Email from CityCycle about Luminaria bike ride

[blfair]

In my inbox this afternoon:

We have gotten many questions about the bicycle ride to see the Riverside Avondale Luminaria which has been a popular event in the neighborhood for over twenty years.
In the last few years Luminaria has become chaotic and unsafe. The JSO Officers that we spoke to about the event fully agree.

CityCycle is not promoting or participating in a Luminaria bike ride this year - it would be irresponsible to do so.

It would be devastating to see someone get hurt and rescue vehicles not be able to get to them because of the complete gridlock we have seen the last couple of years. The event is certainly not safe for kids! Children are hanging out car windows, standing on running boards, riding on hoods, etc. The number of cars, illegal trailers, horse wagons, monster trucks, and people throwing stuff has become crazy!! A double decker swamp buggy even polluted the streets last year. JSO officers say they could stop and ticket hundreds of violations. "They are unable to control things." It has become a disaster. Last year was the worst ever. This once was a nice, pleasant, peaceful evening to see the Christmas lights. It is far from that now. Two years ago I had to drive a cyclist to the emergency room after he was beat up by three young motorists. It is a shame. Residents are upset and have complained about the trash and people throwing things. There have also been complaints about bicycle riding on the wrong side of the road, through yards, and running over luminaries, etc.
Several officers have suggested closing St. Johns Avenue down to car traffic. But that will be up to the residents and RAP (Riverside Avondale Preservation).
Everyone is free to make the best of the evening and to be careful. Hopefully something will be done soon to make it a nice event. Maybe JSO will step up patrols to ticket many of the bad apples who have ruined this wonderful event.

Thanks
Drew

[Captain Zissou]

It's the RPC. They get that pizza in them and they just go all crazy!! Last year there wasn't even a MM in the area and they still caused havoc. You can only imagine the terror they will cause next year. There won't be an orange tree left standing. Lock your doors; the Rowdy Pizza Crowd is coming....

[peestandingup]

Hard to trust City Cycle, but he may be right. If that's the case & its grown that large, why not treat it as a parade & close down the streets?

[JHAT76]

Drew was very oppsed to Mellow Mushroom.  Funny how this event and the Avondale Merchant Associations sponsored event of XMas in Avondale are the only times I have had trash in my yard.  Not normal restaurant operations like MM will be.  To be honest even then it isn't much of an issue.

I have always thought a way to break the mess Luminaria has become is to do what I have seen in Raleigh, NC where I used to live and have the Luminarias out for a week or so lit every evening so not everyone comes the same night.  Then cap it off by teaming up with the Merchants and making XMas in Avondale (when streets are closed) the end of Luminaria week.  Or something like that.

[Josh]

Drew was very oppsed to Mellow Mushroom.  Funny how this event and the Avondale Merchant Associations sponsored event of XMas in Avondale are the only times I have had trash in my yard.  Not normal restaurant operations like MM will be.  To be honest even then it isn't much of an issue.

Are you sure you aren't thinking if the expansion at Kickbacks? He spoke against it during the LUZ meetings, but don't recall his name coming up during the MM discussion.

[JHAT76]

Drew was very oppsed to Mellow Mushroom.  Funny how this event and the Avondale Merchant Associations sponsored event of XMas in Avondale are the only times I have had trash in my yard.  Not normal restaurant operations like MM will be.  To be honest even then it isn't much of an issue.

Are you sure you aren't thinking if the expansion at Kickbacks? He spoke against it during the LUZ meetings, but don't recall his name coming up during the MM discussion.

He was pretty outspoken on the We Love Avondale Facebook page.  Also I believe he signed the Change.org petition.  If that Drew is the same guy. 

[bencrix]

Out of hand? I suppose it depends on what the neighborhood would like the event to be? As "free" advertising for the real estate it's good. As a spectacle, especially for the happy-motorists, it may be great. As an expression of a 1920's, walkable, streetcar suburb, it is has become pretty perverse. It is hard to imagine an evening more enticing, yet more miserable for the bicyclist / pedestrian. Given our status as #3 in the nation in pedestrian fatalities (according to 1 study at least), it is hard to blame City Cycle for drawing a line in the (luminaria) sand.

I like the idea of it going on for a week, I don't think the luminaria themselves can last that long. Perhaps establishing a "parade" route for vehicles, while closing down other streets to thru traffic could help allow the cars and bike / peds co-exist?

