A "Blight Fight" Mascot For Jacksonville?

[I-10east]

^^^I'm not discounting Columbus's 'Mow to Own' because it sounds like a good idea. What if Fight Blight turns out to be a good idea also? It looks like it's being shot down by some of yall before it even had a chance to begin. 

[thelakelander]

^I doubt the policy that was passed turns out to be a good thing. It hasn't worked in 50 years, locally or across the country. I don't see why anyone would think what was passed will work now. What part of the policy do you believe stands the best chance of being a success.....success being defined by stimulating economic redevelopment back to our inner city?

[strider]

^^^I'm not discounting Columbus's 'Mow to Own' because it sounds like a good idea. What if Fight Blight turns out to be a good idea also? It looks like it's being shot down by some of yall before it even had a chance to begin. 

Let's see.  The  City passes an ordinance that does indeed allow for demolitions but also repairing and giving away properties and yet within weeks of passing, it produces a list of 40 properties it wants to demolish.  Before the ink is even dry on that list, another 105 get sent to the Historic planners to review, as required by law, but no time is given to actually do those reviews.  Great pains were taken to protect potentially historic stock but the City immediately does it's best to circumvent the very laws it just passed. And you say we are not giving the "blight fight" a chance to prove itself?  The facts are out there.  By choosing to ignore them, you become part of the problem rather than the solution.  And most likely are profiting from the corruption in some fashion.

[thelakelander]

Some lady jumped on Councilman Love about calling people "blight" at the debate last night. She was a NW Jax resident and she said it was disrespectful to called unemployed people "blight" and for council members to drive around neighborhoods on a "blight bus". Yes, we have our issues but what's being labeled a solution is about the worst possible outcome and strategy for turning our struggling neighborhoods around. This is one issue where I'd hate to say "I told you so", 10 years down the line. We've seen this fail with Sugar Hill, LaVilla, DT and Brooklyn. Let's learn from our mistakes.

[I-10east]

Let's see.  The  City passes an ordinance that does indeed allow for demolitions but also repairing and giving away properties and yet within weeks of passing, it produces a list of 40 properties it wants to demolish.  Before the ink is even dry on that list, another 105 get sent to the Historic planners to review, as required by law, but no time is given to actually do those reviews.  Great pains were taken to protect potentially historic stock but the City immediately does it's best to circumvent the very laws it just passed. And you say we are not giving the "blight fight" a chance to prove itself?  The facts are out there.  By choosing to ignore them, you become part of the problem rather than the solution.  And most likely are profiting from the corruption in some fashion.

I thought that Fight Blight was basically something along the lines of like "Keep Jacksonville Beautiful" you know, pick up trash, cutting the grass that sorta thing. Now a 'truly' know that it's just all a mass conspiracy to tear down every single unoccupied house in Jax!!! Oh the humanity!!! Thanks for the info...

[I-10east]

While I definitely WOULDN'T refer to anyone unemployed as 'blight' IMO people that are ruinous to a community could be considered blight. Lets check the definition; Blight: any cause of impairment, destruction, ruin, or frustration. Are drug dealers, murderers etc ruinous to a community? Damn right they are, screw the PC crap! 

[thelakelander]

How about we stop worrying about being PC and simply attempt to deal with the real economic bull in the china shop?  That's my gripe. Instead we come of with things (and waste a lot of money implementing them) that don't have a snow ball's chance in hell of tackling our real problems.

[Ralph W]

How about putting that city owned restaurant that's never been opened or powered up on the blight list? Certainly would be a wonderful weed infested lot as a testament to the wise expenditure of our tax money.

[Gunnar]

While I definitely WOULDN'T refer to anyone unemployed as 'blight' IMO people that are ruinous to a community could be considered blight. Lets check the definition; Blight: any cause of impairment, destruction, ruin, or frustration. Are drug dealers, murderers etc ruinous to a community? Damn right they are, screw the PC crap!

Agreed, however the most ruinous people to the city - at least the dt & adjacent areas - appear to have been those who were running it.

