JBJ: We must not dawdle if we want a riverfront miracle mile

[fieldafm]

We went to Great Smoky Mountains National Park for 7 days.  Rented a cabin.

So the new wife wants Downtown Jax to be like a cabin in the woods? Do you have any pictures for a  "learning from" article?

We took the back roads to Gatlinburg - 3 days and no interstates (well we did take I-75 from Macon to Atlanta).  This trip really opened her eyes to how lackluster Jax is.

What really hit home though is having my family from Oklahoma City come.  They stayed at the Omni downtown so we showed them around downtown.  Their first question - where is everyone?  Took them for a walk on the Southbank and had to explain the fountain used to be taller and lit up - but it's broken.  The Acosta bridge used to be lit in neon purple - but it is broken.  The Riverwalk used to illuminated with neon light reflect on the white umbrellas - but they are broken.  The sculpture outside The Strand used to be illuminated in a cool blue light - but its broken.  They wanted to ride the skyway - but it doesn't operate on the weekends.  They wanted to buy some touristy stuff at The Landing - but the stores were closed.  They noticed all the damage on the Northbank Riverwalk and I had to explain that it was damaged by the hurricane - over a year ago.

You know how much it sucks having to apologize for how crappy your city is?  On the plus side though, I did tell them we have swimming pools in the stadium that are operational.  Their response, who goes to a football game to swim?  My answer - the team sucks.  No one would go if the game was the only attraction.

So I'll just keep taking my wife to cool places until she has seen enough.  Next month - Indianapolis, Cincinnati, and Louisville.

There a lot of things that Jacksonville isn't... and many more things that Jacksonville is.

Feel bad for your family. Two weekends ago I took some out of town guests for a walk along the Riverwalk. They were absolutely amazed to saw dolphins and manatees just a few feet away, they took in the Riverside Arts Market and Memorial Park, enjoyed a fine adult beverage with great conversation about Jacksonville at Intuition Ale Works and later enjoyed a great dinner in San Marco Square. They left raving about Jacksonville, and will be back in a few weeks to go to a Jags game (and they aren't interested in swimming in the pools).

Having travelled to Oklahoma City, Indianapolis, Cincinnati and Louisville several times... and having lived in Atlanta (only one of those five cities would I ever chose to live in)... Jacksonville is what you make of it. If you want to sit around and complain about how bad it is, and cook up conspiracy theories about Shad Khan... then I guess it would suck pretty horribly.

Feel free to give me a ring the next time you are hosting visitors. Always happy to show guests a great time in a city that I am proud to call home.

[Steve]

We went to Great Smoky Mountains National Park for 7 days.  Rented a cabin.

So the new wife wants Downtown Jax to be like a cabin in the woods? Do you have any pictures for a  "learning from" article?

We took the back roads to Gatlinburg - 3 days and no interstates (well we did take I-75 from Macon to Atlanta).  This trip really opened her eyes to how lackluster Jax is.

What really hit home though is having my family from Oklahoma City come.  They stayed at the Omni downtown so we showed them around downtown.  Their first question - where is everyone?  Took them for a walk on the Southbank and had to explain the fountain used to be taller and lit up - but it's broken.  The Acosta bridge used to be lit in neon purple - but it is broken.  The Riverwalk used to illuminated with neon light reflect on the white umbrellas - but they are broken.  The sculpture outside The Strand used to be illuminated in a cool blue light - but its broken.  They wanted to ride the skyway - but it doesn't operate on the weekends.  They wanted to buy some touristy stuff at The Landing - but the stores were closed.  They noticed all the damage on the Northbank Riverwalk and I had to explain that it was damaged by the hurricane - over a year ago.

You know how much it sucks having to apologize for how crappy your city is?  On the plus side though, I did tell them we have swimming pools in the stadium that are operational.  Their response, who goes to a football game to swim?  My answer - the team sucks.  No one would go if the game was the only attraction.

So I'll just keep taking my wife to cool places until she has seen enough.  Next month - Indianapolis, Cincinnati, and Louisville.

