The BP at 8th & Liberty . . . . "Rooms for Rent"

[Karl_Pilkington]

yo joemerchant, you and I would definitely move if it does become the next PV, thats for sure.  The neighborhood association would make us fix the peeling paint and turn down the tunes when we're jamming out, that would completely suck.

[Johnny]

Give me a break. First, Chris, I think the reason you got called out is because you were so adamant about how much of a desolate wasteland Springfield was. you don't like it. We get it. Cool. Sorry you had a bad experience. I think the issue came about because you worked a bit too hard trying to tell us we were all cracked. That always will set the tables for a confrontation.

I wasnt the one who brought up the flyers. I never saw them, I dont know anything about that issue. Second, my comment all along has been BP is basically ok. He has had some littler problems, but that wasn't my primary concern. Several of us noticed the pipes being sold, and asked him to stop selling them. He removed them from plain view. As far as what sorts of malt beverages he carries, I personally cant begrudge him anything on that front. Beer is perfectly legal to sell. there really isn't much discussion beyond that.

Much better stated than my previous post. I actually purchase quite a bit of gasoline from this BP. I rarely go into any gas station, but I've been in this one and was aware of the pipes & razor blades and between that and the comments posted, chimed in.

Also, Stephen, you mentioned changing a business in a positive way? What exactly does that mean? Buying up all of the razor blades and pipes and donating them to a nicer neighborhood?

[Ocklawaha]

Stephen, at your suggestion I just read through this whole thread! One comment!

HA! HA! HA!

(Oops was that 3 comments?)

Those of us who are Expatriates, San Francisco Tainted, Urbano types, don't generally give a Shit if someone passes out at the weekly dinner meeting (hee hee). Seems to me this is just Jacksonville, being Jacksonville! Fighting off the Maggot Infested, Hippie, Flower Child, Leaping Gnomes and bowing at the statue of the great symbol of Cowford... (Uh? Do we even have a signature symbol?).

Now you really upper income, push it over the top, rubber stamping, Vanilla clean freaks don't ask me how I know this... I just know it okay?

But Razor Blades have nothing to do with Rolling Papers! Idiots!

OCKLAWAHA

[downtownparks]

Stephen, at your suggestion I just read through this whole thread! One comment!

HA! HA! HA!

(Oops was that 3 comments?)

Those of us who are Expatriates, San Francisco Tainted, Urbano types, don't generally give a Shit if someone passes out at the weekly dinner meeting (hee hee). Seems to me this is just Jacksonville, being Jacksonville! Fighting off the Maggot Infested, Hippie, Flower Child, Leaping Gnomes and bowing at the statue of the great symbol of Cowford... (Uh? Do we even have a signature symbol?).

Now you really upper income, push it over the top, rubber stamping, Vanilla clean freaks don't ask me how I know this... I just know it okay?

But Razor Blades have nothing to do with Rolling Papers! Idiots!

OCKLAWAHA

Who said they did???

[Johnny]

But Razor Blades have nothing to do with Rolling Papers! Idiots!
OCKLAWAHA

Huh? I wish pot was the problem. I wouldn't give a damn, but people don't snatch your ladder off your porch to sell at the pawn shop to pay for their weed.

[Johnny]

I think you are over-scrutinizing the issue. But, I can only hope that if they are shopping at Bed, Bath & Beyond, they'll find a loofa they would rather have instead.

[fsu813]

strider -

advertising rooms for rent at a gas station that is frequented (more often than not) by jobless, bums, & druggies is very different from advertising a room for rent on the SPAR website. i guess you don't see the difference.

note: i'm not saying the gas station is dirty or shouldn't sell malt, etc. i've gone there several times and i'll do so again on occasion....but ceratin actions or inactions visibly support, condone, or make it easier for people to do things that bring down the area.

stephen -

your exaggerations (shutting down every place that sells razor blades) don't help to make your point. it just shows you are not being realistic.

[strider]

fsu813: advertising rooms for rent at a gas station that is frequented (more often than not) by jobless, bums, & druggies is very different from advertising a room for rent on the SPAR website. i guess you don't see the difference.

As you and many other of your peers go there upon occassion, there is no difference to see between advertising at a gas station which was suggested by SPAR Council that everyone support, by the way, and the SPAR Council forum.  Or the times union, or...well, name your prefered advertising media.

