Anyone interested in true SPR community meeting?

[CS Foltz]

Yea........gives one a distinct empression there is no sense of History with SPAR! Not good for a organization if they can not learn from their past mistakes is it?

[sheclown]

There are two entities listed on the Sunbiz pages:  Springfield Preservation and Restoration and Springfield Preservation and Revitalization.  The second one was registered on April 19, 2004.

Interestingly enough the change occurred about the same time that one major developer starting having influence -- and not inconsequentially,  that's when the houses started getting torn down.

Perhaps changing "Restoration" to "Revitalization" wasn't a good move for a historic neighborhood.

We got our "Rs" all mixed up.

[sheclown]

Everyone left the cities across the country in the 60s.  My mom worked in DC during the riots (1968).  At that time, she rode the bus from the suburbs (Fairfax) where we lived into DC.  During one bus ride, a man had a heart attack (presumably from the tension they felt as they were stuck on a bridge trying to get home).  The company she was working for quickly moved out of the city after that and no one went downtown for years.  This happened across the country.  White people (my family included) were afraid that "colored people" were going to take over the country and were pretty much scared into heart attacks all around.  I'm thinking a lot of that was fueled by guilt (they sort of knew their collective gooses were cooked). 

It was a very odd time.  Middle class white folks were scared of African Americans, scared of teenagers with long hair, scared of communist infiltration, scared of women who didn't wear bras.  No wonder they ran to the suburbs and planted hidey holes of houses in cul-de-sacs.

[CS Foltz]

That War did suck! But it at least started out as a Police Action not War from the start! Classic example of warfare being conducted by political guidance...........not smart from a tactical view! Two going on now we should not have gotten involved in either.......but hay next generations turn! Allways did appreciate women wearing no support assembly..............lets hear it for mother natures natural engineering! Hurah! Hurah!

[AlexS]

In fairness, the vast majority of the criticisms are given out by about 6 people, half of which let thier emotions get the best of logic & reason, the other half are too uninformed to know they are uniformed. Others have had critisicms too, of course. But the vast majority come from a a select few who you can count on being hyper-critical no matter what...which often results in questionable critisizisms.

Wonder which category you would lump me in if I were to speak up. Where do you take all your inside knowledge about SPAR from anyways ?

[AlexS]

This is why I am calling BS- SPAR takes alot of credit for others work, and personally I am getting sick and tired of it. Normally I do not care (well at least I have learned to let it go since in the end all that is important is the betterment in the neighborhood) but for anyone to justify SPAR and the leadership by claiming other orgs works....well I am going to call BS. Did SPAR do the rose arbor? NOPE, they collected matching funds from neighbors but that is it, did they do the dog park, nope, did they do the restoration of the statues, create the fountain or bleachers in Klutho? Nope. SPAR should quit claiming others work as their own as a justification to bully the neighborhood.

Yeah, that's been bothering me for a while too. SPAR is taking credit for things that SPAR may have only been remotely involved or for work of other organizations which SPAR "endorses".

[Stenodave]

Well, today I signed our contract with Lisa to have our house built on 4th street.  We also had the chance to meet some of our neighbors and are really looking forward to meeting more in Feb at first Fridays. 

I also wanted to thank Lisa for the "please boycott/do not shop at list" for the neighborhood.  The SPAR package included other things such as "the halfway houses are the devil" and "please give Silas the cold shoulder" flyers.  I promise to drink the "Kool-aid".  I'm also happy to hear that if me and my wife join SPAR during the month of Jan, it is triple membership month, that we will increase the membership by 6!

[Stenodave]

lol.  you laugh now!

But who knows, maybe the tide has turned.

Welcome to the neighborhood StenoDave (and family)

LOL, thanks Stephen

[fsu813]

Alex S,

You aren't one of the 6.  You don't produce enough negative threads to qualify, plus you are a little too reason-driven. Once you churn out 3-4 negative propaganda threads a month and selectively use information you can be part of thier club.



Strider,

"You, and a few others, keep repeating, for instance, that the by-laws are being followed and reviewed  by LISC, yet a simple review of the by-laws and the various newsletters and SPAR Speaks shows beyond a shadow of a doubt that the by-laws are indeed being ignored."

- i've never, even once, stated that they follow thier by-laws to the letter. You know, as you have commented on this before, that I personally don't care if they technically follow every by-law or not. Some have no affect on anything, imo, such as what specific month elections are held. As long as they are held, I don't care what month it's in. In your view this is an unforgoivable sin, I know.

"Again, if SPAR Council has "well over 100 members" why did Louise not say that at the recent Planning Commission meeting? Why use a lower number of whom she represented?  Why is the membership number a secret?  I can guess, but shouldn’t have to."

