A Walk Down Herschel Street

[Captain Zissou]

JeffreyS, the dead project is the tall building to the left of the Loop and Espeto.  That building was to be torn down, as well as the Loop shopping center for a new tower and complex.  The development you are speaking of is "The River Homes at Ortega Landing", which has been scaled back significantly, but partially completed.

[alohameisha]

you forgot Pastiche they are next to the fire station. Yum!

www.mypastiche.com/

[grimss]

As to the (now dead) Commander project, most neighbors were in favor of redevelopment of the site, but the scale/density of what was initially proposed by Balanky was rejected pretty quickly. Although he and the neighbors eventually reached a compromise of sorts, market conditions killed the project.  The Fairfax Manor folks (in whose backyard the Herschel corridor lies) are an active bunch who stand up for the integrity of their neighborhood. I'm happy to learn the history of the area, and glad to know there's a group trying to preserve its character.

[DavidWilliams]

Is the Commander still occupied?

[GideonGlib]

I have always known and heard the residents of the area call area Fairfax and  the neighborhood on the point  bordered by Fishweir Creek, The Ortega River, and Herschel/St.Johns avenue to be Fairfax Manor, and I believe there are signs that indicate that on the entrance to the neighborhood.

I would like to concur Goal Post is a great little sandwich shop, their "veggie Rider" is an awesome lunch.

[Lunican]

Was McGirts Creek renamed the "Ortega River" because it sounds more prestigious?

[Wacca Pilatka]

less Piratey.

McGirts was an um.......private contractor.

Superb.

[nicktooch]

we forgot herschel animal clinic... and by clinic i mean free shots with dirty needles and cheap infections with every spay/neuter.  A close friend of mine is a vet tech at an ER on the sside and sees more sick animals whose owners answer the question "who is your usual vet?" with "uh idk i just stand in line at herschel."  and that's all he needs to know to gauge the severity of the animal's med history lol

[DavidWilliams]

We have taken a few pets there. Never had a bad experience. Other than the wait. I will spend a little more to go to Timuquana and not have to stand in line. Cox and Walker (dealt with them about 10 years or so) seem to be good vets. 

[jaxlore]

people will go back and forth about herschel all day long. they do a service at a very low price for people that would just let there animals stay sick if it wasn't for them. I've never had a problem with several cats i have brought there with no problems.

[JaxBorn1962]

Yes, Goal Post is still open.  Mmmmm, steak in a sack.

Cheese and Bacon Grilled sandwich with large fries and a sprite.

[JaxBorn1962]

Is the Commander still occupied?

Yes

[ricker]

Weird that the whole fly-by-night resurfacing of Herschel St [the portion which serves as a stretch of SR211] from Saint John's Avenue to San Juan Ave was restriped after being top-coated only to look THE EXACT SAME!
.. .when it didn't need it! btw.

Another neighboring overlay is still in the works, folks - for a deliberately slow, somewhat delayed, partially stalled roll-out which, as demonstrated and evidenced with so many comparable (and long ago completed) revisions to similar streetscapes (many refernced here on MJ) proving essential in bringing a renaissance to breviously blighted districts and corridors ...

roundabouts at Geraldine/St.Johns (ESPETO) and Woodmere/St.Johns (ECLIPSE) would be awesome and could be revisited with the aim of booming this commercial corridor into another walkable waterfront version of 5points?

should be considered missed opportunities.

Regarding streetcars.. .  do streetcar tracks intersect well with CSX tracks? >> say if St.Johns was utilized for streetcar west toward a lane diet on Blanding, with Herschel south through San Juan also carrying a line along the Jacksonville Marina Mile? also out to Blanding? thence north to return to FJC/FCCJ/FSCJ Kent Campus...?

We're dreaming and scheming here but speculation is half the fun.

Also - anyone else here see the sense in this? vvv
The northbound lane3 on Roosevelt from Shawnee in Ortega to Park St East, specifically from Wabash, Roosevelt Mall - where no new "stacking"/turn lane will ever be built in front of Longhorn at SanJuan - and continuing along all of Fairfax - will be signed as a continuous RIGHT TURN ONLY lane.

Seriously - if you're north of Collins Road and headed to JIA, you have NO business in Lane3 at any time.
legislate it already and get the signs up.

IF  JTAs BRT can remove all parallel parking from the shoulder of Blanding with a simple repaint of the road deck, then this reclaiming the outboard northbound lane on Roosevelt should have happened LONG ago!

For Christ'sake busses STOP at FSCJ   IN THE ROAD on  17 immediately after the Park Street-Blanding connecting flyover!!!

the ONLY REAL construction cost to implement this "feature" of the next overlay coming our way is PAVEMENT REMOVAL! seriously no joke.
partial tapered widening of the triangular median where the current embarrasing  HIDDEN DRIVEWAYS AHEAD -- which basically translates into - "WE had no foresight and overbuilt the boulevard and removed too much of all these front yards and effed up Fishweir creek while we were at it"

[north miami]

people will go back and forth about herschel all day long. they do a service at a very low price for people that would just let there animals stay sick if it wasn't for them. I've never had a problem with several cats i have brought there with no problems.

The dangerous,wildly inadequate parking impact is curiously tolerated by city officials.Even absent comment in the citizen Overlay workshops.I reside down the street and even i the gadfly look the other way so to speak.Probably out of a sense of futility.
And it is fun to see all of the criters and the scene is a great laboratory for research on the the observation that pets and 'owners' often have the same features.TRUE.

[north miami]

As to the (now dead) Commander project, most neighbors were in favor of redevelopment of the site, but the scale/density of what was initially proposed by Balanky was rejected pretty quickly. Although he and the neighbors eventually reached a compromise of sorts, market conditions killed the project.  The Fairfax Manor folks (in whose backyard the Herschel corridor lies) are an active bunch who stand up for the integrity of their neighborhood. I'm happy to learn the history of the area, and glad to know there's a group trying to preserve its character.

Ohhhh Yea!
Fairfax et al well connected politically-even the Commander's Chamber/Cornerstone connections to no avail.Overlay public workshops clearly revealed opposition and also overwhelming support for the (agreed 'unlikely') creation of public park at Loop bulding area.It's there as a matter of public record.
By the way- the section next to Commander along the Creek-the trash bins-this area possibly public already??
As part of the long drawn out Fishweir Creek restoration drama there was a couple of years ago a bid as part of the plan to designate this spot as public/boat launch to accomodate public access.

From the water this section of the creek looks like a slum.The Loop building area projects out over the shore on raised piers.That must have been a dandy permitting file!And the Commander parking area- a product of the 60's pretty much 'pre permit'-projecting out in to former waters of the state,past the natural shoreline,filled in for a parking lot.You can easily view this yourself from the herschel street bridge.I personally feel that this protrusion has altered water flow dynamics which has contributed to creek problems.It will be interesting to see if the Corp of Engineers agrees.The photo op of the parking lot from the water is telling.