Overall, it seems that whomever put out the flyers, or perhaps someone associated with the gas station read this forum and took away the flyers.  Now, I guess the person wanting to rent a room could have rented it and picked up the extra flyers, but that doesn't seem like the actions of a two bit addict looking for a fellow addict like has been implied here. Either way, it is sad that they had to see this all. This was not showing them the pretty side of Springfield. This is what is more likely to "bring down the area", at least in people's minds.

[Springfielder]

You're right, it doesn't show the pretty side of the neighborhood....but it also doesn't speak for all of us who live here. I've been in that station and it's clean and seems perfectly okay to me. Although I really didn't go in looking for what's wrong with the place.

[downtownparks]

Have we all finished wringing our hands enough now? Its amazing how ramped up things get when you have one shrill voice stirring the pot.

The BP is not bad, as far as Gas Stations in Springfield go. I agree with Fat Cat in as much as, its 10 times better than The Shell at 8th and Blvd, or the Shell downtown (both owned by the same company). Sammy at 3rd and Main has made something of an effort. There is also a brand new gas station at 19th and Main, just south of the expressway that looks ok. BP is somewhere in the middle.

The razors, on their own, are meaningless. They are sold at stores all over. However, when they sit in a prominent position on the shelf next to the cash register, with the rolling papers, lighters and pipes (which have now been taken down) then its a bit more nefarious. Illegal? No probably not, but certainly the message is pretty clear.

Most Springfielders probably dont say a word about it. They just go elsewhere with their money. In the dozens of times I have been there to buy gas, or other goods, I have run into someone I might also run into at a Springfield party... uhm... zero times. So no, they arent dumb enough to come on here and engage, and have shots taken at them, but just because they arent vocal on here, dont assume they aren't vocal with how they spend their money.

[Lunican]

Bought gas at Liberty BP the other day. Burns good.

[Johnny]

Try the positive solutions above and you will find, as both san marco and five points did, a much better outcome.

You simply dont see the San Marco Merchants flogging any of these issues.

Instead, they created a nice upscale beautiful alternative.

Not exactly. The residents of Riverside/Avondale and RAP was very vocal and did put pressure on businesses back then to get on board and not continue to enable the criminals. But, it was also more acceptable to gentrify a neighborhood back in the 70's - early 90's and we didn't have forums and the internet to let everyone complain about it. Now crime and drug addiction is accepted as people being victim to their surroundings. Funny how that is one argument, but those same people complain that accommodating that victim to continue in the downward spiral is ok. Seems hypocritical to me, but rock on folks.

[Ocklawaha]

Now crime and drug addiction is accepted as people being victim to their surroundings. Funny how that is one argument, but those same people complain that accommodating that victim to continue in the downward spiral is ok. Seems hypocritical to me, but rock on folks.

Here is a Riddle of perception for you:

Would walking down a railroad track somewhere in the cloud forests of the Andes, whilst chewing a mouth full of Cocoa leaves be criminal behavior?

WHY?

Because your perception is that you'd be high, deadly stoned and in deep trouble.

FACT?

It won't do a damn thing except make you positive on a urine test. It won't hurt your body or get you any higher then eating a peach!

You see? You PUT-LIME-IN-THE-COKE-YOU-NUT. Leaves are green and Lime is WHITE! When you go "white" you'll no longer care.

So what is the difference between someone sleeping in an alley in Springfield and someone sleeping in Ponte Vedra Beach?

The surroundings and the financing method's used.

The man of great face, that passed out on the stairs last night in Ponte Vedra was unseen, behind his towering walls. The guy in the alley is seen but faceless.

LIME-IN-THE-COKE! God I love this city!

OCKLAWAHA

[downtownparks]

OCK, I dont think anyone is trying to deal with the morality of the issue.

On that point, my Libertarian leanings become more of a tilt. I personally believe that If I want to sit in my living room and smoke crack rock, I should be allowed to. If you legalize the drugs, you making them a little less bad for the user because they are no longer going to be cut with Baking Soda and Draino, you take the money out of it, because the 1000+% mark up goes away, you take the social taboo out of it (allowing addicts who are otherwise decent people to contribute), and you can then tax it and regulate it, allowing a revanue stream to put back into funding education.

Making it illegal does nothing but ruin city streets, and make thugs rich, and get crap stolen of our porches.

[fatcat]

Legalize vice and balance the budget!