J Magazine Fall 2017

THE MAGAZINE OF THE REBIRTH OF JACKSONVILLE’S DOWNTOWN
OWNERSHIP
I S S U E
PAST ITS PRIME
COULD A NEW
CONVENTION
CENTER BREaTHE
MORE LIFE INTO
DOWNTOWN?
P26
DEVELOPMENT
THE CATHEDRAL
DISTRICT AIMS
TO ADD HEART
TO THE CORE
P66
HOMELESSNESS
NO QUICK FIX
IN SIGHT FOR
DOWNTOWN
HOMELESS
POPULATION
P78
WHO OWNS
DOWNTOWN?
DISPLAY THROUGH NOVEMBER 2017
$4.95
HINT: HE’S ONE OF THEM
P18
FALL 2017

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contents
Issue 2 // Volume 1 // FALL 2017
26SUB
PRIME
BY FRANK DENTON
18 40 52
59
WHO OWNS
DOWNTOWN?
BY MARILYN YOUNG
NEAR WALK
BOTTOM
BY MIKE CLARK
THE URBANITES
BY ROGER BROWN
UNCOVERING
THE NECKLACE
BY RON LITTLEPAGE
AN URBAN
REVIVAL
BY LILLA ROSS
FLOAT TRIPS
BY PAULA HORVATH
66 74 78 86
DOWNTOWN
HOMELESSNESS
BY PAULA HORVATH
ELBOW BOOM
BY JASMINE MARSHALL
6
J MAGAZINE | FALL 2017

J MAGAZINE
PARTNERS
DEPARTMENTS
9 FEEDBACK
11 FROM THE EDITOR
13 BRIEFING
14 PROGRESS REPORT
16 RATING DOWNTOWN
45 12 HOURS DOWNTOWN
49 EYESORE
92 THE BIG PICTURE
95 QUESTIONS & ANSWERS
98 THE FINAL WORD
THE MAGAZINE OF THE REBIRTH OF JACKSONVILLE’S DOWNTOWN
OWNERSHIP
I S S U E
PAST ITS PRIME
COULD A NEW
CONVENTION
CENTER BREATHE
MORE LIFE INTO
DOWNTOWN?
P26
DEVELOPMENT
THE CATHEDRAL
DISTRICT AIMS
TO ADD HEART
TO THE CORE
P66
HOMELESSNESS
NO QUICK FIX
IN SIGHT FOR
DOWNTOWN
HOMELESS
POPULATION
P78
WHO OWNS
DOWNTOWN?
DISPLAY THROUGH NOVEMBER 2017
$4.95
HINT: HE’S ONE OF THEM
P18
FALL 2017
ON THE COVER
Ever wonder who owns all of
the property in Downtown
Jacksonville? Or, how much of it is
even being taxed? » SEE PAGE 18
ILLUSTRATION BY JEFF DAVIS

T H E M A G A Z I N E
OF THE REBIRTH OF
J A C K S O N V I L L E ’ S
D O W N T O W N
H
THE MAGAZINE OF
THE REBIRTH OF
JACKSONVILLE’S
DOWNTOWN
H
Michael P. Clark
Roger Brown
WRITERS
PUBLISHER
Mark Nusbaum
GENERAL MANAGER/
CREATIVE DIRECTOR
Jeff Davis
EDITOR
Frank Denton
VP OF SALES
Lana Champion
DIRECTOR OF SALES
Lyn Sargent
VP OF CIRCULATION
Amy McSwain
Paula Horvath
Ron Littlepage
MAILING ADDRESS
J Magazine, 1 Riverside Ave., Jacksonville, FL 32202
CONTACT US
EDITORIAL:
(904) 359-4197, frank.denton@jacksonville.com
ADVERTISING:
(904) 359-4471, lana.champion@jacksonville.com
(904) 359-4115, lyn.sargent@jacksonville.com
DISTRIBUTION/REPRINTS:
(904) 359-4459, amy.mcswain@jacksonville.com
WE WELCOME SUGGESTIONS FOR STORIES.
PLEASE SEND IDEAS OR INQUIRIES TO:
frank.denton@jacksonville.com
No part of this publication and/or website may be reproduced,
stored in a retrieval system or transmitted in any form without prior
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if approval is in writing. J Magazine and Times-Union Media buy all
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the information contained in this publication.
© 2017 Times-Union Media. All rights reserved.
A PRODUCT OF
EDITORIAL BOARD

FEEDBACK
THE PREMIERE ISSUE
BY THE TIME the first issue of
J Magazine hit the streets in June, we found
ourselves inundated with feedback on
everything from creative ways we can work
together to improve the core to what’s wrong
with Downtown Jacksonville. Kevin Borovsky
wasn’t afraid to share his enthusiasm AND
even dream a little in the process: “PLEASE
get downtown rocking!!! A large Ferris wheel
by the river by the stadium, for example.”
RE: Activating the Shipyards: Jaguars
owner Shad Khan continues partnering with
the city to invest in Downtown Jacksonville
“Shad Khan is one of
the BEST things to
happen to Jacksonville!”
STEVEN JACKSON SR.
RE: DOWNTOWN: It’s time to fix it!
“If you want to revitalize
Downtown, you have to
have cheap/free parking
and affordable housing.”
Rick Puckett
“Too much violence
Downtown, I’m speaking
from experience ... I avoid
going Downtown at all
cost.”
Carolyn Cancilla
“The only time I’m
Downtown is during
football season.”
Michael Andre Watkins
“One word: crime.”
Jonathon Armstrong
“I avoid (Downtown)
because of the following:
1. One-way streets
2. Lack of parking – expense
3. Pan handlers/homeless
4. Crime
5. Pricey venues
6. Jail/bail bonds/court”
Ray Seabolt Jr.
“Too large of a homeless
population!!!
Zaida Perez
RE: A RIVER RUNS
THROUGH US
“All you have to
do is be behind
some out-of-town
traffic on the
Fuller Warren
and watch how
they stare at the
river. We have
never used our
best asset to our
advantage like we
should.”
Mary M Roe
“About time!! So
much potential!!!”
Billy Mitchell
“So is Shad the
ONLY millionaire
in Jacksonville
willing to put his
money where his
vision is?”
Mark Anthony Rivera
“There is nothing
futuristic about
Daily’s Place”
Michele Fraser
“Khan is literally
offering to develop
Jacksonville for us,
and people are still
complaining. Way
to go.”
Tommy Higginbotham
“Khan is a great
person. He sees
the potential and
strives to make Jax
great again!!!”
Robin Bennett
RE: The Space Race: When it comes to parking in
Jacksonville’s Downtown, perception may be a reality
“Paying for parking is why
I don’t go Downtown.”
Ron Spofee
“Parking is hell. Maybe
put that on your list of
to-do`s.”
Bianca Rodriguez
“My No.1 issue every time
I have been Downtown is
parking where I need to
go. Not walk six or seven
blocks from where I found
parking to wherever it was
that I needed to go.”
Steven Pulley
RE: EYESORE:
Berkman Plaza II
“Definitely do
something (about
Berkman II).
Nothing scares away
potential business
and investors like
buildings sitting
around in supposedly
prominent parts of
town unfinished.”
Beck Stein
FALL 2017 | J MAGAZINE 9

