The Death of Springfield's Resurgence

[Johnny]

Sunday, my wife & mother in law was walking my son around the neighborhood and ran into a couple also walking their infant child and new puppy. I was outside getting some fishing gear ready to go out on the boat and enjoying the beautiful weather we had that day. In doing so, I witnessed many people in the neighborhood, a group of teenagers and their dad skateboarding (atleast the father was) on my street. I am on the East side, 6th street to be exact.

As for feeling safe, I feel as safe in Springfield as I did when I lived near the water in Arlington, actually more so. In fact, something that makes this thread ironic, my mother in-law (which was very skeptic about us moving here a couple of years back) is visiting and after their walk Sunday, came back to say she would love to live in our neighborhood. For the past 2 weeks, she's been at the house during the day while we are at work and she's told us a number of times how nice and quiet it is on our street. She sits on the front porch and reads a book when the weather permits. I know my neighbors and many that are no where even near me in the neighborhood, which adds to the sense of safety that I feel here. I love living here. The only issue i've had is termites and litter. IF I have someone walking down the road that is obviously out of place, I keep an eye on them, but they've always been harmless and I've never felt scared for myself or my family in this neighborhood.

By the way, going past the tracks isn't that bad either. In fact, if you go past even MLK about 40 blocks, you will get closer to the river and the area is pretty nice down there too.

[second_pancake]

That would be GREAT, DTP!  Especially since I have the first Friday of each month off work

[Johnny]

You could also come check out any open houses or an event like Tony had at 1951 lofts on Saturday. I'm sure there will be some events in Springfield coming up with the weather getting warmer as well (ie.. Dog Days).

[downtownparks]

Pancake,

come to the chili cook-off in March. There should be a pretty good group of neighborhood types there.

http://sparcouncil.org/Mambo/content/view/125/2/

[jbm32206]

I also live in Springfield....on Walnut near 6th....and I find it to be a delightful neighborhood. Most weekends, you'll find the neighbors out working in their yards, and some on their homes. There's places in progress, two on my block alone are in the process of being restored...one almost complete.

As for feeling safe, I do. I walk my dogs both at night and in the early hours of the morning, before it's light out. I've not had a problem in years...as the neighborhood continues to improve. In fact at night, it's basically so quiet on this street, with the exception of traffic driving past.

Yes, on 8th street and along Main, you're more likely to see those brown bag drinkers...but usually not in the residential areas...where they may walk by, but rarely are they hanging out anywhere.

I also ride my bike throughout the neighborhood and have never had a problem. The area has changed so much in the 10+ years I've lived here and it continues to change. The situation with Main street will not really improve much until the construction is complete and the businesses start to move in.

[jay_me0007]

     While I don't live in Springfield (my cousin/roomate opposed to it when we were apartment hunting), I would love to someday.  I browse the Springfield forum on occasion and ride through the neighborhood when I have some free time.  I have also seen people out walking their dogs and during the summer when I looked at a couple of places for rent, I spoke to some who already lived there and they loved the area.   From what I've seen/read is that many occupants of that area work on knowing their neighbors and improving the neighborhood as a whole, which is a far cry from what I've experienced in the Southside area.  I live in an apartment complex and hardly anyone knows each other not to mention crime is becoming more rampant here also!!   
             When I bring up the subject of moving there, family members of mine who live in Fleming Island and Middleburg oppose it and try to tout crime as the reason but I  think that people who do so fail to realize that crime is EVERYWHERE and don't give those who live there (Springfield) the credit they deserve for helping to restore such a beautiful neighborhood.  Mark my words- with continuing effort and patience, Springfield is going to be the new "it" place of Jacksonville.  As for me- I plan on starting to attend as many gatherings as I can there and moving in one day!!

[jbm32206]

This area used to be a bad area...but that's changed drastically over the past 5-10 years. Most of what's reported as happening in Springfield, isn't...it's further up Main and over behind Shands, which is not Springfield. We actually a good deal less crime than other areas of the city.

