Ongoing commentary on demolishing historic structures.

[Cheshire Cat]

One more point that is very important to make.  City players who allowed these games with structures and money to go down ended up not only costing the taxpayers historic structures and fabric in LaVilla, they also accounted for raising the costs to renovate Brewster Hospital from "Zero" to "$2.7 million" (funds that can only be used for restoration) and a million bucks on the Genovar.  I find the million a deplorable waste and am sickened by the reality that in order to save the valuable history of the Brewster Hospital we needed to expend a great deal of money when the restoration could have been done gratis.  This is what backdoor dealings do in Jacksonville and what happened in LaVilla is simply a drop in the bucket of special interest control and greed.  The fiasco with Genovar and the fraternity almost cost Jacksonville it's ability to apply for further state preservation funding.  It was my contacts with certain state officials that kept that funding door open for the Brewster Hospital and future restoration projects. They were disgusted with the mess at Genovar Hall.  Most folks don't even know that the State sent a representative to look into what happened and they were not happy. I was told in no uncertain terms that if the money for Brewster Hospital was squandered the way the grant for Genovar was, Jacksonville would "unofficially" be black listed. As you can see, that did not happen.  It took a great deal of time and effort to make sure Brewster turned into the gem it once was.   The Brewster Hospital today.

[sheclown]

I have to chime in here.  I think my head almost exploded when I read the intro to this thread posted by 1-10.  He says, "give me something here".  That is what has been at the heart of what happened to LaVilla since day one.  Several someones wanted "something" and they took it.  (Not mad with you 1-10 ).  It is clear that most folks don't get it when it comes to historic preservation and collective history.  I guess what gets to me these days is that too many people just can't see beyond the "surface" of a thing.  In this case the shotgun houses.  Yes, they are meek and simple, without much adornment and there is a historical reason for that.  They are not grand but they were and for many are still what "home" is and what "home" meant in the not too distant past.  They represent the lives of real people who walked through one of the most difficult and challenging times in racial history.  They represent a reality that too many would like to forget.  Truth in history is not always a comfortable thing but it is a very important thing.  The shotgun houses are structures, just buildings, but the lives they represent however meek and lacking in grandeur and the people who lived those lives deserve to have their history preserved and their story told.  There is a depth of humanity in that community, a soul that none of us should forget. 

This effort to save these structures at it's heart is not just about the structures.  It is about saving and remembering one of the most important parts of Jacksonville's history and it's origins as a "Black" city.  It is about saving something "real and tangible" to remind people of perhaps one of the saddest realities about human nature, Jacksonville politics and things that happen when a group of people who because of their race lose their homes and history through private agenda's based at the core in racist attitudes.  Those attitudes then expressed through the willful erasure of anything and everything "Black" in local history.  LaVilla represented perhaps the most positive and best years of Black history that Jacksonville may have had.  The outcroppings of racist mindset and attitude has manifest itself for decades through ignorance and apathy on the part of both the White and Black power players in Jacksonville.  Of course these actions are not unique to our city, but given the reality that currently one third of our citizenship is African American (the highest percentage in Florida) to ignore what is that history, infact our collective history is to hammer away at the foundation of Jacksonville itself and we can't afford to continue doing that.  So many folks are blind to the understanding that knowing ones history, the good and bad of it is how we progress.  For the Black community, especially the Black youth, being able to see and touch the period in history that was so powerful in changing the status and position of Blacks in our city and country is essential to their own pride and growth.  For non Black youth, it is the chance to see and realize the beauty and cultural depth of the Black community as opposed to the current "stereotypical" interpretations of today's social culture.  Like any group in society, there is the good, the bad and the ugly and that is never race specific as people have been taught to believe it might be.  It is a part of the human condition that is made manifest when people focus simply on the saddest part of the human experience and forget the glory that once was.  We here in Jacksonville need to stop demolishing our history and instead claim it.  Until we do that we will find ourselves floundering as a city, going from one elected official to another looking to solve a problem that they cannot solve.  We the citizens must do that and in order to do that we must face the entire truth of our own evolution as a city and community.  Then we must demand proper action of our elected officials and do everything we can to expose those who through private agenda's would destroy our collective past and impact our collective future. 

beautifully stated.

[thelakelander]

Btw, I don't believe the homes are officially landmarked.  The final vote still has to go before full council.

[Cheshire Cat]

Ennis, I emailed all of the members of council yesterday.  I think it is important that others do the same and let them know how important this is to the community and our history.  I encourage everyone to send emails on the council in support of the final designation.  We can't drop the ball now.     Write your own email or feel free to borrow from my statements on the thread earlier.

Here is the link for all members of council;  http://www.coj.net/city-council/city-council-members.aspx