FROM THE EDITOR
Downtown cranes
signal momentum as
projects take shape
FRANK
DENTON
PHONE
(904) 359-4197
EMAIL
frank.denton@
jacksonville.com
f you haven’t been Downtown in
I a few months, you’ve missed a
long-lost and beautiful sight.
Cranes. Construction cranes.
They’ve been at work all around Downtown: erecting
the Lofts at LaVilla, the new Regional Transportation
Center and the Houston Street Manor apartments on the
west side of Downtown and, of course, Daily’s Place on
the east end.
On the Southbank, there have been cranes lofting
the Broadstone River House apartments and the Baptist-M.D.Anderson
Cancer Center.
On the Northbank Riverwalk, three cranes are poised
to rip out a collapsed street and an old parking lot to
recreate a St. Johns River inlet that soon could be the site
of ... well, read my story on page 26.
It was only last October that Mayor Lenny Curry
expressed urgency to the Times-Union Editorial Board
about Downtown revitalization: “When can I see cranes?
I want to see cranes. I want to see them tomorrow.”
He’s seeing some now, and there are more to come:
Our Progress Report is on page 14.
As encouraging as the crane sightings are, note they
are on the periphery of Downtown, as if they’re surrounding
and anticipating the main events to catalyze
true revitalization: the Shipyards, the Laura Street Trio/
Barnett Bank, The District, a convention center and the
successors to the Landing and Berkman II.
If you love Jacksonville (and aren’t a complete cynic),
you have to be getting excited about the promise of all
those projects ... but it’s still just that, promise, until those
cranes actually are at work lifting steel into the air.
We have to keep our focus sharp, our minds open
and our pressure resolute.
Since the premiere issue of J three months ago,
Downtown revitalization has made real progress, with
those cranes and other small but important steps:
n Curry and Mark Lamping, Jaguars president
representing Shad Khan’s Iguana Investments, visited
Kansas City, St. Louis and Baltimore looking for ideas for
public-private partnerships.
n The District announced that its massive development
will include a 200-room hotel.
n In a symbolic rebirth, Morton’s steakhouse
opened in the Hyatt Regency, five years after giving up
the ghost on the Southbank. It’ll have competition from
the coming Cowford Chophouse.
n Curry’s budget includes money to raze the old
courthouse and city hall to allow development, possibly
as a convention center, and maybe to fund improvements
to the venerable Emerald Necklace plan. See Ron
Littlepage’s story on page 59.
n The Downtown Investment Authority is working
on “road diets” and two-way streets to humanize
Downtown.
n A consultant’s study of a new convention center
concluded: “Not now.” But it meant not yet, until some
other Downtown projects come to life – and they’re on
the verge. So soon, it can be, “Yes, now!”
You’ll read all about that in this second issue of J and
more:
On page 18, Marilyn Young shows why much of
Downtown doesn’t pay property taxes, Mike Clark
explores the need for better walkability (page 40), and
Paula Horvath asks why our river taxis can’t be expanded
and cheaper, or even free (page 74).
Downtown has lots of things to do but needs more.
Jasmine Marshall wants to lure you into the Elbow entertainment
district (page 86).
If you’re bothered by the homeless or transient people
Downtown, Paula Horvath tells how Orlando dealt
with the issue (page 78) — and introduces you to one of
them who wants a word with you (page 82).
The quietest part of Downtown is becoming one of
the most interesting. Read Lilla Ross’ take on a spiritual
approach to revitalizing the Cathedral District (page 66).
Downtown already has some committed residents
who are passionate about their neighborhood. As Roger
Brown writes (page 52), they’re even organized!
Remember in the first J, we declared Berkman II an
eyesore? Well, we think that’s about to be resolved, so we
found another — a high-profile company visually polluting
the Riverwalk whom we call out on page 49.
If things seem to be moving fast, remember that each
Wednesday we devote most of the T-U op-ed page to all
things Downtown.
Meanwhile, all of us need to keep the faith up —
and the pressure on.
Frank Denton was editor of The Florida Times-Union in
2008-16 and now is editor at large and editor of J. He lives in
Avondale.
FALL 2017 | J MAGAZINE 11

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$3,021,914,038
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DIGITS
TOTAL
ASSESSED
VALUE OF
ALL THE
PROPERTY IN
DOWNTOWN
JACKSONVILLE
SOURCE:
2016 Property
Appraiser’s Office
BRIEFING
By The Florida Times-Union Editorial Board
Thumbs down to JEA
for making it necessary
for Mayor Lenny Curry
to mediate its technical
dispute with the
Cowford Chophouse.
Thumbs up to Fresh
Market, the Brooklyn
pioneer which had a
“Grand Re-opening” to
show off some additions
and improvements.
Thumbs down to
the snail-like pace of
updating parking
meters Downtown,
some of which still don’t
allow credit cards for
payment.
Thumbs up to the
Jumbo Shrimp, who
were a hit on and off
the Downtown Baseball
Grounds in their first
year as Jacksonville’s
rebranded minor-league
baseball team.
Thumbs down to the
still-too-familiar sight of
transients and
homeless people
sleeping overnight along
the Riverwalk. Sit, stand,
walk, but don’t make us
watch you sleep there.
HITS & MISSES
Thumbs up to the
Friends of
Hemming Park for
doing a much better
job of balancing the
responsibility of keeping
the Downtown park
safe and clean with the
desire to keep it full
of activities that draw
people.
Thumbs down to
the confusing
street pattern
of Bay Street,
which continues
to confound even
the most seasoned
Downtown folks with
its perplexing lane
signals and awkwardly
aligned lanes.
Thumbs up to our
Jacksonville
Symphony
Orchestra, which
expanded its season
and its Masterworks
series and is upgrading
its musicians.
Thumbs up to the
Jaguars’ effort to
bring the NFL Draft
event to Jacksonville
sometime between
2019 and 2023.
FIRST PERSON
««««««««««««««««««««««««««««««««««««««««
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»»»»»»»»»»»»»»»»»»»»»»»»»»»»»»»»»»»»»»»»
Thumbs down to
our city’s failure
to take advantage
of showcasing
Jacksonville’s rich
and significant role
in African-
American
history.
Thumbs down to
the Main Street
Bridge being
constantly closed over
weekends, discouraging
people from trying to
come Downtown.
Thumbs up to the
increasing presence of
cranes along our
Downtown skyline
and shovels into our
Downtown dirt. Things
are getting built, and
progress is being
made.
Thumbs up to
Daily’s Place
amphitheater,
which has certainly
lived up to its promise
to be an intimate, eyecatching
Downtown
facility that can attract
top-tier musical
performers.
“Our library. Our river. Heck, the Desert Rider
(on Hogan Street) is a pearl — it’s got the best
cheesy grits you will eat in a restaurant.”
Eric Smith, former city councilman ON DOWNTOWN JACKSONVILLE (PAGE 52)
FALL 2017 | J MAGAZINE 13

BROOKLYN
PARK
CHELSEA
PARK
BROOKLYN
J MAGAZINE’S
PROGRESS REPORT
HOUSTON
FORSYTH
ADAMS
PRIME OSBORN
CONVENTION
CENTER
OAK
JACKSON
DUVAL
MONROE
MAGNOLIA
MAY
RIVERSIDE AVE.
MADISON
Monroe Lofts
A 108–unit project, approved
by the Downtown Development
Review Board.
STATUS: Closing documents for the
financing of the project have just begun
to be circulated among the parties. The
project remains on schedule, with construction
in early 2018.
JEFFERSON
LAVILLA
BAY
WATER
BROAD
CLAY
Lofts at
LaVilla
This complex will
feature studio,
one, two FLORIDA and three bedroom
units TIMES-UNION
directly in front of Prime
Osborn Convention Center.
STATUS: Construction continues
as planned and the project
remains on schedule for a fall
opening.
PEARL
JULIA
ACOSTA BRIDGE
Houston
Street
Manor
A seven-story,
72-unit senior housing
development at Houston
and Jefferson on the edge of
LaVilla catty-corner from the
Courthouse.
STATUS: Under construction,
to be completed by
December.
HEMMING
PARK
HOGAN
LAURA
Laura Street
Trio and Barnett
Bank Building
Renovation of the iconic
buildings into residences, offices, a hotel
and commercial/retail uses. Mayor Lenny
JACKSONVILLE
Curry and the Downtown Investment
TIMES-UNION
LANDING
Authority CENTER approved the $79 million project,
with $9.8 million from the city.
STATUS: Redevelopment agreements
have been signed, and due diligence on
the future garage at Forsyth and Main is
set to begin.
BEAVER
ASHLEY
CHURCH
MAIN
MAIN STREET
BRIDGE
FRIENDSHIP
FOUNTAIN
OCEAN
FOREST
OAK
MAY
UNITY
PLAZA
TRANSPORTATION CENTER
The $57 million multi-modal hub, in
LaVilla across from Prime Osborn, will
centralize local, regional and intercity
transportation, including local bus, Skyway, regional
bus and intercity bus and passenger rail service.
STATUS: Under construction. Completion expected
by the end of 2019. Watch a live feed of construction
on JTA’s website at www.jtafla.com.
Vista Brooklyn
A 10-story apartment tower
with about 300 units, is
planned as the next addition
to the growing Brooklyn neighborhood
on Riverside Avenue.
STATUS: The DIA approved a $9 million
grant to assist in the development of
the approximately $63 million project.
PRUDENTIAL DR.
RIVERPLACE
SAN MARCO BLVD.
MARY
RIVERSIDE
N
RIVERSIDE
ARTS MARKET
Burlock & Barrel Distillery
The whiskey distillery and tasting room near
Unity Plaza has its state and federal licenses.
STATUS: Final Downtown Development
Review Board approval pending.
FULLER WARREN BRIDGE