[fsujax]

For those of us who know the history of Springfield, we all know that dramatic improvements have been made over the last ten years.  The average citizen driving though Springfield on 8th St or Main has bad impressions, I can surely understand how they percieve it as negative. While many things have improved, we still have a ways to go.  Sometimes I get depresssed or upset at the things I see and I have lived there for over three years now.  Since buying my house in 3rd St, I have noticed lots of seedy activity along 1st St near Ionia and Walnut St and yesterday just two blocks from me there was a police involved shooting.  Many people say to me I dont know how you live in that neighborhood.  I just smile and say I am fighting a war....to save an historic neighborhhod. Between protecting my property, keeping the garbage out of my yard and along the sidewalk...it's an everyday battle. I hope that someday, we will finally arrive with retail and most of the thugs and other streethangers greatly diminished.

[jbm32206]

One of the main problems with these people roaming the area, is that we're so close to downtown and we get a great many of the vagrants. The ones who could care less about how hard we've worked to improve the area, how hard we work to keep it clean and protect our property and belongings...

[RiversideGator]

jbm:  And this is why we need to get a handle on the "homeless" problem downtown.  Specifically, the drug users and brown bag drinkers have no place walking the streets downtown, Springfield or anywhere else.  They need to be in jail.  Aggressive policing and prosecution is the answer.  Start charging some of the habitual misdemeanor offenders downtown felonies for repeatedly breaking the law and give them 5 years in prison.  I guarantee you things would shape up quick once word got out in the bum community that the authorities were serious about stopping this nonsense.

Of course, all of this would take a concerted effort from the Sheriff, the State Attorney and the Mayor which is about as likely under current leadership as pigs flying.   

[jbm32206]

I couldn't agree with you more!

[Bike Jax]

Man. I leave you guy and gals alone for a few days and see what's happened. I post a simple "how I feel that the traffic flow on Main St. will inhibit retail development and pedestrian use of it". And you guys (and gals) turn it into a "how unsafe Springfield is".

Second_Pancake you asked for Pros as to why live here. I hope this helps

As I stated in the post on the Bike Jax Blog, I live in Riverside. I hear all the time from from friends, family, and random burbers, "how unsafe Riverside, Springfield, Downtown are". My usual response is, "yes, it is. never, ever consider moving here. Stay in your 3 bedroom 2 bath stucco ranch that looks just like other 200 houses in your cul-de-sac community."

When asked by those same burbers, why I enjoy living where I do. I tell them, "there are many reasons." First and foremost, because I am an individual. As an artist, I like to think of myself as a creative, independent and intelligent person. And as such, I want my home and neighborhood to reflect that.

Which brings me to why I chose life in Riverside & Springfield. The houses are exactly as I hope I am. Independent, creative and intelligent in design. One of my favorite things of living in these neighborhoods is when talking with someone you've just met that also lives here. You ask where they live. No need for an address. They will reply with a street and block number. You say, "oh yah. which house?" And they reply with maybe a color, but mostly with an architectural detail and you know instantly which house is theirs.

That's not going to happen in the burbs, where the only difference is that the floor plan is flopped from one to the next.

I mentioned above about talking with someone you've just met. That happens a lot around here. You are always meeting new people here. It's called community. We live in a area where you meet your neighbors when out walking, biking, shopping and dining. The yards here are small for that reason. You'd never get a big yard taken care of with people stopping to chat as they walk by. And as DowntownParks mentioned, there are house parties, block parties, walking cocktail parties, cookouts, art shows, concerts, etc happening here in Riverside, Springfield and Downtown all the time.

And the people you meet. (pardon me while I swoon) It was once told to me by a fellow Riverside'r, "we are the keepers of Jacksonville's history".

Never a truer statement was ever spoken. Pancake, I defy you to find anyone outside of Riverside and Springfield that care more for this city, it's history and it's future. The majority here are walking encyclopedias of Jacksonville and it's past. And are also actively involved in what's being done for it's future. It's the people of these communities pancake, that make life in Jacksonville livable for me.

