WOKV Interviews Metro Jacksonville's Stephen Dare

[buckethead]

I really loved the point you made about just getting out of the way. Very little is needed regarding regulations/zoning/funding. We just need to be (feel) allowed downtown.

Is that too much to ask? 

Obviously parking meters and one way streets hamper potential patrons, but these are really easy and cheap fixes. Is there a local parking baron cabal pulling some strings?

Congratulations on a successful teaching mission!

[I-10east]

Stephen did a great job with the interview. I agree with alot that Stephen said, but not everything. Basically from "What to do with DT Jax" on down I agreed. I learned alot by hearing this interview. The main thing that I disagree with is the suburban sprawl takes away from DT. The way I look at it, people have a right to live they wanna live, you can't shoehorn people into living in DT. I wholeheartedly agree that DT needs drastic improvement esp since it have only 2000 residents, but that's a DT issue, not a surburban issue. The suburbs are gonna grow no matter what; It's a futile and unrealistic argument that we're somehow gonna dramatically halt all surburban growth, and focus solely on DT.

I was raised in Brooklyn's Bedford Stuyvesant, a very dense prodomiantly black neighborhood in NYC in the 80's. We lived on the third floor in a tenement with no elevator. IMO it was more of a struggle there logistically than Jacksonville; IMO that urban fantasy world were 'everything is there' and it's 'so convinent' is total BS. Me, my Mother and sister walked blocks upon blocks with a small push cart just to go to a half-way decent grocery store (NYC's Pathmark which isn't nothing to write home). Hell, the buses and subway weren't even an option. The only stores that were 'convinent' where candy stores, and bodegas where 3/4 of the product is often expired anyway. Don't get it twisted some inconvient things like this goes on in better parts of 'urban utopia' too. Even if I didn't have a car, I'll take a house somewhere across the street from a Jax Wal-Mart crossing a 'football field parking lot' and yall can take that 'so convinent' urban nightmare up in New York.     

[thelakelander]

I think the key to suburban development is to make sure it pays for itself. Currently and traditionally it has not. Instead, we've taken money generated by urban core residents, businesses,  and industries to invest in a financially unfeasible development pattern. Every person should have the right to live where they want. City, burbs, sticks, etc. shouldn't matter. However, is it too much to ask that we bare the full costs associated with our decisions instead of robbing Peter to subsidize Paul?

[TD*]

Excellent! I loved the interview, hopefully more people visit the site because of it, and are waking up to the things that trouble Jacksonville.

Steven Dare i loved your bus ride to hell segment also that you did a few years back.

[Tacachale]

Stephen did a great job with the interview. I agree with alot that Stephen said, but not everything. Basically from "What to do with DT Jax" on down I agreed. I learned alot by hearing this interview. The main thing that I disagree with is the suburban sprawl takes away from DT. The way I look at it, people have a right to live they wanna live, you can't shoehorn people into living in DT. I wholeheartedly agree that DT needs drastic improvement esp since it have only 2000 residents, but that's a DT issue, not a surburban issue. The suburbs are gonna grow no matter what; It's a futile and unrealistic argument that we're somehow gonna dramatically halt all surburban growth, and focus solely on DT.

I was raised in Brooklyn's Bedford Stuyvesant, a very dense prodomiantly black neighborhood in NYC in the 80's. We lived on the third floor in a tenement with no elevator. IMO it was more of a struggle there logistically than Jacksonville; IMO that urban fantasy world were 'everything is there' and it's 'so convinent' is total BS. Me, my Mother and sister walked blocks upon blocks with a small push cart just to go to a half-way decent grocery store (NYC's Pathmark which isn't nothing to write home). Hell, the buses and subway weren't even an option. The only stores that were 'convinent' where candy stores, and bodegas where 3/4 of the product is often expired anyway. Don't get it twisted some inconvient things like this goes on in better parts of 'urban utopia' too. Even if I didn't have a car, I'll take a house somewhere across the street from a Jax Wal-Mart crossing a 'football field parking lot' and yall can take that 'so convinent' urban nightmare up in New York.     