NEWMAN
SPRINGFIELD
FSCJ student
housing
The project will have 20
apartments for 58 students,
and a café named 20 West, part
of the school’s culinary program.
STATUS: Building renovations are
underway. The café should open in the
fall and the housing sometime in 2018.
MARKET
LIBERTY
WASHINGTON
CATHERINE
Cowford
Chop
House
With $10 million
of restoration going into
the former Bostwick Building,
this upscale restaurant across
from the Main Street Bridge
will feature a rooftop lounge.
STATUS: Restoration is
almost complete, and the
opening is set for early
October.
PALMETTO
MEMORIAL
ARENA
ARLINGTON
EXPRESSWAY
A. PHILIP RANDOLPH
BASEBALL
GROUNDS
Jaguars’ indoor
practice field
The 94,000-square-foot
facility is part of the
$90-million EverBank Field project that
included the Daily’s Place amphitheater,
which opened in May.
STATUS: Open!
GEORGIA
ADAMS
FRANKLIN
EVERBANK
FIELD
BAY
The Doro
District
Plans include a
restaurant, bar and
bowling and possibly a hotel or
multifamily residential.
STATUS: Approved by the
Downtown Development Review
Board and the DIA.
SPORTS COMPLEX
GATOR BOWL BLVD.
DAILY’S
PLACE
METROPOLITAN
PARK
FLAGLER
NORTHBANK
KIPP
Old courthouse
and city hall
Mayor Lenny Curry proposed
$8 million in his budget for
next year to raze the buildings to make
them available for development.
STATUS: Pending in City Council
Broadstone
River House
This five- to-sixstory
structure will
have 260 to 300 apartments, with
a parking structure.
STATUS: Construction continues
on schedule.
SOUTHBANK
BROADCAST
The Shipyards
Shad Khan’s plan for mixed-use redevelopment
of the old Shipyards and Metropolitan
Park. Approved by the DIA.
STATUS: Negotiations on details are ongoing. The DIA
approved a site-access agreement for Khan’s Iguana
Investments to begin environmental assessment of the
Metropolitan Park (including the Kidz Campus site).
S T . J O H N S R I V E R
The District
Peter Rummell’s community concept
will have up to 1,170 residences, 200
hotel rooms, 285,500 square feet of
commercial/retail and 200,000 square feet of office
space, with a marina.
STATUS: The redevelopment agreement is being
negotiated among the developers, the Downtown
Investment Authority, the city and JEA.
MONTANA
HENDRICKS
KINGS
ONYX
LOUISA
The San Marco apartments
This $25 million development will have 143 units of
workforce housing with a few studios but the rest oneand
two-bedroom apartments.
STATUS: The DIA approved development rights and a $2.5 million
grant in August. Next: the Downtown Development Review Board.
SAN MARCO
DOWNTOWN
JACKSONVILLE
A J MAGAZINE REPORT
FALL 2017 | J MAGAZINE 15

POWER
RATING DOWNTOWN
By The Florida Times-Union Editorial Board
Apartment construction pushing
progress in Downtown Jacksonville
4 4
8
4
MIN
MAX
MIN
MAX
MIN
MAX
MIN
MAX
PUBLIC SAFETY
LEADERSHIP
HOUSING
INVESTMENT
Mayor Curry budgeted 100
more cops, but it will take time
for them to be trained and on
the street. While there have
been a rash of thefts,
a dangerous Downtown is
mostly a misperception.
PREVIOUS RATING: 4
Curry is on the case, in his
budget and priorities and
behind the scenes, as he
pushes and cajoles to confront
tough issues and make
things happen.
PREVIOUS RATING: 8
Apartment developments are
going up in LaVilla and the
Southbank, with more coming
in Brooklyn and San Marco.
It’ll be great to have those
FSCJ students living on
Adams Street.
PREVIOUS RATING: 3
All those new apartment
complexes, Daily’s Place and
the Baptist Health buildings are
a good start, but we’re looking
for massively more private
investment just waiting for
Downtown momentum.
PREVIOUS RATING: 3
4
5
3
2
MIN
MAX
MIN
MAX
MIN
MAX
MIN
MAX
DEVELOPMENT
EVENTS & CULTURE
TRANSPORTATION
CONVENTION CENTER
We’re waiting for shovels in
the ground and cranes building
the Shipyards, The District,
a convention center and
whatever replaces the
Landing and Berkman II.
PREVIOUS RATING: 4
Daily’s Place is packing ’em
in. The resurgent Jacksonville
Symphony expanded to
38 weeks, soon to be 40,
with Masterworks increasing
from 10 to 12. See the JSO
free Nov. 1 at Art Walk.
PREVIOUS RATING: 4
Watch a live feed of the
new Regional Transportation
Center in LaVilla on JTA’s
website (www.jtafla.com).
It will get Greyhound off Pearl
Street. The river taxis
are stepping up.
PREVIOUS RATING: 3
Another consultant’s
report says “not now,”
because Downtown isn’t
ready. When other plans
become soup, it needs to
become NOW!
PREVIOUS RATING: 2
OVERALL RATING
With all those new apartments, we’ll have the people
living Downtown, and we’re adding even more things for
them to do. Even more people will enjoy Downtown
when the mainsprings – the Shipyards, The District and,
dare we say, a reimagined Landing – come to life.
PREVIOUS RATING: 4
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10
JEFF DAVIS
16
J MAGAZINE | FALL 2017

18
J MAGAZINE | FALL 2017

FROM GOVERNMENT buildings TO
CHURCHES, ARE TAX EXEMPT PROPERTY
OWNERS IN OUR DOWNTOWN TAKING UP
VALUABLE REAL ESTATE WHILE PUTTING
A DAMPER ON DEVELOPMENT?
WHO OWNS
DOWNTOWN?
BY MARILYN YOUNG // FOR J MAGAZINE
PHOTOGRAPH BY CHARLES SUTTON // SUTTON DIGITAL DESIGN
FALL 2017 | J MAGAZINE 19

DOWNTOWN’S HIGHEST-ASSESSED PROPERTY
Which Downtown property had the highest assessed value in 2016? THE Duval
County Courthouse at 501 W. Adams St. topped the list at $205.41 million.
(Don’t forget, the cost for the facility, that opened in 2012, was $350 million.)
EXCLUSIVE
ONLINE
CONTENT
Visit our website at
jacksonville.com/jmag
to view an interactive
map containing the
owners, valuations
and taxes for every
property in Downtown
Jacksonville.
owntown Jacksonville has long been an anchor for government,
churches and nonprofits, which bring thousands of workers, worshipers
and customers to the urban core.
But that anchor causes a drag on the amount of property taxes
paid in the three Downtown taxing districts.
Those institutions typically don’t pay property taxes, as long as
Dthe property’s primary use is for an exempt purpose.
Other exemptions include residences with an assessed value less than $25,000 that have the standard
$25,000 homestead exemption.
Last year, those exemptions resulted in no taxes being collected on the tax accounts that make up
43 percent of the urban core’s $3.02 billion assessed value. Those tax-exempt organizations do pay
taxes when operating a non-exempt business, such as a parking garage.
For example, government agencies owned nearly 400 sites owned by government agencies
are worth more than $1.07 billion, but they were taxed on just one property that had a taxable
JEFF DAVIS
20
J MAGAZINE | FALL 2017