You mentioned that your husband wondered about the Klutho house "how many times the owners have walked out in the morning to find someone sleeping there?" Since the owners of the Klutho house are one of my best friends. I will tell you, never. You are more likely to find someone from the burbs trying to peek in the windows than anything. I know when I am old and grey that some of my best memories of life in Jacksonville will be of conversations held in and around that wicker furniture on that porch.

Because I have lived, worked and traveled throughout this country and abroad. I have a pretty big comfort zone in an urban environment. I have never felt unsafe in the slightest anywhere in Riverside, Springfield or downtown at any hour of the day. I have a mantra that seems to work for me. "If you act like a victim. You become a victim."

Those "brown bags" as they were described are harmless. They are a part of every urban core in every city on the planet. And I'll grant you, not an attractive part. But most importantly they are diversity. And diversity to me is a good thing. Diversity is the the thing that really makes Riverside and Springfield so great. If you don't like one block. Go on to the next. It will be completely different from the previous in it's look, feel and ethnic mix.

For me, hell is life in a place called Celebration.

Pancake, I will warn you now. That if you take Downtownparks up on his offer and spend some time here and get to know the people. You'll be looking for a realestate agent for your current home. Welcome to individuality and diversity.

[jbm32206]

Never a truer statement was ever spoken. Pancake, I defy you to find anyone outside of Riverside and Springfield that care more for this city, it's history and it's future. The majority here are walking encyclopedias of Jacksonville and it's past. And are also actively involved in what's being done for it's future. It's the people of these communities pancake, that make life in Jacksonville livable for me.

True, my friend...so true! It's funny how you also mentioned that when asked where we live, we give a street/block and the style of the house...because we're all familiar with the various styles, and there's such a wide range of them here. Springfield is a wonderful area (as is Riverside) where it's actually a neighborhood and we all tend to know one another.

We have people riding through our area all the time, often they'll stop to talk and the neighbors here will actually stop what we're doing and chat with them...you don't find that much anymore these days.

[downtownparks]

Wow. Pretty spot on Bike. Nice work.

[second_pancake]

Whoa, whoa, whoa...bikejax.  You're talking to me as if I have never lived in Riverside or don't understand why people would live there or any other historical community and that's not the case.  I have a great home in Riverside and if it weren't for the fact that we need an extra 400 sq ft. just for our bikes, we'd be living there right now.  I didn't choose to live where I live (Bay-Ghettos).  I chose to live in Riverside.  And before that, I chose to live in Fernandina Beach, 3 blocks from downtown in the historic district.  I'm right there with you on why to live in a historic area, that's not my issue.  I'm trying to figure out the families that live in Springfield.  Not the single guys who have no sense of fear and welcome challenges by walking around town at all hours of the night practically inviting trouble just so they can keep the neighborhood safe.  I'm talking about couples with small children.

Almost everyone on this thread has admitted, while it's better, it's still not as safe as other areas (San Marco, Riverside, Ortega, etc.), and statistics show that more violent crimes resulting in fatalities occur in and around Springfield than anywhere else in Jax.   So, I was asking why anyone who wasn't in the position to be an urban pioneer (as defined in the previous paragraph) would live there?

Btw, I've explored Springfield through every single phase of restoration it's gone through, and while there have been some aesthetic improvements, it is still not some place I would feel comfortable having my 8 and 12 year old walking around on the sidewalk after dark to a friend's house...block parties or no block parties.  And yes, there are places like that in Riverside too, but you don't hear about shooting deaths every other day taking place there. 

My house is directly next to the Roosevelt on ramp just around the corner from Murray Hill in the technically classified Avondale area (though it's only a street away from being Riverside).  I lived there by myself, a single white girl in her 20's at the time, walked to MH and Five Points regularly during the day and at night.  Though it would get noisy at times, I'd sit on my front porch and watch people walk by and never once did I feel threatened or scared. 

I don't know, maybe it's just me.  I just want my life to be peaceful and calm.  I don't want to be a "pioneer" or "urban frontiersman" and I certainly don't want every day of what's left of my youth to be spent fighting a battle so when I'm old and gray I can smile.  I'll leave that up to you guys and when all the dust has settled, then I'll come in and buy a house at an inflated price and be thankful for all the people that made it happen