Jazz Fest, What Downtown Could Be & What It Still Needs

[stjr]

The Jazz Fest highlighted much of the potential and shortcomings of Downtown.  Hopefully, the haughty-toity movers and shakers in town wandered down to take some careful notes.  Below are some of mine:

POTENTIAL/STRENGTHS include:
1. Downtown can host festivals and do it well.
2. Downtown can benefit greatly from hosting said festivals.  I talked with one fast food manager who is never open on Sundays and today he was close to running out of food only 2/3 of a day through.
3. People, including those who have never been downtown or avoid it like the plague usually, will travel from all over North Florida to visit downtown for the right reasons.
4, People will travel from afar to visit downtown.  I met many visitors from far away.
5, Downtown can be very walkable when done right.
6, Downtown can be fun and interesting.
7. Downtown has a character and capability that can't be duplicated in the suburbs.
8. Downtown finally found a use for pocket parks and empty lots/surface parking lots.  The Main Street Stage was a great setting with the high rises as a back drop to really drive home the downtown setting.
9. Hemming Park could be so much more on a daily basis if it could be like it was this weekend.  Loved the clever "piano fountains" too.
10.  Closing streets is a good thing.  We should do it more often and some streets should be considered permanently closed.  Even NY has closed parts of streets through Times Square and through Little Italy permanently or regularly.  Our streets certainly aren't any busier so I don't know why we couldn't do the same.  Also, this might have been a nice weekend to close the Main Street bridge as we successfully did during the Super Bowl.
11. The show of force by police/private security and fire and rescue can't help but alleviate any remaining concerns one could have about enjoying downtown.  Where are they during events at the Arena, Florida Theater, and T-U Center, not to mention other times?

NEEDS/SHORTCOMINGS include:
1. The Jazz Fest supports my previously stated concerns about adequate public venues in the core of downtown.  And, Confederate Park is too remote, inaccessible to the resources of downtown, and inadequately shaped/cut by Hogan Creek to accommodate crowds as large or larger than the Main Street Stage did this weekend.  Bottom line is if the Jazz Fest or some other fest could attract 15, 20, 30, or 50 thousand for a show, downtown is out of the loop presently.  By example, the Jazz Fest would once again have to relocate and downtown is once again a loser.
2. Too many streets have dead walls facing the street and it's really noticeable when walking downtown extensively such as the Jazz Fest.
3. The need for public transit in the form of street cars is clear.  The $ky-high-way is a non-starter (literally at times tonight  ) and certainly not connected to the ambiance of a street festival the way a street car would be.
4.  The need to restore our historic buildings was painfully evident.  The missing windows, damaged cornices, etc., in the Laura Trio and Barnett Bank building back dropping the Main Street Stage was painful to look at.  On the other hand, how nice to see people on the roof of 11E looking down or the clean sides of the Carling.
5.  Downtown could use some permanent "jazzing up" (no pun intended   ).  Wrapping the trunks of palm trees with strings of lights really looked nice and energized the street scene.  This should be made ongoing.
6. Permanent public bathrooms and water fountains are needed downtown.  Also, plugs for laptops and rechargers would be nice, like at the airport.  Maybe free wifi, too.

Feel free to add to the list.

[videojon]

I was downtown for the second half of Saturday. It was a great atmosphere and lots of people. I agree that it would be great to see the Laura St Trio proposal pan out and compliment everything. Apparently the skyway express was free all weekend compliments of JTA.

[RockStar]

A great weekend all around. However, at the end, I was at the Jim's BBQ stand (around 8:15pm) with about 20 other people in line and the cops came and told them they had to stop selling. So, all of us were told to kick rocks. The guy had like 30lbs of smoked pork, ribs, etc and wasn't even allowed to finish selling to those who were waiting. It would've taken him all of ten minutes. Cops only know the letter of the law, not the spirit. Everyone in line would have been fed and the vendor wouldn't have had to throw out all of that food....although I did see the cop fixing himself a plate...so not all was lost.

[Charles Hunter]

That cafe at the entrance of the Landing (by the round-about) really missed an opportunity - not being open afternoons/evenings.  There were thousands at the Landing, and some quick cafe food could have made a lot of people happy - and money for the cafe.

Good observations, stjr!

[tufsu1]

That cafe at the entrance of the Landing (by the round-about) really missed an opportunity - not being open afternoons/evenings.  There were thousands at the Landing, and some quick cafe food could have made a lot of people happy - and money for the cafe.

Good observations, stjr!

Village Bread tried the evening thing on weekends a few months back, but it just didn't work...normally, they are also closed on Sunday but opened yesterday because of the festival.

[Charles Hunter]

Are we talking about the same place?  When I went by Sunday evening (5:30-ish), the place by the Laura entrance (I don't remember the name, but that might be it) was closed up tight.

[Keith-N-Jax]

There's really no reason businesses need to be open on the weekends in DT Jax. DT doesn't have enough residents to support business to that level yet. DT needs to become a self sustaining community first. Unless you have something people really want, nobody going DT, they'll just find what they need in the burbs. Unless there is a major event DT people in this city avoid DT.

[simms3]

Jax has potential with our Jazz Fest and Springing the Blues, both seem to be bigger events than even Atlanta's Jazz Fest held in Piedmont Park this weekend.  Weather may have been a factor though.

[Charles Hunter]

I'm not suggesting they be open every evening, that would indeed be costly for the proprietor, but when there are going to be thousands of people walking by your front door, it seems foolish not to open.  Maybe (if they are still in business) they will take heed, and be open next year.

[blizz01]

I really found myself questioning the need for Metro Park in its "desired" capacity after taking in the Jazz festival in the "heart" of downtown yesterday...there was so much room to roam.

[tufsu1]

Are we talking about the same place?  When I went by Sunday evening (5:30-ish), the place by the Laura entrance (I don't remember the name, but that might be it) was closed up tight.

yes...they are normally open 7-3 Mon-Sat...they decided to open from 7-3 on Sunday too because of the festival

[MusicMan]

I was lucky enough to be performing with the Jacksonville Symphony on Saturday night backing up trumpeter
Chris Botti at the Swinging Stage. Tho atmosphere was like ArtWalk on steroids. About 5000 people were there
for that performance, I was blown away.

[Miss Fixit]

I really found myself questioning the need for Metro Park in its "desired" capacity after taking in the Jazz festival in the "heart" of downtown yesterday...there was so much room to roam.

Just imagine what could be accomplished in the downtown core with all those millions slated for Metro Park improvements

[Keith-N-Jax]

Who ever decided to move the festival to the core deserves mad props. Those pics from the Landing and mainstreet are just awesome.

[thelakelander]

I really found myself questioning the need for Metro Park in its "desired" capacity after taking in the Jazz festival in the "heart" of downtown yesterday...there was so much room to roam.

Just imagine what could be accomplished in the downtown core with all those millions slated for Metro Park improvements

Just image if the Metro Park money was put back into making Hemming Plaza the public space it used to be.  It covers more ground area than the parking lot that served as the jazz festivals main stage.