I really hate New York:

- It smells in parts
- It's expensive
- People sometimes aren't nice
- I can't park right in front of my building
- I can't find a house with a big backyard in Manhattan
- Some people in Harlem can be mean
- The Subway is loud

Man, what a crappy place New York is. I'm never going back.

[thelakelander]

It's all what you make of it. I travel extensively and you can find the good, bad and ugly in all cities. Of the ones mentioned, I'd prefer Cincinnati the most but it wouldn't make my top 50 for me to live in. OKC and Louisville wouldn't crack my top 75 to 100 even though they have some great things going for them in some areas that Jax could benefit from by paying attention. Nevertheless Kerry, let me be your family's tour guide. Within the first hour, I'll have you and them speaking a different language. However, Jax is too easy. I think I could impress them enough to invest in waterfront urban living in Valdosta.

[Kerry]

That is the exact response I was expecting and is the reason Jax is moving in slow motion.  We have a population with such a low bar for expectations that the City can just dawdle along - so it does.  Hey - when you were at Memorial Park did you show your family the metal railing that has been there for over year because the City can't seem to restore the decorative railing.  I haven't been over to the San Marco side in a while - is it still fenced off.

I want to like Jax but it is really a frustrating process.  It's like a marriage where one spouse wants to be cosmopolitan and sophisticated and the other just wants to sit on the couch in the single wide trailer and drink beer.

[Kerry]

That is the exact response I was expecting and is the reason Jax is moving in slow motion.  We have a population with such a low bar for expectations that the City can just dawdle along - so it does.  Hey - when you were at Memorial Park did you show your family the metal railing that has been there for over year because the City can't seem to restore the decorative railing.  I haven't been over to the San Marco side in a while - is it still fenced off.

I want to like Jax but it is really a frustrating process.  It's like a marriage where one spouse wants to be cosmopolitan and sophisticated and the other just wants to sit on the couch in the single wide trailer and drink beer.

First hour would be easy.  What are you going to show them the second hour?  Jax runs out of stuff real fast.  Going to impress them with our museums?  How about our cultural attractions?  Going to show them our outstanding urban retail?  What about our riverfront?  Jax is what you make it - and some of you are flat out making it up.  This City needs to get its act together.

[Steve]

That is the exact response I was expecting and is the reason Jax is moving in slow motion.  We have a population with such a low bar for expectations that the City can just dawdle along - so it does.  Hey - when you were at Memorial Park did you show your family the metal railing that has been there for over year because the City can't seem to restore the decorative railing.  I haven't been over to the San Marco side in a while - is it still fenced off.

I want to like Jax but it is really a frustrating process.  It's like a marriage where one spouse wants to be cosmopolitan and sophisticated and the other just wants to sit on the couch in the single wide trailer and drink beer.

We can agree to disagree then. Just because I don't live my life in constant negativitity doesn't mean I'm willing to accept Jacksonville's shortfalls. I can just see positives that apparently you can't.

[Tacachale]

That is the exact response I was expecting and is the reason Jax is moving in slow motion.  We have a population with such a low bar for expectations that the City can just dawdle along - so it does.  Hey - when you were at Memorial Park did you show your family the metal railing that has been there for over year because the City can't seem to restore the decorative railing.  I haven't been over to the San Marco side in a while - is it still fenced off.

I want to like Jax but it is really a frustrating process.  It's like a marriage where one spouse wants to be cosmopolitan and sophisticated and the other just wants to sit on the couch in the single wide trailer and drink beer.

First hour would be easy.  What are you going to show them the second hour?  Jax runs out of stuff real fast.  Going to impress them with our museums?  How about our cultural attractions?  Going to show them our outstanding urban retail?  What about our riverfront?  Jax is what you make it - and some of you are flat out making it up.  This City needs to get its act together.

Earlier you asked, "You know how much it sucks having to apologize for how crappy your city is?" Many of the people you're addressing that to have lived here a lot longer than you. Those who have are well familiar with the inferiority complex that has long been one of the worst things about living here, and one of the primary things that holds the city back.

There are a lot of problems here, but there's a lot of great things going on as well. When you focus entirely on pointing out every flaw, you don't give yourself time to see the things that are working.

[Kerry]

What Jacksonville shortfalls?

