Mayor Peyton's Last 18 Months. The Bucket List. Part 1
(http://photos.metrojacksonville.com/Other/peytonvideointerviewimages/mayor/790291410_CemBk-O.jpg)
Metro Jacksonville sat down with John Peyton, Mayor of Jacksonville, Florida to let him talk about the Bucket List of his term limited Administration, and found a man with a clear cut set of goals and items he would like to see implemented. Today we present four clips that represent the Legacy issues of his Administration: A Proposed Downtown Creative District. Why Downtown is so important to revitalize, Proposed Improvement Projects, and The Convention Center. The second part of this interview will be the social issues that the Mayor feels must be solved: Jobs, The Homeless, and Public Safety, plus a personal viewpoint of his experience as Mayor.
Full Article
http://www.metrojacksonville.com/article/2010-feb-mayor-peytons-last-18-months-the-bucket-list-part-1
Great job Stephen! Great job MetroJax...!!!
That is interesting... hope it pans out. I really love the fact that we now have the Mayors views on subjects Metrojax promotes, on video... This is a good thing!
Nice!
It seems that Mayor Peyton has someone reading this site.
He did slip when talking about artists/downtown revitilization though. Paraphrased: "we are working with experts in rennovation to continue offering affordable downtown space".
Translation: Vestcor
He had the audacity to consider using our historic downtown terminal as a train station!
I disagree with his assessment of the soutbank riverwalk. I find the weathered decking to be appealing and at least what is visible is quite structurally sound. Minor repairs could allow for another ten years of service, but would not force the city to purchase a bulk of "more durable materials" ie concrete. ;)
Didn't the Godbold/Austin era boys have lumber connections ? (now that I think of it.)
Great Job Mayor Peyton. Great job Stephen. This is such a good platform for a politician to share their ideas. I think this served MetroJacksonville.com well, Mayor Peyton well and the people of Jacksonville well. I would advise the Mayoral candidates to take advantage of this forum in their campaigns as we the posters plan on deciding who the next Mayor will be.
I do not agree with everything Mayor Peyton said specifically(Met Park) but the overall downtown vision seemed solid and I will try to support it going forward.
Why didn't Boy Wonder try to put some of these ideals into action when he was first elected? It seems that a lot of the things he is talking about will take more than 18 months to carry through. Or is this the best time to talk about it, he can then claim he had great concerns for Jacksonville downtown without actually having to see it through. He acts as if it is some great new thinking on how to revitalize downtown, but actually all of these ideas are ones that have been talked about by the community and completely ignored by his administration until now.
Downtown Projects:
One statement that did stand out to me was the $10+ million to be spent on concrete for replacing the Riverwalk. Sounds like a family little pocket lining to me.
Met Park is too isolated from the city. They need to focus on its connectivity to the downtown entertainment district. Right now it is a wasteland between Met Park and the night life of Bay Street. I still think the convention center with a hotel should be placed at the Shipyards location to help fill this gap. It could be utilized by Met Park, the sports complex and be the terminus to skyway from the new location of the transit center by the old train station.
Friendship Fountain should be restored! I completely agree with Peyton on this one. It once was an icon of our city and it should be embraced. But the mayor should use the term 'busting up the concreteâ€. You’re the Mayor . . . proper English please.
JeffreyS, "I would advise the Mayoral candidates to take advantage of this forum in their campaigns as we the posters plan on deciding who the next Mayor will be." I couldn't agree with you more. I've been standing on my head saying the same thing to the "handlers" of a particular candidate. What is the average age group that posts on here?
Quote from: JaxNative68 on February 17, 2010, 09:51:11 AM
Why didn't Boy Wonder try to put some of these ideals into action when he was first elected? It seems that a lot of the things he is talking about will take more than 18 months to carry through. Or is this the best time to talk about it, he can then claim he had great concerns for Jacksonville downtown without actually having to see it through.
Two potential reasons
1. He has been educated over the last few years....if so, some of the credit goes to this site
2. Downtown investment isn't that popular countywide...since he's now term-limited, he can do it
Also keep in mind that by suggesting these ideas now, they become discussion issues in the mayoral race...which means that they potentially can live on.
QuoteWhy didn't Boy Wonder try to put some of these ideals into action when he was first elected?
He said why in the first interview. There is not a constituency for it downtown. There are not many votes downtown... the votes are in the burbs... Of course now he does not have to worry about votes... hence the change in priority...