TOTAL Market value:
$3,092,316,515
TOTAL Assessed value:
$3,021,914,038
TOTAL Taxable value:
$1,459,199,029
WHO OWNS DOWNTOWN?
» GRAPHIC BY JEFF DAVIS & MARILYN YOUNG // J MAGAZINE «
TOP OWNERS
(based on assessed value)
1
City of
Jacksonville
Assessed value:
$868.63 million
Taxable value:
$137,225
2
Southern
Baptist Hospital
of Florida Inc.
(holdings include
Baptist Medical Center)
Assessed value:
$266.21 million
Taxble value:
$10 million
3
Hertz
Jacksonville
One LLC
(holdings include the
Bank of America Tower)
Assessed value:
$75.71 million
Taxable value:
$75.71 million
4
Allegiance
Jacksonville LLC
(holdings include the
Wells Fargo Center)
Assessed value:
$66.17 million
Taxable value:
$66.17 million
5
Federal
government
Assessed value:
$57.82 million
Taxable value: $0
40+34+13+3+10+u
38.48%
COMMERCIAL
ASSESSED VALUE:
$1.16 billion
TAXABLE VALUE:
$1.12 billion
10.94%
RESIDENTIAL
ASSESSED VALUE:
$330.76 million
TAXABLE VALUE:
$313.86 million
HOW THE PROPERTY BREAKS DOWN
2.59%
CHURCHES
ASSESSED VALUE:
$78.23 million
TAXABLE VALUE:
$6.64 million
35.55%
GOVERNMENT
ASSESSED VALUE:
$1.07 billion
TAXABLE VALUE:
$137,225
12.28%
NONPROFITS
ASSESSED VALUE:
$371 million
TAXABLE VALUE:
$13.24 million
SOURCE: 2016 Property
Appraiser’s Office
ADDING IT UP
6
Properties whose owners
and addresses are
confidential. (Two parking
lots, a residential condo, a
single-family home, a waste
land site and a group care/
sanitarium/convalescent
facility.)
11
Park/recreational sites
owned by the City of
Jacksonville.
43+57+
$
43
Percentage of properties in
Downtown’s total assessed
value that aren’t taxed.
141
Single-family homes in
Downtown, with assessed
values of $7,946 to $546,240.
228
Private and public parking
lots and garages in
Downtown’s taxing districts.
FALL 2017 | J MAGAZINE 21

WHO OWNS DOWNTOWN?
» DATA VISUALIZATION: Courtney Williams & MARC JENKINS «
TOP OWNERS
GOVERNMENT
COMMERCIAL
The City of Jacksonville’s 192 properties had a total
assessed value of $868.63 million, making it the top
owner in that category in 2016. The next closest is
Southern Baptist Hospital of Florida at $266.21 million.
Total assessed value: $1.07 billion
Percent of assessed value in Downtown: 35.55%
Total taxable value: $137,225
Percent of taxable value in Downtown: 0.01%
Total assessed value: $1.16 billion
Percent of assessed value in Downtown: 38.48%
Total taxable value: $1.12 billion
Percent of taxable value in Downtown: 77.03%
value of $137,225.
And First Baptist Church owns buildings
on 11 Downtown blocks, with a total
assessed value of $54.8 million, according
to records from the Property Appraiser’s
Office. In 2016, the church’s total taxable
value was $2.2 million tied to two of the
parking garages it operates.
The impact of the exemptions is typically
higher in downtowns than in urban
areas because of the strong presence of
governments, churches and nonprofits.
Taxes paid by Downtown entities in
Jacksonville totaled $29.09 million in
2016, just 2.5 percent of the $1.14 billion in
property taxes collected in Duval County,
according to the Tax Collector’s Office.
There has been increasing discussion
across the country about the impact those
property tax exemptions have on dwindling
government budgets, particularly
during the recession.
In 2015, Maine Gov. Paul LePage first
pushed the state Legislature to allow governments
to assess taxes on nonprofits
that owned property worth more than
$500,000, according to the Portland Press
Herald. The issue arose again this year
when a potential government shutdown
was being threatened.
While those debates have become
more frequent in the past decade, sweeping
changes to the exemptions aren’t likely
to be made anytime soon. They’ve been
in place for generations.
Aundra Wallace, CEO of the Downtown
Investment Authority, said he
wasn’t surprised by the percentage of
tax-exempt properties in Jacksonville’s
urban core.
“We are a city in the Southeast, and at
the end of the day, we’re still part of the
Bible Belt,” he said.
Wallace said that certainly puts more
pressure on officials to maximize potential
Downtown development opportunities.
Such as having a 28-acre Southbank
site owned by JEA become home to The
District, a planned healthy living community
by Elements Development of
Jacksonville. The Peter Rummell-Michael
Munz partnership recently signed a deal
with a hotel for the massive mixed-use
community planned along the St. Johns
River.
The development would include
285,500 square feet of commercial and
retail space, 200,000 square feet of office
space, 1,170 residential units, a 125-slip
marina and a public riverfront park, the
22
J MAGAZINE | FALL 2017
SOURCE: 2016 Property Appraiser’s Office, ESRI

WHO OWNS DOWNTOWN?
» DATA VISUALIZATION: Courtney Williams & MARC JENKINS «
Times-Union previously reported.
Last year, the site at 801 Broadcast
Place had an assessed value of $25.9 million,
but because it’s owned by JEA, the
taxable value is zero.
The development value for The District
would be $400 million-$450 million,
which will increase the taxable value exponentially.
The same would be true for the 70
acres that Jacksonville Jaguars owner
Shad Khan wants to develop across from
EverBank Field.
If an agreement is reached with Khan’s
investment company, the city-owned
Metropolitan Park and Shipyards sites —
which have no taxable value — would become
another mega-development.
At full build-out, the project will include
600-1,000 residential units, a hotel,
300,000 to 500,000 square feet of office
space, 150,000 to 250,000 square feet
for retail and restaurants and a marina,
the Times-Union reported. All of which
should bring a huge increase in taxable
value.
Mayor Lenny Curry’s budget included
$8 million to demolish the old county
courthouse and city hall on Bay Street.
Wallace said the ability to have a clean
slate on the high-profile site near the Hyatt
Regency Jacksonville Riverfront would
be attractive to a developer.
And hopefully become another example
of turning a government-owned property
into a development that generates
jobs, capital investment and tax dollars.
Wallace pointed out that the tax-exempt
institutions in Downtown play a
role in its vitality and lifestyle.
Indeed, they invest millions in capital
improvements, employ thousands of
people who give a boost to Downtown
businesses and can serve as a catalyst for
growth.
For example, the Jessie Ball duPont
Fund spent more than $20 million to buy
and convert the former Haydon Burns Library
into an office center for nonprofits.
Those agencies brought 200 employees
to Downtown, all potential customers for
restaurants and stores.
The impact from the center’s 2015
opening was felt quickly, including by the
Burrito Gallery. The restaurant received
a $73,000 DIA grant to finance a kitchen
expansion and other work, which owners
said was partly necessary because of the
influx of customers from its new neighbor
just across Adams Street.
The renovations at the Jessie Ball du-
RESIDENTIAL
NONPROFITS
CHURCHES
Total assessed value: $330.76 million
Percent of assessed value in Downtown: 10.94%
Total taxable value: $313.86 million
Percent of taxable value in Downtown: 21.51%
Total assessed value: $371 million
Percent of assessed value in Downtown: 12.28%
Total taxable value: $13.24 million
Percent of taxable value in Downtown: 0.91 %
Total assessed value: $78.23 million
Percent of assessed value in Downtown: 2.59%
Total taxable value: $6.64 million
Percent of taxable value in Downtown: 0.45%
SOURCE: 2016 Property Appraiser’s Office, ESRI
FALL 2017 | J MAGAZINE 23

Your city from a
NEW PERSPECTIVE.
WatsonRealtyCorp.com
800.257.5143
WatsonCommercial.com
904.731.4511

