Re-introduction of a ghost from the past!

[Scrub Palmetto]

Hello all,

I'm a past and future resident of Jax, and a past and... current member here. I had an older, seldom-used profile on here (Bruin Brain), but I no longer use the e-mail address associated with it, so here I am with a new one -- better, faster, stronger, etc. I'm an old haunt of Skyscraperpage and was one of the first Floridians to join back in 1998 (JFDinJax, if you're old enough for that to ring a bell.)

My name's Joshua. I'm a native of Jacksonville and at least a 6th generation Floridian. I left about 7 years ago and have been in and out of college for most of that time. I was studying Historic Preservation for a number of years, then I found myself in the Architecture, Urban Planning & Design department at UMKC here in Kansas City. I'm trying to finally finish with something that interests me, and I've definitely found that with the Urban Studies program, wherein I'm concentrating on community development and housing. (I would have gone for Urban Planning, but the studio courses aren't well geared toward transfer students.)

For years, I wanted to leave Jacksonville for greener pastures, but the longer I've been away, the more I've felt the desire to be a force of change in that city I just can't seem to shake a passion for. I'm planning to move back sometime next year and see where things take me, so I thought becoming active here on MJ would be a good start. I've especially learned a lot from living in Kansas City, where many positive things are happening that I think can be applied to Jacksonville, and they're not at all out of reach. If there's any chance I can help Jacksonville become like where I'm living now, I have to take it. (Although living car-free like I've been doing for the past 2 years, which is addictive, could be a tough one in J'ville, but hopefully not for too much longer.)

Some of my interests, to get an idea of where my loyalties lie:

• architectural history
• historic preservation
• local history
• urban redevelopment
• the public sphere
• neighborhood/community development
• multifamily housing
• shotgun houses
• the small house movement
• walkability
• public transit
• sustainability
• living car-free or car-lite
• local businesses and local living

Random thoughts that hopefully won't become a rant:

I think there's incredible potential in Jacksonville. I believe more jobs need to be brought back to the urban core. Housing needs to fill the Shipyards and Southside Generating Station sites as well as more affordable projects away from the river, such as in LaVilla and north of Duval St. I think J'ville's more overlooked historic neighborhoods need our biggest jolt of TLC; it's not unforeseeable for places like Eastside, Phoenix, Brentwood, Fairfax & Lake Shore to be the next Murray Hill or Springfield and to add to our arsenal of bragging rights alongside mentions of Riverside, Avondale, & San Marco. And I believe this can and should happen without displacing the residents who care about these places.

I think there are a lot of simple solutions to improve the urban core, but what is key is getting enough voices demanding them. Jacksonville will always be dominated by people who love the suburban life, as much of the country does, but there's room for more than one lifestyle. If the city wants to succeed, it has to aggressively pursue shoring up the ones that have all but slipped away. If we can just get beyond scaring off all the young people whose values aren't matched by what the city offers, we'll be in good shape. It also needs to be one step ahead of national trends. Baby boomers will have changing needs as they age. My generation and younger will shift demands as they come of age, because they *have* different demands. These demographics will either leave or be miserable if the city doesn't change with them. The city needs to realize its position at the back of the race only means remaining insular will keep it there. I'm sure there are many cities Jacksonville doesn't want to be like, but it needs to find the ones it does, study them carefully, and emulate them. As much as I love the "good bones" it has and as much as that attracts me back, we need to give the city some vital organs. A healthy heart, some glowing skin, etc. I'm willing to move back and take part, and hopefully that's a sign that I'm not the only one.

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Okay, I think that's enough intro! I hope I can contribute some useful things on here and hopefully get to know some of you guys in the meantime. This site has been a godsend over the years. Keep up the great work!

[Cheshire Cat]

Hello, welcome back!  Love the pic you chose for your profile! 

[Bill Hoff]

Love to have lunch with you when you get back in town Joshua. We need more informed & active people in our community such as yourself.

[ben says]

Fantastic post. Welcome.

[thelakelander]

Welcome back Scrub Palmetto.  You're the guy I looked up when joining SSC and SSP back in 2003, which eventually led to Urban Planet, MetJax and now Metro Jacksonville.  Like Bill, I'd love to have lunch or something, when you get back to town.

[Ocklawaha]

WELCOME ABOARD! 'Always a car in sight!'

[Tacachale]

Welcome aboard, Scrub. I think you'll find a good fit on this forum.

[Scrub Palmetto]

Thanks for the welcomes (and keep 'em coming! ) I would be glad to have lunch with you fellows sometime.

Diane, thanks! That's one of the houses on Beaver St in New Town. I just cleaned up a Google Street View capture of it. That row of shotguns has fired my imagination since I was a kid (not to mention the ones that used to be in LaVilla.)