Springfield Named South Top Come back City

[jaxlore]

From the Jacksonville Business Journal:
http://jacksonville.bizjournals.com/jacksonville/stories/2009/12/07/daily33.html

Southern Living honors Springfield
Jacksonville Business Journal - by Christian Conte Staff reporter

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Springfield has been named one of the South’s top comeback neighborhoods by Southern Living magazine.

The historic Jacksonville neighborhood just north of Downtown will be featured, along with nine other Southern neighborhoods, in the January issue of Southern Living.

Rex Perry, building editor for the magazine, said he was drawn to the people of Springfield who he said were “fired-up” about their neighborhood.

“The people of Springfield have come together and have dedicated themselves to making it a better place and have a can-do, pull-it-together spirit,” Perry said.

Established in 1869, Springfield experienced great growth in the early 1900s. The neighborhood’s recent revitalization has been led by a partnership that includes private, commercial and residential developers; arts and cultural developers; and local and national non-profit organizations including Local Initiatives Support Corporation.

Springfield is the largest historic district in Florida and is listed on the National Register of Historic Places.

The other nine cities on the list are:

Fairmount, Forth Worth, TX

Crescent Hill, Louisville, KY

Wilmore, Charlotte, NC

Patterson Park, Baltimore, MD

East Nashville, Nashville, TN

Viola/Heritage, Greenville, SC

Phelps Grove, Springfield, MO

Holy Cross, New Orleans, LA

[fsujax]

Nice to see. The news story that Firstcoast News has up on their website is garnering some interesting comments as usual.

[jason_contentdg]

fsujax, I saw that and just decided not to even respond over there. 

Fact of the matter is the Southern Living crew more than likely spent more time in Springfield than any of those uninformed people commenting have during their entire time living in Jacksonville.

[Johnny]

LOL Stephen

[fsu813]

per SPAR, the issue should be out on Dec 19th.

[billy]

I think Springfield would be a great place to ride out whatever happens as this wackadoo
century plays out.

[Lunican]

I think Springfield is being helped by the recession and national real estate collapse. Prices have dropped and a lot more people are moving in and speculators/flippers moving out.

Also, the people leaving their insightful comments on First Coast News probably can't even point to Springfield on a map.

[reednavy]

Who even watches FCN?

Anyways, good stuff to look forward to. My grandma gets Southern Living and I'll have to read it when it comes out.

[FLDrifter]

I think Springfield is being helped by the recession and national real estate collapse. Prices have dropped and a lot more people are moving in and speculators/flippers moving out.

it is still expensive for some if you compare it to the area just north. but springfield has plunged faster then other areas. Maybe some remaining old houses will now be fixed. But they compete with empty/foreclosed new houses.

[fsu813]

the area just North is very different. that's why the prices are different.

[mtraininjax]

just North is very different

Yes Panama Park is indeed.....very different.

[FLDrifter]

There is a more then Panama Park. "New Springfield", "Metro North". Panama Park has nice parts too. And good restaurants. For example Joseph's on Main.

[mtraininjax]

And good restaurants. For example Joseph's on Main.

OK, that is one.

Jackie's is gone, and rightly so, State inspectors shut it down for numerous violations. I would not attend Orsay or Bistro AiX if it were in Panama Park, but call me a snob or worse, if you must.

[Karl_Pilkington]

call me a snob or worse, if you must.

snob, there you go mtrain!

[grimss]

I think this is great news for Springfield and well-deserved.  Springfield has a passionate, involved citizenry that any neighborhood would love to have, and it's wonderful to see their hard work pay off in such a public way.  My only beef is that whoever sent out the press release about this got their facts wrong about the size of Springfield; it isn't the biggest historic district in the state--it's not even the biggest in the city (that's Riverside Avondale). Actually, it's Springfield's relatively small (one square mile) size that makes it such a concentrated architectural gem.