TOP PROPERTY
ASSESSED
VALUES
BY CATEGORY
Church
First Baptist Church
600 N. Main St.
Assessed value: $15.99 million
Taxable value: 0
Commercial
Bank of America Tower
50 N. Laura St.
Owner: Hertz Jacksonville
One LLC
Assessed value: $72.42 million
Taxable value: $72.42 million
Government
Duval County Courthouse
501 W. Adams St.
Owner: City of Jacksonville
Assessed value: $205.41 million
Taxable value: 0
Nonprofit
Baptist Medical Center
800 Prudential Drive
Owner: Southern Baptist Hospital
of Florida Inc.
Assessed value: $204.02 million
Taxable value: $5.85 million
Other
Group care/sanitarium/
convalescent facility
Owner and address are confidential
Assessed value: $3.32 million
Taxable value: 0
Residential
The Strand
1401 Riverplace Blvd.
Owner: Delorenzo Strand LLC
Assessed value: $44.93 million
Taxable value: $44.93 million
SOURCE: 2016 Property Appraiser’s Office
Pont Center raised the assessed value of the building from $1.9 million
in 2013 to $12.4 million in 2016, but no taxes were assessed because
the duPont Fund is a tax-exempt foundation.
First Baptist Church Senior Executive Pastor John Blount said the
church’s facilities include four parking garages, three worship auditoriums,
a grade school for kindergarten
through eighth grade
and a music training institute for
adults.
He said the church’s weekly
gatherings draw 6,000 people
from around the region to Downtown.
That, coupled with the
church’s other programs, such as
the school, adds “vibrancy” to the
area around the church and supports
nearby businesses.
“A healthy, vibrant, inviting
Downtown is essential for
this daily pulse of life to spread
throughout the region, to connect
to the neighborhoods, to
give a sense of unity and civic
pride to those who call it home,”
said Blount, who serves on the
Downtown Vision board.
Downtown Vision is specifically
impacted by the heavy
tax-exempt presence in the urban
core. Those owners that
don’t pay property taxes also aren’t
required to pay the additional
1.1 mil contribution to help
fund Downtown Vision.
Last year, the agency received
$704,492 through the assessment
paid by businesses in a 90-block
area, according to the Tax Collector’s
Office.
Jake Gordon, Downtown Vision’s
CEO, is thankful that many
exempt businesses choose to pay
the assessment, including the
duPont Center, First Baptist, JEA
and the JaxChamber.
Also, the General Services Administration
pays a fee for work
Downtown Vision does around
the Bryan Simpson U.S. Courthouse.
Gordon said it is “similar” to the equivalent of a 1.1 mil contribution.
Curry’s budget included an additional contribution that would
match the full assessment on city-owned property, Gordon said. If approved
by council, the $146,831 will be used to hire more ambassadors
to drive Downtown Vision’s priority of keeping the urban core clean
and safe.
TOP 10 PROPERTY ASSESSED VALUES
1. Duval County
Courthouse
501 W. Adams St.
Owner: City of Jacksonville
Assessed value: $205.41 million
Taxable value: 0
2. Baptist Medical Center
800 Prudential Drive
Owner: Southern Baptist Hospital of
Florida
Assessed value: $204.02 million
Taxable value: $5.85 million
3. EverBank Field
1 EverBank Field Drive
Owner: City of Jacksonville
Assessed value: $166.28 million
Taxable value: 0
4. Bank of America Tower
50 N. Laura St.
Owner: Hertz Jacksonville One LLC
Assessed value: $72.42 million
Taxable value: $72.42 million
5. Police Memorial
Building
501 E. Bay St.
Owner: City of Jacksonville
Assessed value: $71.49 million
Taxable value: 0
6. Wells Fargo Center
1 W. Independent Drive
Owner: Allegiance Jacksonville LLC
Market value: $57.59 million
Taxable value: $57.59 million
7. Aetna Building
841 Prudential Drive
Owner: GV-IP Jacksonville Owner LLC
Assessed value: $46.85 million
Taxable value: $46.85 million
8. EverBank Center
301 W. Bay St.
Owner: Amkin West Bay LLC
Assessed value: $46.20 million
Taxable value: $46.20 million
9. Hyatt Regency
Jacksonville Riverfront
225 E. Coastline Drive
Owner: Jacksonville Hotel 2014
Purchaser LLC
Assessed value: $45.60 million
Taxable value: $45.60 million
10. The Strand
1401 Riverplace Blvd.
Owner: Delorenzo Strand LLC
Assessed value: $44.93 million
Taxable value: $44.93 million
JEFF DAVIS
Marilyn Young was an editor at The Florida Times-Union in
1998-2013 and was editor of the Financial News &
Daily Record in Downtown in 2013-2017.
GOVERNMENT
NONPROFIT
COMMERCIAL
RESIDENTIAL
SOURCE: 2016 Property Appraiser’s Office
FALL 2017 | J MAGAZINE 25

SPECIAL
REPORT
As a HISTORIC LANDMARK OF A FORGOTTEN TIME,
THE JACKSONVILLE TERMINAL IS AN ICONIC STRUCTURE.
AS A MODERn DOWNTOWN HUB OF ACTIVITY, THE
Prime F. Osborn III Convention Center IS A BUST.
BY FRANK DENTON // PHOTOGRAPHS BY JEFF DAVIS // J MAGAZINE
26
J MAGAZINE | FALL 2017

Built in 1919, the Jacksonville Terminal
was the largest railroad station in the South.
In 1986, the terminal was converted into
The Prime F. Osborn III Convention Center.
FALL 2017 | J MAGAZINE 27

SPECIAL
REPORT
The Prime F. Osborn III Convention Center, bless its heart, is still the grand Neo-Classical Revival monument that,
in its time as Union Terminal, welcomed thousands of people to Jacksonville every day for more than a half-century.
These days, it’s being crowded, and even obscured, by the new Jacksonville, with the Lofts at LaVilla smack in its
front yard and the new Jacksonville Regional Transportation Center arising on its north flank.
But if you get the right angle, the Prime Osborn retains much of its grandeur and some of its dignity, after having
been repurposed 30 years ago into an expansive meeting facility. “With 265,000 square feet of space,” its marketing
material says, “the Prime F. Osborn III Convention Center is large enough and versatile enough to accommodate
gatherings of virtually any size.”
But it’s not a
convention center.
28
J MAGAZINE | FALL 2017