I-10, I think the real issue is that no city should be all one way or all another, there ought to be variety. Cities with great downtowns also have suburbs, exurbs, satellite cities, and bedroom communities like Jax has. In our case, we have it going on in places like that, but our urban situation is disjointed and lacking in many regards. For people who prefer a suburban lifestyle, they should have that option of living in a (preferably well planned) suburban neighborhood. But it shouldn't be the ONLY option in a city with as much to offer as Jacksonville.

[Timkin]

I think Stephen touched down on a crucial point and that is , essentially to stop micromanaging the downtown area . Stop putting so many regulations on locating there. 

While I have never met him, I have to say his segment indicated, to me at least,  that he knows what hes talking about!

[jerry cornwell]

Thanks everyone!

Its been amazing how much reaction Ive gotten from the interview as it has played on WOKV a couple of times.

WOKV is the conservative politics go to channel in this town, but its amazing how much in common we have on these issues.  As many of our readers know we have been cooperating with Rich Jones and Mike Dorwart from the station, and Ive been a semi regular guest on the news show in the morning.

Its a very sharp group of people over there, and this goes to show that our issues have a very very wide audience.

Thanks for the kind comments.  I think people like being told the simple truth no matter how surprising they might find it.

Jacksonville is for real!

[heights unknown]

Congrats Stephen...YOU GO!!!

[urbanlibertarian]

lakelander wrote:
"Every person should have the right to live where they want. City, burbs, sticks, etc. shouldn't matter. However, is it too much to ask that we bare the full costs associated with our decisions instead of robbing Peter to subsidize Paul?"

Watch out, lake.  You're sounding dangerously like a libertarian here. Whenever people are not paying the full cost of something it tends to perpetuate inefficiency because the un-subsidized alternatives are at a competitive disadvantage.

[buckethead]

Financial crisis???

Could it be simply a case of massive misallocation of resources?

This is a simple concept that can be broadly applied and easily understood. 

It's the a cornerstone of Austrian Economic theory, so we can't take it too seriously.

[ONESTOP THRIFTSHOP]

I have tried multiple times to speak with the Mayor Brown about some ideas and have been denied.  Due to he is too busy to speak with me as a business owner.  So now it is time that the people of Jacksonville see what is really going on in this city.   A mayor who does not want to speak to small business owners to get there input on the outer neighborhoods of downtown Jacksonville. How about getting different activities  and stores in the different neighborhoods Like Murray Hill area near Edgewood Ave S and Post Street area.  There are alot of opportunity to make the Murray Hill area better for the people who lives here.  ALSO the JSO officers  needs to notify business owners of any break ins, damage, robberies of there business at the emergency numbers listed on the building. This is the second time that we were not notified of damages done to our fence by drunk drivers who has lost control on the curb on Post Street. Something has to give.   SO MAYOR BROWN  AND SHERIFF RUTHERFORD YOU NEED TO MEET WITH ME ON ISSUES AND IDEAS WHAT CAN IMPROVE THE NEIGHBORHOODS .   OR GET OUT OF YOUR POSITION AND LET SOMEONE ELSE DO THE JOB RIGHT.

[Adam W]

I have tried multiple times to speak with the Mayor Brown about some ideas and have been denied.  Due to he is too busy to speak with me as a business owner.  So now it is time that the people of Jacksonville see what is really going on in this city.   A mayor who does not want to speak to small business owners to get there input on the outer neighborhoods of downtown Jacksonville. How about getting different activities  and stores in the different neighborhoods Like Murray Hill area near Edgewood Ave S and Post Street area.  There are alot of opportunity to make the Murray Hill area better for the people who lives here.  ALSO the JSO officers  needs to notify business owners of any break ins, damage, robberies of there business at the emergency numbers listed on the building. This is the second time that we were not notified of damages done to our fence by drunk drivers who has lost control on the curb on Post Street. Something has to give.   SO MAYOR BROWN  AND SHERIFF RUTHERFORD YOU NEED TO MEET WITH ME ON ISSUES AND IDEAS WHAT CAN IMPROVE THE NEIGHBORHOODS .   OR GET OUT OF YOUR POSITION AND LET SOMEONE ELSE DO THE JOB RIGHT.

Yeah, right. Why shouldn't you waste the time of the Mayor and Sheriff? It's your RIGHT as a taxpayer!