[thelakelander]

How about putting that city owned restaurant that's never been opened or powered up on the blight list? Certainly would be a wonderful weed infested lot as a testament to the wise expenditure of our tax money.

Good point. If COJ is really interested in clearing blight, the best place to start is with cleaning up its own properties. Roll up your sleeves and lead by example! They can also jump on FDOT about picking up all the trash lining the ROW of expressways that slice these neighborhoods up.

[thelakelander]

Umm....ok.

[strider]

Let's see.  The  City passes an ordinance that does indeed allow for demolitions but also repairing and giving away properties and yet within weeks of passing, it produces a list of 40 properties it wants to demolish.  Before the ink is even dry on that list, another 105 get sent to the Historic planners to review, as required by law, but no time is given to actually do those reviews.  Great pains were taken to protect potentially historic stock but the City immediately does it's best to circumvent the very laws it just passed. And you say we are not giving the "blight fight" a chance to prove itself?  The facts are out there.  By choosing to ignore them, you become part of the problem rather than the solution.  And most likely are profiting from the corruption in some fashion.

I thought that Fight Blight was basically something along the lines of like "Keep Jacksonville Beautiful" you know, pick up trash, cutting the grass that sorta thing. Now a 'truly' know that it's just all a mass conspiracy to tear down every single unoccupied house in Jax!!! Oh the humanity!!! Thanks for the info...

You really are not paying any attention, are you?

First and foremost there will be demolitions.  Everything else is just lipstick on that proverbial pig.....

While I definitely WOULDN'T refer to anyone unemployed as 'blight' IMO people that are ruinous to a community could be considered blight. Lets check the definition; Blight: any cause of impairment, destruction, ruin, or frustration. Are drug dealers, murderers etc ruinous to a community? Damn right they are, screw the PC crap!

Agreed, however the most ruinous people to the city - at least the dt & adjacent areas - appear to have been those who were running it.

So true.  The houses are being taken because the leadership is trying showing the public that they are doing something a
because they are incapable of dealing with the real issues.

How about putting that city owned restaurant that's never been opened or powered up on the blight list? Certainly would be a wonderful weed infested lot as a testament to the wise expenditure of our tax money.

Good point. If COJ is really interested in clearing blight, the best place to start is with cleaning up its own properties. Roll up your sleeves and lead by example! They can also jump on FDOT about picking up all the trash lining the ROW of expressways that slice these neighborhoods up.

Wouldn't they have to be able to figure out what they actually own first? I'm not sure they have exactly been able to do that.  Did they get anyone to do that particular study yet?

Umm....ok.

Do you see the lipstick?

[sheclown]

Far as I know the city does not know what it owns. We were promised a list last fall, have yet to see one.

from last year:

http://www.metrojacksonville.com/forum/index.php?topic=21391.0

When we start thinking of people as "trash" as a "blight", what does that tell us about ourselves as human beings?

Lee said she has been working on improving the city's neighborhoods since she was first elected to the City Council in 1982, and that  economic development and job creation have been key issues for city lawmakers for as long as she has been in office.

"At the end of the day, what businesses are going to move into areas that are number one, unsafe, and number two, that are depressed with blight, not just trash blight, and lack of mowing right-of-ways, but human blight," she said.

For Lee, human blight defines anyone who "contribute to the demise" of Jacksonville's neighborhoods.

.............................

Lee also encouraged city residents to report blight of all kinds, including reporting on neighbors.

http://news.wjct.org/post/jax-councilwoman-denise-lee-stand-your-ground-combat-human-blight

why not help JSO if the concern is illegal activity? 

[sheclown]

How about we stop worrying about being PC and simply attempt to deal with the real economic bull in the china shop?  That's my gripe. Instead we come of with things (and waste a lot of money implementing them) that don't have a snow ball's chance in hell of tackling our real problems.

'xactly

[Redbaron616]

Oh stop the crying, already. If it was a fancier, more expensive, sophisticated campaign, you'd complain about the money spent. This is a story that happens when there is nothing else to report. Besides, who says Jax has to imitate every other city of its size? Be different and don't look back. If you want an American generic cities, there are plenty of them out there you can move to.