[thelakelander]

I want to like Jax but it is really a frustrating process.  It's like a marriage where one spouse wants to be cosmopolitan and sophisticated and the other just wants to sit on the couch in the single wide trailer and drink beer.

From my experience if someone is seeking cosmopolitan, OKC, Louisville, Cincinnati, etc. and even Jax are all cow towns and no amount of urban infill in our lifetime is going to happen fast enough to make them cosmopolitan. IMO, there aren't too many cosmopolitan cities in the US. NYC, Chicago, LA, SF, Philly, Boston, DC, Miami and perhaps Houston or Atlanta. Once you get past those places, things drop off the map pretty quick.

[thelakelander]

First hour would be easy.  What are you going to show them the second hour?  Jax runs out of stuff real fast.  Going to impress them with our museums?  How about our cultural attractions?  Going to show them our outstanding urban retail?  What about our riverfront?  Jax is what you make it - and some of you are flat out making it up.  This City needs to get its act together.

To be honest, I could kill a half day at a place like Kingsley Plantation, tied together with a fresh seafood lunch in Mayport or one of the fish camps off Heckscher alone. If someone is into industry, I could blow away a few hours touring a place like AB's brewery. Shopping isn't my thing, but San Marco Square and St. Johns Avenue classify as pedestrian friendly urban retail strips. However, I prefer the raw setting of the farmer's market on Beaver....especially if the showcasing is going to take place on a Saturday. It's one of the few areas in the region where you can experience multiple cultures and languages at once. The Zoo is also one of the best I've come across in the country. I haven't even gotten around to the beach and some of the parks. If you know the sites and things that are truly authentic to this area, you won't run out of things to do.

[Kerry]

I know all about a City's inferiority complex - I used to live in Oklahoma City.  Do you know what fixes that?  Success.  This group is supposed to be a collection of civic-minded people working collectively and as an individuals to help Jax reach its potential.  We are the team - to borrow a football analogy - this the half time locker room, the practice field, the film room, analyzing what's working, what isn't, studying what the competition is doing, looking for players to draft it trade..... But many of you just want to be cheerleaders.  Maybe I'm in the wrong group.

[Kerry]

I know all about a City's inferiority complex - I used to live in Oklahoma City.  Do you know what fixes that?  Success.  This group is supposed to be a collection of civic-minded people working collectively and as an individuals to help Jax reach its potential.  We are the team - to borrow a football analogy - this is the half time locker room, the practice field, the film room, analyzing what's working, what isn't, studying what the competition is doing, looking for players to draft ior trade..... But many of you just want to be cheerleaders.  Maybe I'm in the wrong group.

[thelakelander]

Lol, you can't be calling me a cheerleader if you've spent any time reading the articles posted here over the years. I'm more of a realist. I'll give you the good, bad and ugly of Jax and anywhere else. However, even when I dish out the criticism, it's normally followed up with recommendations on how the implementation of little things most ignore, can lead to great improvement in these specific identified areas.

[Kerry]

I'm all about offering ideas to make Jax better.  Hell, I have a whole list of them.  So does everyone else.  What we lack is follow-thru, instead we dwadel.

[thelakelander]

Some battles you win, some you don't. I remember a year ago, you spoke about DT needing hotels and gave a showcase on what OKC was doing. Now, in the last few months a slew of hotel proposals have popped up and at least three of them are already moving forward in the permitting process. However, anytime someone is building something, give it a few years before the results of that decision plays out in reality. Nevertheless....progress.

In other cases, you can recommend, but instead of crying when no one listens, you'll have take charge and do it yourself. In 2012, we did this with the launch of Jax Truckies because we wanted to demonstrate that one could activate dead spaces with food trucks, show if trucks were successful that some would morph into brick and mortar and that they'd fill vacant storefronts all over the urban core and create jobs without public incentives. There were roadblocks thrown up but instead of doing nothing, we found ways around them. Since that time, legislation has been passed to guide the industry, several trucks have grown into brick and mortars in DT and a variety of neighborhoods surrounding it and over 1200 local job have been created without the need of public incentives.

Long story short, revitalization takes time and sometimes you'll have to implement your own ideas instead of waiting for others to do them.