Vendors begin packing up as an August
tech conference winds down at the
Prime F. Osborn III Convention Center.
Its floor space and easy parking make it
ideal for community events, trade shows,
QuiltFests, Home & Patio Shows and even
proms and elegant balls — attracting locals
who can drive in for the function then drive
home in time for dinner or bed.
But it is not the convention center that
Jacksonville needs if it is to become the multifaceted
destination city that attracts purposeful
visitors from all over the country and
world to discover the city’s charms — and,
while they’re at it, have a good time, spend
some money and maybe invest here.
A train station, especially the one that was
the largest in the South when it was built in
1919, needs to be accessible but away from
the city center; a true convention center must
be in, and integrated into, the city’s beating
heart.
That realization is bubbling among city,
civic and business leaders, and there are
ideas and even plans — or maybe a plan —
quietly swirling around and awaiting the
right moment to go public and on Jacksonville’s
Downtown agenda.
But let’s find our way there.
Convention centers are not merely big
boxes but can be confoundingly complex:
whether and who to build what kind of facility
where and in conjunction with what — and
with whose money and toward what goals?
With the wisdom of more than 30 years
and the Prime Osborn experience, Jacksonville’s
leaders will be much smarter this time.
Before they propose a plan, they should
filter it through the cautionary study by Heywood
T. Sanders, an urban development
scholar, published in 2014 as his book “Convention
Center Follies: Politics, Power and
Public Investment in American Cities.”
Sanders recounts the rocky love affair
over the past half-century between cities,
eager for economic development and downtown
renewal, and convention centers. Rosy
recommendations from a small group of
industry consultants spurred many cities to
invest tax dollars into more and ever bigger
convention centers to compete against each
other in a “metropolitan arms race.”
“Over and over, consultant market and
feasibility studies for new or expanded convention
centers have forecast a significant
return in terms of new convention attendees,
visitor spending, economic impact and jobs,”
Sanders wrote.
But he said those projections typically
fell short. “The rhetoric of convention center
boosters in city after city has not been
matched by actual performance … Much as
consultant forecasts of demand and center
performance have proven faulty, the basic
assumptions about convention and trade
show attendees, their visitation and spending
patterns, have proved unrealistic.”
Jacksonville was a bit late to the convention-center
trend in the 1980s and still made
some classic mistakes, mostly betting on the
come:
The project would “clean up” the area
around the terminal.
Convention planners would want to
come to a facility because of its striking architecture
and history.
A major convention hotel would be built
just across the street.
Meanwhile, conventioneers could stay at
hotels on the other side of Downtown and get
to the center via the Skyway Express and water
taxis up McCoys Creek.
The center would lead to construction of
“a new showcase entrance into Downtown”
from I-95.
A $34 million “business and professional
office complex” was announced across the
street. There would be residential development
along McCoys Creek and in Brooklyn.
None of that happened.
Still, City Council had approved the $24.5
million project in June 1982 on a vote of 15-1,
and the renovated, expanded and renamed
center opened Oct. 17, 1986. The Times-
Union quickly reported bookings beyond the
consultants’ projections.
But within a month of Prime Osborn’s
opening, 150 meeting planners toured the
center, and the T-U reported that, while they
were impressed with the building, some said
they “will not consider booking conventions
in the city for at least three years because of
a lack of shopping, entertainment and hotel
rooms.”
Mollie Grulke of Deerfield, Ill., was more
blunt: Jacksonville’s hotels looked “rundown”
and local restaurants offered little other
than seafood. “I would not bring a group to
Jacksonville. There is nothing to do.”
Thirty years later, that hasn’t changed
nearly enough. In a new report, consultants
from the Strategic Advisory Group (now part
of Jones Lang LaSalle or JLL), hired by the
Downtown Investment Authority, say they
interviewed more than 30 meeting planners,
and most rated Jacksonville’s attractiveness
below 7 on a scale of 1-10.
“The areas that were cited most frequently
as challenges,” the report said, “were walkability,
the lack of a sufficient hotel package,
airlift, the need to ‘cleanup’ Downtown, safety
and the overall lack of ‘things to do.’”
Meanwhile, Prime Osborn has something
going on in at least one of its rooms 85
percent of the time — but over 2014, only 27
percent of its total available square footage
was actually used, compared to an industry
standard of 70 percent.
Jacksonville still does not have a convention
center.
So what, you reasonably might ask. Why
do we really need one?
The reasons now are significantly different
from the pragmatic, two-dimensional
ones that were used 30 years ago for the
Prime Osborn — which essentially were
cleaning up the LaVilla area and bringing in
out-of-towners to spend money in hotels and
restaurants.
FALL 2017 | J MAGAZINE 29

SPECIAL
REPORT
For today’s JacksonvillE,
bringing purposeful people from all over to
work creatively together would bring new
life and spirit to Downtown. Conventioneers
would put feet on the street and fannies in the
seats not only in hotels, bars and restaurants
but also in our handy and substantial arts,
culture and sports venues within walking or
Skyway distance.
More than that, you and I know that, if
Jacksonville has any sort of brand nationally,
it’s as the first half of the name of an NFL
team. “Jacksonville?” we hear when travelling,
“where’s that?” But when they actually
visit, they tend to want to stay, as many of us
did.
A convention center, said Gino Caliendo,
general manager of the Hyatt Regency,
“would open the market up and bring more
national exposure to Jacksonville. They’d
come here and see what we have and say ‘I
want to come back for vacation. Jacksonville
has the beach, the golf, the TPC ... ’”
Paul Astleford, Visit Jacksonville president
and CEO and a hospitality-industry veteran,
said, “Cities that know the value of convention
centers and trade shows know it goes far
beyond the dollars spent at the meetings. The
exposure is hugely influential for economic
development and growth — people who want
to move here, bring their business here, and
so forth.”
“When we go around the country selling
The Players or football, we need a package,
and that package is incomplete if the city
does not have a convention center,” Rick
Catlett, president and CEO of the JaxSports
Council, was quoted as saying at the Jacksonville
Business Journal Business of Sports
Summit. “If you don’t have that element
with hotels and a great stadium, we can’t get
events here. If we do not invest in a convention
center, we will keep taxes low and be
happy, but we will be limited in what the city
is able to do.”
“It would put Jacksonville on the map,”
said Ginny Myrick, a local economic-development
consultant. “It would bring a Downtown
after-hours presence, and hundreds
and hundreds of people would be employed,
people who would live Downtown in workforce
housing.”
“It would change the landscape for us
Downtown,” said Aundra Wallace, CEO of
the Downtown Investment Authority and
||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Top 5 Convention
CenterS in the U.S.
Each year MeetingSource.com ranks the nation’s top convention centers using data from
the Travel Industry Association of America (TIA), the National Business Travel Association
(NBTA) and the Institute of Business Travel Management.
1. CHICAGO:
McCormick Place
Located along Lake Michigan, McCormick
Place attracts close to 3 million visitors
each year and is also the largest convention
center in the U.S.
Exhibit hall floor: 2,670,000 sq. ft.
2. Las Vegas:
Las Vegas
Convention Center
This state-of-the-art facility, totals more
than 3.2 million sq ft and exceeds even the
highest standards in Vegas.
Exhibit hall floor: 1,940,631 sq. ft.
3. WASHINGTON, D.C.:
Washington
Convention Center
A relatively new convention center, the
attractions nearby make this a popular
convention destination.
Exhibit hall floor: 703,000 sq. ft.
4. ORLANDO:
Orange County
Convention Center
Orlando is a leader in the tradeshow
industry, and whatever you can dream up
for your next meeting, you can probably
make it happen there.
Exhibit hall floor: 2,100,000 sq. ft.
5. ATLANTA:
Georgia International
Convention Center
The world’s only convention center directly
connected to a major airport, GICC also
features Georgia’s largest ballroom at
40,000 sq. ft.
Exhibit hall floor: 150,000 sq. ft.
30 J MAGAZINE | FALL 2017 SOURCE: meetingsource.com

‘‘
right convention center built at the right time
Cities that know the
VALUE Of convention
centers and trade shows know
it goes far beyond the dollars
spent at the meetings.”
PAUL ASTLEFORD
Visit Jacksonville president and CEO
the person most specifically responsible
for revitalization.
More specifically, in that new study, the
Strategic Advisory Group figured that the
— note those qualifications — could deliver
$3.52 in economic impact for every $1 invested
in debt service and operating-cost subsidy.
But Jacksonville would be buying into
intense intercity competition. “There are
rivalries between cities for the best sports
team, snack food, even slogan. But the most
cutthroat competition might be one local residents
barely ever notice: the bruising, toothand-nail
fight to host conventions and other
big special events,” Amanda Erickson wrote
five years ago in a CityLab article titled “Is It
Time to Stop Building Convention Centers?”
She quoted Christopher Leinberger, a
fellow in the Brookings Institution Metropolitan
Policy Program, as saying too many people
bought into the same vision at the same
time. “So many were saying, ‘All you have
to do is get 1 percent of the national market
and you’ll do just fine.’ Three hundred cities
bought the same logic.
“You need to look very carefully before
building another convention center in this
country.”
Sanders, in his “Convention Center Follies,”
said consultants may claim a long-term
history of demand for convention-center
space, but actual demand fluctuates with the
national economy, plunging after 9/11 and
the Great Recession.
Current data from the Center for Exhibition
Industry Research show that conventions
and trade shows rebounded quickly
after the recession in events, attendees and
spending but have leveled off with modest
growth.
IACC, an international association of
small- to medium-sized conference venues,
also reports growth: “As the meetings industry
continues its recovery for the fourth year,
IACC is seeing increased investment in newbuild,
meetings-focused venues as well as
capital investment in existing venues looking
to be at the forefront of meetings innovation.”
Sanders cautioned, “The reality of far
more limited growth, even in the face of a
continuing expansion of supply, is that the
convention market appeared to be increasingly
zero-sum.”
So a Jacksonville convention center
would plunge into immediate and intense
competition to take business away from other
cities — not the national powers like Chicago,
Atlanta and Orlando or what Sanders
calls “prime visitor destinations” like Boston
and San Francisco, but rather regional cities
like Tampa, Charlotte, Baltimore or Dallas.
So if we built a fancy new convention center,
how would we compete?
“First of all, it’s the destination,” said Brad
Mayne, president and CEO of the International
Association of Venue Managers. “Our
annual conference this year is in Nashville,
A tech conference attendee
finds a quite place to work on
his computer at the Prime F.
Osborn III Convention Center.