Quote from: JaxNative68 on February 17, 2010, 09:51:11 AM
Friendship Fountain should be restored! I completely agree with Peyton on this one. It once was an icon of our city and it should be embraced. But the mayor should use the term 'busting up the concreteâ€. You’re the Mayor . . . proper English please.
Um, Jax Native? Are you REALLY a Jax Native? REALLY? As far as I'm concerned any use of a Southern colloquialism IS proper English.
I ain't got no qualm's about standing solid with our mayor on this one! OCKLAWAHA
Where I'm from (south Georgia) that would be "we're fixin' to bust up some concrete" or "I reckon we oughta start bustin' up some concrete".
The mayor's intentions are good but why why why does he continue to ignore Hogan's Creek? Talk about missed opportunities....what a great legacy the restoration/improvement of Jacksonville's central park would have been..
southbank riverwalk? not so much
Metro Park? event destination only
Quote from: Miss Fixit on February 17, 2010, 10:55:55 AM
The mayor's intentions are good but why why why does he continue to ignore Hogan's Creek? Talk about missed opportunities....what a great legacy the restoration/improvement of Jacksonville's central park would have been..
southbank riverwalk? not so much
Metro Park? event destination only
maybe because the Riverwalk and Metro Park are used by people from all over the City...most folks outside of Springfield probably don't even know what/where Hogan's Creek is.
Quote from: tufsu1 on February 17, 2010, 11:05:09 AM
Quote from: Miss Fixit on February 17, 2010, 10:55:55 AM
The mayor's intentions are good but why why why does he continue to ignore Hogan's Creek? Talk about missed opportunities....what a great legacy the restoration/improvement of Jacksonville's central park would have been..
southbank riverwalk? not so much
Metro Park? event destination only
maybe because the Riverwalk and Metro Park are used by people from all over the City...most folks outside of Springfield probably don't even know what/where Hogan's Creek is.
I agree that Metro Park is used by people from all over the City when there are big events. Don't know that I've ever witnessed many folks on the southbank riverwalk except during big events, either.
The Hogans Creek Park system SHOULD be used by folks from all over the city because of its proximity to downtown but then of course that's the problem we're trying to solve, isn't it? No one goes downtown because of the perception that there's nothing there.
By the way, I live near the Mayor in San Marco :)
Considering during downtown's heyday, Hogans Creek was the "central park" of the urban core, it sounds like a history lesson is in order. Maybe we'll have better luck restoring what worked (that we tore a part) instead of trying to recreate the wheel and hoping for positive results?
Quote from: Ocklawaha on February 17, 2010, 10:51:27 AM
Quote from: JaxNative68 on February 17, 2010, 09:51:11 AM
Friendship Fountain should be restored! I completely agree with Peyton on this one. It once was an icon of our city and it should be embraced. But the mayor should use the term 'busting up the concrete”. You’re the Mayor . . . proper English please.
BORN AND RAISED BABY!
Um, Jax Native? Are you REALLY a Jax Native? REALLY? As far as I'm concerned any use of a Southern colloquialism IS proper English.
I ain't got no qualm's about standing solid with our mayor on this one!
OCKLAWAHA
As for making the Springfield or Met Park complexes into destinations?
Mr. Mayor, just let Stephendare, thelakelander or myself know of your interest, and I'll be more then happy to donate the direction. http://www.youtube.com/v/UBF0I7dtI6U&hl=en_US&fs=1&color1=0x402061&color2=0x9461ca"></param><param%20name="allowFullScreen
Imagine the support THIS would get from the locals! Besides, it would be a heck of a lot more fun then riding JTA on a Sunday afternoon. OCKLAWAHA
The convention center video will not play could someone fix it? thanks.
They regretted the wood deck on the south bank before it was all complete. It seems the nails were backing out. Longer and more nails later it passed but became a maintenance problem.
^they should have used screws, but maybe the brother-in-law only sold nails.
Quote from: thelakelander on February 17, 2010, 11:16:00 AM
Considering during downtown's heyday, Hogans Creek was the "central park" of the urban core, it sounds like a history lesson is in order. Maybe we'll have better luck restoring what worked (that we tore a part) instead of trying to recreate the wheel and hoping for positive results?
agreed...I think they should fix Hogan's Creek...but it may be a far more difficult (and clearly more expensive) project to sell to the Jax. community.
