Mothballing legislation rolls toward city council...

[sheclown]

In the end Dr. Gaffney strongly supported this.  He said that he is very glad that this is one item that the neighborhood can agree on.  (I think he whispered 'thank the Lord' under his breath, but not really sure).

They reduced the amount of mothballing time from five years to three years -- however, that is renewable if certain conditions are reached.  A bit of disappointment given the amount of work it takes to restore a house, but not too bad and a logical compromise.

Schellenbrg was the only one who voted against.  He felt it gives those who live in historic districts an unfair advantage.

SAMBA, SHEC and Preservation SOS all were there to speak on behalf of mothballing. 

Its passing is the most hopeful thing to happen to this neigbhorhood in years, in my humble opinion.  It also makes Springfield not just the problem child of the historic districts, but the leader of innovative ways to accomplish preservation in a challenging environment!

[sheclown]

Johannes.

[iloveionia]

Yes.  Johannes.  And the other core folk and avid supporters of Preservation SOS. 
Thanks Stephen for your kind words.
But truly, the workers behind this legislation deserve the credit:

Bill Killingsworth listened to SOS and moved forward with writing the legislation. I remember the phone call from Bill. I remember crying. Seriously. I was beyond estatic. I thought this would take years. It only took one. ONE!

Lisa wrote the legislation with the support of Joel, Autumn, and Sam. She worked her ass off doing this.

Jason supported the legislation through-out its process and rallied the troops to make this pass. In the end he became the voice behind mothballing.

These folks made it happen. Truly. The work they did to support mothballing legislation is remarkable. I am grateful they too care about Springfield and our other historic districts.

Kudos to the council for it's passage. Gaffney spoke twice, stating that "mothballing was proactive and that Springfield was a beautiful area and we needed to protect it." Kudos to the council members who continually spoke in favor about supporting this legislation. Last on the agenda of a 4 hour grueling meeting was well worth the night in council chambers. Gaffney and other council members were bid farewell by hugs from us and great big thanks, yes, literally.

What a great night for our old homes.

Whoooooooo Hooooooooo !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Whoooooooo Hooooooooo

[movedsouth]

and Hailing for speaking and putting up with us (in particular with Nicole)

[sheclown]

Hailing was great last night.

[Springfield Chicken]

Take the credit, guys!  You earned it.  Your passion and determination won the day!  We are all so proud of you!  Your names should be on a plaque in front of every home that survives from here on out!

[sheclown]

City Council backs 'mothballing' bill for Jacksonville historic districts
By Steve Patterson

http://m.jacksonville.com/opinion/blog/403455/steve-patterson/2011-08-09/city-council-backs-mothballing-bill-jacksonville

[sheclown]

Take the credit, guys!  You earned it.  Your passion and determination won the day!  We are all so proud of you!  Your names should be on a plaque in front of every home that survives from here on out!

SG, just how many boorrriiinnngggg meetings did you attend and show your support?  Including the initial meeting with Dr. Gaffney?  You are there too sister.

[ChriswUfGator]

So I heard a rumor through the grapevine (I was otherwise occupied and couldn't attend the meeting) that certain SPARbarians who'd been claiming support for the mothballing proposal as evidence of their newfound good behavior threw a fit over the final wording and tried to sink it by withdrawing their support at the last minute? Is there truth to this?

[Springfielder]

Don't know about that, but nobody from spar attended or spoke....

[ChriswUfGator]

Don't know about that, but nobody from spar attended or spoke....

No members of SPAR attended, or the organization itself did not formally send a representative?

[Debbie Thompson]

I don't kow what John Snyder may have said.  The concern expressed at the council meeting last night about the 450 number centered around the accuracy of that number, and that if it was accurate, could it endanger Springfield's historic designation status.

In the end, it was removed. Actually, it had been removed before it was brought up.  The speaker just didn't know it had been.   Although the number is important, it wasn't needed for the legislation to pass.   

I have to say though, it came from our historic preservation office. Although I don't know all of the process that was used, I know they compared maps, and really did their homework.  The number was well-researched.

However, let's not sweat it right now.  It passed.  It's a first step.  And it won't be successful unless it's used.  So we need to go get people enrolled in the program.

[movedsouth]

Well said Debbie. Whatever the number is, it is too big. If it is 350 or 450. But it was good to remove it as a piece of important legislation like this should not be stopped for it. Having 18 houses per year demolished is indeed plausible. We lost 12 structures last year, 2 of which where not strictly in the Springfield historic overlay. The problem is to find good numbers. There isn't always a COA involved, or an HPC decision. For example many of the houses we lost due to fire are demolished within a week of the fire. How many of these could have been saved is also a question I can't answer (and I don't think anybody can).

Lets not get hung up at numbers, but lets hang some boards on houses that need our energy more.

[Noone]

PASSED!

Congratulations! You all Made it Happen legislatively.

[sheclown]

PASSED!

Congratulations! You all Made it Happen legislatively.