[RiversideLoki]

I think "out of hand" is a bit of an exaggeration. Last year was really busy, to the point that Park st. was backed up from 17 all the way in through the neighborhood to King Street. It's just grown more popular. In the past few years it's been advertised EVERYWHERE (print, radio, etc.) and that has brought in huge crowds of cars wanting to cruise and see the sights. RACC brought in a huge crowd last year with their live nativity scene, and that caused a TON of traffic in that area. But it was a good time.

Personally, I think this year with the Willowbranch and riverside resurfacing projects going on, it's going to be an absolute shit-show. However, I feel like City-Cycle is being bike-elitist in this case. And for them to get snooty about this is a bit ridiculous, considering the fact that every year I've witnessed people on bikes drinking during the ride, screaming at pedestrians, throwing empty cans on the ground, etc. They aren't the angels here. If the ride is that big of a deal, why don't they get the permitting, off duty police blocking the route and get the route sectioned off like they do with running events?

[Dog Walker]

Maybe Drew was warned that there were going to be arrests this year.

[MEGATRON]

Personally, I think this year with the Willowbranch and riverside resurfacing projects going on, it's going to be an absolute shit-show.

So true

[bencrix]

"Bike-elitism" exists, to be sure. But it is also true that "Auto-hegemony" is out of hand in Jacksonville. All of us know someone who has been threatened / injured / killed on a bike or walking. I think there is something to the notion that a nice tradition in one of our most bike/ped friendly is becoming symbolic of car culture.

[CityLife]

The crazy auto traffic is nothing new...been pretty bad for some time now. I haven't been the past year or two, but its always been a mess. Especially close to the Shoppes of Avondale and on Park/Edgewood.

Wouldn't a solution be to close down some of the local roads for a few hours and restrict them to just hayrides, trucks with people in beds, and bikes/pedestrians? The true charm of Luminaria is best experienced on foot/bike anyways. You can't fully experience the wandering cocktail parties, house parties, random carolers, church displays, and the like from a drive by. Maybe closing down the roads could help bring some of the charm back.

[RiversideLoki]

"Bike-elitism" exists, to be sure. But it is also true that "Auto-hegemony" is out of hand in Jacksonville. All of us know someone who has been threatened / injured / killed on a bike or walking. I think there is something to the notion that a nice tradition in one of our most bike/ped friendly is becoming symbolic of car culture.

I 100% agree, and I don't want my comment to come off as the Auto-hegemony rearing its ugly head. But there has to be a balance when it comes to a happening like this and it speaks to the bigger issue of the fact that our city is so bike unfriendly.

Wouldn't a solution be to close down some of the local roads for a few hours and restrict them to just hayrides, trucks with people in beds, and bikes/pedestrians? The true charm of Luminaria is best experienced on foot/bike anyways. You can't fully experience the wandering cocktail parties, house parties, random carolers, church displays, and the like from a drive by. Maybe closing down the roads could help bring some of the charm back.

I agree, but the problem I could foresee would be people cramming it in wherever they can just to park to walk into the neighborhood and limit the whole shebang to just Riverside/Avondale people, thus leading to traffic/parking nightmares for any place not in the blocked off area. Even still, you're very correct that the best way to experience it is on foot or on bike.

[CityLife]

Everyone could park at FSCJ and then either walk/bike, or take a shuttle bus up Park closer to the heart of the activities. JTA could charge $5 a head RT to shuttle from there and maybe make a buck or two.

The traffic effectively closes the roads off for thru/local traffic anyways, so formally closing it and limiting it wouldn't really affect the locals too much anyways.

[mtraininjax]

Hard to trust City Cycle, but he may be right. If that's the case & its grown that large, why not treat it as a parade & close down the streets?

Yeah, and the ambulance route crazies would be burning down Jim Love's house. Uh, not a good idea.

The issue isn't that bikers are a great part of the fun, its the fact that last year there were over 200 cyclists in that huge group. Imaging 200 people walking down a street, then add bikes, its chaotic. And then they weave in and out of traffic that is already backed up and Joe Blow is too busy throwing candy at his friend on the sidewalk and doesn't see number 185 in the pack and takes out the bike. The ambulances cant get through because someone had the bright idea to close down the streets in the area, and then Stephen proclaims that Avondale is not safe because cyclists cannot cycle the area without fearing for their life.

Basically dogs and cats living together, mass hysteria!