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and we’re getting a lot of excitement because
it is one of the music cities in the country.
“Jacksonville, I’d think, would be one of
those destinations that could have great success.
Jacksonville has a lot going for it, being
in Florida. And the Jaguars put the destination
on the map.”
In fact, despite our own inferiority complex,
Jacksonville does have a lot going for
it: The weather. Downtown arts, culture and
sports venues. The river. Handy neighborhoods
with good restaurants. The Elbow. The
beach. Golf. Mega-shopping within reach. A
terrific airport and interstate highway access.
And some features that might not occur
to you.
Phillip Harris, executive director of the Association
for Educational Communications
and Technology, based in Bloomington, Ind.,
is bringing its annual convention to the Hyatt
Regency in November for the third time, and
he has had a great time here:
“The cultural and educational venues that
are a part of Jacksonville, I have really worked
to promote within our membership. Beaches
are too far away to be an attraction. But education
and culture are really underemphasized
in the promotional activities. MOSH,
the other museum — the ‘Cummer’? — a
good half-day visit.
“A group of us went over to this company
where they make animatrons for Disney.
The Sally company. They do a phenomenal,
incredible experience. Our people are technology
nerds.
“The two African-American brothers
(presumably James Weldon Johnson and
John Rosamond Johnson) and the theater
nearby (the Ritz Theatre and Museum).
Those are the kind of cultural and education
venues we like.
“Most of our attendees are college and
university faculty, and their interests are
different than nightlife. We meet until 8 or 9
o’clock at night.
“We walked down to the contemporary
art museum (MOCA), that’s an under-advertised
treasure, as to what is there. I stopped
at this used-book store (Chamblin’s). I collect
James Whitcomb Riley, and I found four volumes!
Usually I don’t find any.
“Those are the kinds of really neat places
that visitors may be more interested in than
the Visit Jacksonville people think. A convention
center probably would pick up on the
importance of communicating the cultural
and educational opportunities that are there.
“I’d be remiss if I didn’t say that Peterbrooke
chocolate is just addictive, the chocolate-covered
peanuts. My wife rations them
out to me. Another little special treat that
people don’t necessarily think about or know
about.”
Granted the education-technology attendees
are “real nerds,” as Harris said, but
the point is that there are also sports fans,
beach people, architecture enthusiasts, students
of black history, golf fanatics, Navy veterans,
railroad aficionados and nautical buffs
— all of whom would find added value in a
Jacksonville meeting. Or could, if we develop
and promote some of our lesser-known features,
to present Jacksonville as interesting as
it is. More on that to come.
The city’s newly expanded Human Rights
Ordinance is a competitive advantage. After
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J MAGAZINE | FALL 2017

I’d think,
would be one of those
destinations that could have
great success (with a modern
convention center).”
‘‘JAcksonville,
BRAD MAYNE
International Association of Venue Managers president and CEO
Texas passed a law seen as anti-LGBT, California
banned taxpayer-funded travel to Texas.
Several other states are considering such
bans.
The Hyatt’s Caliendo is a three-year newcomer,
but he and the Hyatt’s owners feel
good about their stake Downtown, making
their own bet on the come. “My owners believe
in Jacksonville, and they believe in the
future of Jacksonville. They made a statement
by investing (unspecified millions) in the
property over the last three years.”
Was the possibility of a convention center
on the mind of Morton’s steakhouse when it
reopened recently in the Hyatt several years
after closing its location on the Southbank?
“Absolutely,” Caliendo said.
Despite that enthusiasM,
no one is arguing that the current state of
Downtown could support a convention center.
Sanders, whose academic specialty is
publicly funded convention centers and the
politics of urban development, warned in
2005, “It is abundantly clear that a new or ever-bigger
convention center cannot in and of
itself revitalize or redeem a downtown core.”
“Do not talk about a convention center on
its own,” Astleford of Visit Jacksonville said.
“It has to be part of a bigger plan and vision
for Jacksonville. Cities that see it as part of a
package, a bigger attraction, have done very
well. So timing would be important. Getting
a customer advisory council formed — meeting
professionals of all kinds — should have
happened a long time ago. Cities that understand
that have been really successful in the
convention world.”
“It is not you-build-it-and-they-willcome,”
Caliendo of the Hyatt said. “You have
to have the infrastructure. You sell the amenities
of what you have.”
The new Strategic Advisory Group report
was blunt in its bottom-line recommendation:
“Postpone the construction of a new
convention center … until such time as it is
part of a destination plan that will improve
the overall attractiveness of Jacksonville as
a convention, meetings and major indoor
event destination.”
SAG said Jacksonville needs more walkable
full-service hotels, restaurants, bars,
shopping and other attractions before a
new convention center could compete
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against other cities.
But a huge step would be fulfillment
of current Downtown revitalization plans.
When SAG showed its meeting planners renderings
of pending plans — the Shipyards,
The District and Riverwalk extensions — and
“visions” like a potential aquarium, they
perked up considerably.
Hotels. A convention center must be
supported by a full-service convention hotel,
or hotels. We have the Hyatt Regency with
951 rooms, which Caliendo said had its best
revenue year in 2016. It’s backed up by the
Omni, but that would not be enough for a
successful center.
Harris is bringing his nerds back to the
Hyatt in 2020 but maybe not after that. “We
are on the edge of outgrowing the hotel, as far
as meeting space, and that’s probably limiting
the organizations that would consider
Jacksonville.”
expectations for technology are exponential.”
Amenities. A new convention center
would have to be part of a well-coordinated
and timed master plan that would include
not only the facilities and services to host
conventions but also a wide range of accessible
amenities that make the city attractive to
attendees — restaurants, nightlife, shopping
and beach excursions and creative use of our
most appealing venues.
A cocktail party on a river boat? A general
session at EverBank Field? Some very cool
receptions have been staged in the Jaguars’
Scenes from inside the Prime F. Osborn III Convention Center.
“Over 85 percent of the respondents said
they were more likely to consider Jacksonville
after viewing the images,” the SAG report
said.
“Specific feedback included the observation
that this kind of transformation would
catapult Jacksonville as a destination that
would compete with many of the major
Southeast convention destinations.”
The city needs a self-confident vision of
itself, the consultants said, and a “holistic
plan” and a consistent brand promise that
differentiates Jacksonville.
Do we have such a vision and plan? For
starters, consider these four major components
of the chemistry necessary for a successful
convention center:
Location. Jacksonville learned the
hard way about the importance of location.
Similarly, Savannah built its convention center
across the Savannah River from its downtown
— which looks good way over there but
is not easily accessible, walkable. “Location,
location, location,” Wallace said. “It’s location
and timing.” To capitalize on the city’s assets,
the center would be in or adjacent to the
heart of Downtown.
Other hotels are being planned for Downtown,
including at the Shipyards, the Laura
Street Trio and the District. Berkman Plaza
II was rezoned as a hotel a few years ago, but
the would-be buyers back then couldn’t lure
a chain flag. It would if there were a nearby
convention center: “No doubt about it,” Astleford
said. Still another hotel could be built as
part of a new center.
Infrastructure. There would
be no point in opening a convention center
without adequate support services. “You
have to have a marketing team,” Mayne of the
venue managers association said. “You’ve
got to have quality service organizations with
restaurants and hotels. There are a lot of pieces
that have to support the convention. A/V,
all those types of services, with companies
that are qualified.”
“Upgrading the technology, internet access,
is an important consideration,” Harris
said. “Bandwidth at the (Hyatt) hotel is marginal.
We have 1,000 attendees, and all of
them bring several devices they need to use,
even in the elevator. Our people are getting
younger, and for us to survive, we have to accommodate
those younger people, and their
locker and weight rooms.
We would need more good Downtown
restaurants, beyond Morton’s and the soonto-open
Cowford Chophouse. Read Jasmine
Marshall’s story about the Elbow on page
86, and see if that qualifies as conventioneer
nightlife.
But what about other unique activities
and excursions? Harris’ little-but-joyful adventures
in Jacksonville were narrow and
specific, but they show that meeting planners
are understanding that conventioneers
want more than just to meet, greet and eat;
they want to experience their host city and its
spirit.
Dan Fenton, who led the SAG study here,
consulted three years ago with Visit Denver
and was quoted then as saying, “We heard
from some meeting planners that when they
are in the Colorado Convention Center, they
feel like they are in a big space in a big building
that could be anywhere. We recommended
that the center create spaces where it’s
possible to see the Rockies.
“It should take advantage of its environment
... The words that planners most frequently
associated with Denver were Rocky
34
J MAGAZINE | FALL 2017