The value in the Hogans Creek corridor is the connectivity and shared benefits
to Springfield, Downtown, the Sports District, North Riverwalk, Shipyards, Shands, etc..
Did you guys asked him where did 100 million dollars disappeared from BetterJax for mass transit?
Did you ask him what they put in coffee at Gate station?
alright, i'll bite on the coffee question, what are you refering to Bostech?
Something addictive in coffee,makes you drink more and more.
The thing that stood out most to me was in the Convention Center section is the circular thinking...
1) "What we've learned over the past 25 years is exactly what the experts told us in the very beginning." NO FREAKING KIDDING!!! How long have we been saying that the civic center is undersized, outdated, and undersupplied with hotel space? Does it seem completely absurd to anyone else but me that it should take 25 YEARS of knowing these things before we decide it becomes a problem? We should've had a new convention center 10 years ago, but the inept leadership in this city prefers to lay back and let time pass them by.
2) "Our forefathers probably had it right in the beginning when they established this site as a transportation center." Then WHY did we decide that it was better to scatter all of our transit options across 700+ miles of the city? Why have the Skyway so secluded from it? Why allow Amtrak to move to a tool shed in a run-down part of town? Why not invest in commuter rail earlier? Why aren't people like us running this city instead of inept, backward-thinking, "oops-we-goofed-up-so-let's-just-pretend-it-never-happened-and-make-the-same-mistake-next-time," inexperienced, politicians?
Quote from: Bostech on February 17, 2010, 02:38:00 PM
Something addictive in coffee,makes you drink more and more.
i thought maybe you were going deeper than that.
^we're not inbred enough to run for city office.
Awesome Job Stephendare, thank you so much for posting. I know some aren't supportive of all the projects but personally, I'm excited about any new development or projects in the downtown sector and fully support the mayor on these. I especially love how John now supports the Convention Center ideals that this site has been proposing for quite some time....Seems like the mayors office has been spending some time on MetroJacksonville.com :)
Stephen, I was able to watch the video, appears fixed.
Why is everyone talking smack? The guy does the best he can.
People should feel free to call it like they see it. Cynicism is not entirely unfounded.
Just because you're a cynic, it doesn't mean that everyone isn't really corrupt and power hungry. ;)
Why should we be cynical? Just because we have been bleached tattooed and hung out to dry and got the joy of paying for every high dollar mistake this Administration has made to this point.........I am, for one, past the cynical point............I am more to the point of, I can't wait till the Administration changes! Why should we have to put up with amateurs and rookies with no concept of professionalism? Good bye , good riddance and don't let the door hit you on the way out! Period!
Its the Jacksonville way get use to it.
No,its a Peyton's way.
Sorry but this has been going on for decades.
Quote from: Keith-N-Jax on February 17, 2010, 07:32:18 PM
Its the Jacksonville way get use to it.
Never get used to it the times they are a changin.
Thanks for the shot of optimism, Jeffrey!
I hope you're right. The interwebs allow even dimwits like me access to real information.
I think Mayor Peyton speaks well and comes across as thoughtful in these interview sessions. Kudos for his taking the time to talk with the MetroJax audience.
As always, though, the trick is execution. We need a thoughtful, holistic plan for Downtown, not piecemeal projects, and I am concerned we are still far short of that. And, we need a LONG-term, CONSISTENT focus and adherence to the plan to instill confidence in it and so people of all stripes can actually make plans around it and not wonder if they are rolling the dice completely.
And, while I agree housing is essential, I didn't hear much about my concerns addressing widely desired residential community amenities that Downtown is woefully short of: schools, recreational areas, connectivity (especially in Downtown where cars should be taboo), and everyday retail stores and service. How does one create a modern successful residential environment without these basic desires being addressed?
Based on Mayor's comments about moving the convention center from the Prime Osborne to make way for intermodal transit, I am hoping he shares our concerns that the current JTA plan is a fiasco and needs to be redone from the get-go. That would be wonderful news by itself.
Personally, I believe "connectivity" should be the top priority for downtown and the surrounding neighborhoods. Nevertheless, Peyton has addressed "recreation" with the Friendship Fountain/Park, Southbank Riverwalk and Metropolitan Park projects. The Metropolitan Park plan basically brings large greenspace to that area that can be used as a playing field and for special events. Unfortunately, without "connectivity" its too isolated from the real downtown core.