- i can't say for sure. Like I said, anyone who was at the last Board member meeting (I observed) would know how many members they have. I assume they don't want people such as yourself to know the exact number because, whatever it is, you'd try and use it against them somehow. If there such thing as safe bet, that would be one.

".... promoting an illegal rooming house in Springfield to potential proton patients on the website? Not just in one place, but two?"

- There is 1 property (out of 75 or so) that operates in a somewhat similar way to your own. It is not illegal, obviously, as it doesn't have more than 5 unrelated, temporary residents. If there is a need to remove it in the future then it shall be done promptly.

[strider]

You, and a few others, keep repeating, for instance, that the by-laws are being followed and reviewed by LISC, yet a simple review of the by-laws and the various newsletters and SPAR Speaks shows beyond a shadow of a doubt that the by-laws are indeed being ignored."

- i've never, even once, stated that they follow thier by-laws to the letter. You know, as you have commented on this before, that I personally don't care if they technically follow every by-law or not. Some have no affect on anything, imo, such as what specific month elections are held. As long as they are held, I don't care what month it's in. In your view this is an unforgoivable sin, I know.

Which begs for the question, just how many laws do you think it is Ok for them to ignore? Your stance on this puts your integrity in question.

".... promoting an illegal rooming house in Springfield to potential proton patients on the website? Not just in one place, but two?"

- There is 1 property (out of 75 or so) that operates in a somewhat similar way to your own. It is not illegal, obviously, as it doesn't have more than 5 unrelated, temporary residents. If there is a need to remove it in the future then it shall be done promptly.

Oh really?  Well, let's post the ad here and let others see if this place is being leased as a single family home or as a quasi and unlicensed bed and breakfast, which, by the way, fits the description of an illegal rooming house: (I removed their names and phones numbers from here)

$700-$900/mo, no pets, $350-$450 sec. dep. Heritage Inn is a former B&B mansion that has been beautifully preserved and maintained since 1904. Overlooking scenic Klutho Park, it has four different-sized rooms for our patients (2 large, 1 medium, 1 small), each with its own refrigerator, Internet and bathroom. Patients share the kitchen, laundry room, living room, and front and back porches. You may relax by soaking in the Jacuzzi spa or gliding down the gorgeous street on bicycles, both for patients. Semper Fi.
FYI: Patients can also stay here for their 3-day work ups as well.XXXX will come pick you up from the airport when you arrive, as well as make you breakfast each morning you're here for the 3-day work up.
1217 Boulevard St.
Jacksonville, FL 32206

They are advertising.  They are advertising rooms.  They are advertising that they were once a bed and breakfast (which they never did get a license for). They are advertising that you can stay as little as 3 days.  They are saying that they will make breakfast for their guests, which fit’s the description of a boarding house.

So, you need to check to see if they have a license as a rooming house or bed and breakfast, as well as a license for a commercial kitchen as they offer to cook for their guests.

Do I need to post the actual codes they are in violation of, FSU 813,  or do you think you can go find them yourself?

The truth be told, I really do not care if they rent rooms or not.  I do care that the same people who complain about our code enforcement checked and passed (under the accepted interpetation of the code of 2 months ago) rental houses have the audacity to be this blatantly hypocritical.

This is being A SPAR Council supporter at it’s best.  But anyone who was at the “rooming house issue” meeting with Louise and Company a while ago got to see that first hand.

[CS Foltz]

strider.........it is obvious to me there appears to be two seperate sets of rules ............one for the herd and one for SPAR blessed!

[fsu813]

I mean, I know that it's CS Foltz & Chrisufwgator's role to jump in and agree with everything blindly, but they don't start the threads though.

I envision CS Foltz as the parrot on Blackbeard's shoulder, repeating & agreeing with everything that his master says.

[CS Foltz]

Awwwww...........I think you just put me down? Geez..........where is my seeing eye hound when I needem!

[cindi]

I think I asked this question before but, heck, I'll ask it again.  If so many people don't like SPAR (news flash FSU813, it's a lot more than 6) why exactly is it, given all the neighborhood talent/history there isn't a new group formed?  I understand that they have the "brand" thing going with the city - but hey, sometimes you have to go back to go forward.  Of course, forming a new organization totally takes all the fun out of the infinite pages of the SPAR sucks and then someone else will be held accountable when the sky falls.  It really is fairly simple, don't like it - don't join, hate it so bad - make something better.  It's time for a few people to suck it up and put their big girl panties on. 

[strider]

Cindi, you offering to help form a new organization?  To be honest, while it has and is being talked about, I think one of the other existing organizations would be the better way to go.