.html
The big question is where is the 20 foot alligator statue going? Bill Delaney, don't you let it get demolished. Either move it next to the T-Rex on beach blvd or donate it to Tailgater's parking. Don't let an iconic piece of Jacksonville get destroyed.
Quote from: Captain Zissou on December 20, 2024, 11:26:02 AM
The big question is where is the 20 foot alligator statue going? Bill Delaney, don't you let it get demolished. Either move it next to the T-Rex on beach blvd or donate it to Tailgater's parking. Don't let an iconic piece of Jacksonville get destroyed.
This is probably a wildly unpopular opinion, but I'd love to see Rex moved to the Northbank riverfront, particularly to serve as the central art piece for Mosh's lawn/greenspace.
Quote from: Ken_FSU on December 20, 2024, 11:38:54 AM
Quote from: Captain Zissou on December 20, 2024, 11:26:02 AM
The big question is where is the 20 foot alligator statue going? Bill Delaney, don't you let it get demolished. Either move it next to the T-Rex on beach blvd or donate it to Tailgater's parking. Don't let an iconic piece of Jacksonville get destroyed.
This is probably a wildly unpopular opinion, but I'd love to see Rex moved to the Northbank riverfront, particularly to serve as the central art piece for Mosh's lawn/greenspace.
Fixed it for you. #bringrexdowntown
Instead of the "Lerp" statue, we should have gone with a 50 ft replica of Rex.
Quote from: Joey Mackey on December 20, 2024, 12:34:21 PM
Instead of the "Lerp" statue, we should have gone with a 50 ft replica of Rex.
It's authentically Jacksonville, a great photo-op for locals or visitors, and would provide a symbol that would be instantly recognizable as Jacksonville if shown on an NFL broadcast or marketing brochure.
Not sure you can even safely get a photo of Rex where he's currently at.
That boy BELONGS on the riverfront and in skyline shots.
Quote from: Captain Zissou on December 20, 2024, 11:26:02 AM
The big question is where is the 20 foot alligator statue going? Bill Delaney, don't you let it get demolished. Either move it next to the T-Rex on beach blvd or donate it to Tailgater's parking. Don't let an iconic piece of Jacksonville get destroyed.
Don't worry, I will chain myself to that thing before letting it get demolished. But I'm happy to say the plan is absolutely to keep it as the Duval icon it is. I just spoke to the Parks director, and they haven't chosen a specific location but want it to be somewhere with high visibility. It also doesn't necessarily need to be in this park if a better, more visible spot is identified.
I'm sure our Jaxson readers have ideas, and I'm happy to pull them all together and share them.
Quote from: Ken_FSU on December 20, 2024, 01:07:00 PM
Quote from: Joey Mackey on December 20, 2024, 12:34:21 PM
Instead of the "Lerp" statue, we should have gone with a 50 ft replica of Rex.
It's authentically Jacksonville, a great photo-op for locals or visitors, and would provide a symbol that would be instantly recognizable as Jacksonville if shown on an NFL broadcast or marketing brochure.
Not sure you can even safely get a photo of Rex where he's currently at.
That boy BELONGS on the riverfront and in skyline shots.
I know that years ago the city offered to buy Rexy and move him, but the owners of the shopping center opted to keep him there. He's over 50 years old now so he qualifies as a historic structure, so it may be time to restart the conversation.
Quote from: Tacachale on December 20, 2024, 02:39:53 PM
He's over 50 years old now so he qualifies as a historic structure, so it may be time to restart the conversation.
I bet a lot of Jaxson posters are "historic" too based on this approach ;D.
Quote from: Tacachale on December 20, 2024, 02:39:53 PM
Quote from: Ken_FSU on December 20, 2024, 01:07:00 PM
Quote from: Joey Mackey on December 20, 2024, 12:34:21 PM
Instead of the "Lerp" statue, we should have gone with a 50 ft replica of Rex.
It's authentically Jacksonville, a great photo-op for locals or visitors, and would provide a symbol that would be instantly recognizable as Jacksonville if shown on an NFL broadcast or marketing brochure.
Not sure you can even safely get a photo of Rex where he's currently at.
That boy BELONGS on the riverfront and in skyline shots.
I know that years ago the city offered to buy Rexy and move him, but the owners of the shopping center opted to keep him there. He's over 50 years old now so he qualifies as a historic structure, so it may be time to restart the conversation.
Maybe a larger mega-Rexy on the riverfront if they don't want to move him 8)
News4Jax has more details of the full proposed site plan, with some good callouts of the different proposed features.
(https://res.cloudinary.com/graham-media-group/image/upload/f_auto/q_auto/c_scale,w_900/v1/media/gmg/BRDIMKEZTZAJHNQM7ZG567JTDY.png?_a=DAJAUVWIZAAA)
(https://res.cloudinary.com/graham-media-group/image/upload/f_auto/q_auto/c_scale,w_900/v1/media/gmg/CDUWNRAXDRDYTOJR3IQLDWGJJ4.png?_a=DAJAUVWIZAAA)
(https://res.cloudinary.com/graham-media-group/image/upload/f_auto/q_auto/c_scale,w_900/v1/media/gmg/C55HZQFKSNFJ3HLOF7SQBSHBUQ.png?_a=DAJAUVWIZAAA)
(https://res.cloudinary.com/graham-media-group/image/upload/f_auto/q_auto/c_scale,w_900/v1/media/gmg/LEKP2FYTTJAHHOJMSRNXF6HGSM.png?_a=DAJAUVWIZAAA)
(https://res.cloudinary.com/graham-media-group/image/upload/f_auto/q_auto/c_scale,w_900/v1/media/gmg/AGOZGQ6O3FDQTJSXFOYHFFGZGY.png?_a=DAJAUVWIZAAA)
60/600 parking spots accounted for!