Mountains, clean air and health.”
In Jacksonville, that might be the St. Johns
River, the beach and the climate and environment.
An ongoing and very methodical
identity and vision-seeking process called
TruJax has determined that the essence of
Jacksonville can be distilled into three words:
“The Water Life.”
And there’s another uniqueness that few
Jacksonvilleans recognize, though subliminally
it is a major reason we live here: While
we benefit from the Florida climate and
beach, we are a real city, compared to most
other Florida cities. We are a diverse, livable
city with a long, fascinating history and an interesting
future.
For just one example, the Times-Union
editorial board is working with local historians
and officials to inspire recognition,
survey and presentation of our 500-year
history, from the Timucua people through
the French and Spanish occupiers, the Civil
War, the silent-movie industry, the Great
Brotherhood of Sleeping Car Porters, the first
African-American labor union.
Present conventioneers with a menu of
activities like these and others, and watch
Jacksonville compete on the convention circuit.
The current movement
for a new convention center is rooted in the
2011 Jacksonville Civic Council Northbank
Redevelopment Task Force, which also recommended
creation of the Downtown Investment
Authority.
The report recommended that a new,
comprehensive center be built on some
or all of the land now occupied by the old
courthouse and city hall on Bay Street and
be attached to the Hyatt Regency. It would
be riverfront, since the city now is removing
a parking lot behind the courthouse that was
built over the river more than 50 years ago.
Some of the two blocks could be mixeduse
entertainment, retail and dining space,
Fire of 1901 and such luminaries as Stephen
Crane, Harriet Beecher Stowe, A. Philip Randolph,
James Weldon Johnson and Zora Neale
Hurston. There is plenty of material for a
black-history tour.
If that idea is too big and undeveloped,
consider the suggestion from Times-Union
reader Marvin Alford for a Downtown railroad
museum, using our many railroad assets
— another use for Prime Osborn! You probably
have not found the massive and magnificent
1919 Atlantic Coast Line steam locomotive
that is displayed proudly but lonely in
the middle of a parking lot behind the Prime
Osborn. Not to mention the old Orange Blossom
Special passenger car adjacent to the
center. And of course, Randolph founded the
the report said, “effectively extending our
core Downtown eastward and complementing
and extending the dining and entertainment
district currently emerging on East Bay
Street,” now called The Elbow.
Since the task force’s recommendations
six years ago, the city has selected Shad
Khan’s Iguana Investments as the developer
for the Shipyards, which ends just a halfblock
farther east — with Berkman Plaza II in
between. Are you connecting the dots here?
Pretty much all the way from EverBank Field
to the Times-Union Center.
City Council implemented the task force’s
recommendation to create the DIA, which is
hard at work, but the convention center recommendation
awaited a stronger economy
and more political leadership, which came
with the election of Lenny Curry as mayor
two years ago.
He created a Transition Leadership
Team, and its Economic Development Subcommittee,
chaired by John Delaney, UNF
president and former mayor, unanimously
recommended the city develop a convention
center. It specified the Bay Street site — and
simply incorporated the 2011 task force recommendation
into its report to Curry.
Such big projects were buried in the
mayor’s in-basket while he fought through
public-employee pension funding, but
now a convention center has risen near
the top.
Curry said: “This is a very real consideration
and discussion that’s happening.
It’s not just talk about it and dream about
it and not do anything.”
The first visible step in the mayor’s
mind was his inclusion in his budget for
next year $8 million to demolish the former
county courthouse and city hall and
make the land available for development.
That doesn’t necessarily mean the development
will be a convention center,
Curry said, “but I can tell you we have had
a number of conversations with different
folks about that site and about a convention
center. We’re not headed in one specific
direction at this point.
“When we begin demolition, I’ll be able
to share more because I can have more
discussions with interested parties. The
numbers have to work. I’m all about a rigorous
return on investment.”
So back to my confoundingly complex
convention center chemistry: whether and
who to build what kind of facility where
FALL 2017 | J MAGAZINE 35

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REPORT
‘‘I NEVER TAKE
ANYTHING
OFF THE TABLE, BUT
I DON’T ENVISION A
PUBLIC CONVENTION
CENTER.”
LENNY CURRY
JACKSONVILLE MAYOR
and in conjunction with what — and with whose money and toward
what goals.
Most of those W’s are addressed above, but there are still the
“who” and “whose money” to be answered.
Of three possible answers — public, private or public-private
— the first is the least likely. Heywood Sanders’ cautionary career
is all about publicly funded convention centers, and Steven
E. Spickard, a land-use economist, once wrote: “Contrary to a
popular misconception, convention and conference centers are
designed to lose money. ... It is hard to be absolute because there
are real-world exceptions to virtually every rule; however, even in
the rare cases where revenues cover operating costs in meeting
facilities, they never cover debt service.”
And that’s not how Jacksonville usually rolls. “I never take anything
off the table,” Curry said, “but I don’t envision just a public
convention center.”
He wants to bring in private investment, so a public-private
mix is “the more likely scenario.”
Myrick, the economic-development consultant, has worked
with the founder of such a public-private project, the successful
Cobb Galleria Centre in Georgia, and said, “That’s the right way to
go. The private sector will always do an investment with an ROI.
Government is the only entity that can build something and lose
money on it.”
While the public sector can contribute, perhaps land or some
finance, she said private management always will be able to run a
convention center more efficiently because it can turn down freebie
or cut-rate requests, manage “dark” nights, solicit bookings
that pay more, turn down bookings for small groups.
Curry said he has an open mind. “Public-private would have
to include a return on investment. If you do it right, you’re going
to generate sales tax, bed tax, additional income around the area,
additional property tax. And the return works.”
Curry’s vision for a convention center, presumably on the Bay
Street site, expanded during his July trip to see downtown development
in Kansas City, St. Louis and Baltimore, accompanied by
Jaguars President Mark Lamping representing Shad Khan’s Iguana
Investments.
The mayor saw live examples of the point above about the
essential amenities for a successful convention center. “We’re
already discussing what comes first — the people, the food, the
entertainment, retail. There has to be a holistic commitment to
all of those on the front end. This is a model that has worked in all
those places.
“Our river is our asset that we’re so proud of. We want to see
the right development on the river. That also ties into when you
move off the river. It all has to connect in a smart way.”
So more Downtown development off the river, more than just
the Shipyards? “I would say yes. I think so. Based on what I saw.
Iguana will make those decisions. We were there together.”
He’s already thinking about transportation along a suddenly
booming Bay Street. “How do you move people, if there’s a convention
center, to the Sports Complex and from farther west, the
Landing? That will be part of the discussions.”
Okay, now are you getting excited about the first swing of that
wrecking ball on Bay Street?
Frank Denton was editor of The Florida Times-Union in
2008-16 and now is editor at large. He lives in Avondale.

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Formed to revitalize and preserve downtown property values
and prevent deterioration in the downtown business district.
The Downtown Investment Authority was created to revitalize
Downtown Jacksonville by utilizing Community Redevelopment
Area resources to spur economic development. The Downtown
Investment Authority is the governing body for the Downtown
Community Redevelopment Areas established by the City
Council of Jacksonville. The DIA offers a variety of incentives for
businesses to locate Downtown, including expedited permitting
and economic development incentives.

HOW WALKABLE IS JACKSONVILLE? CONSIDERING WE RANK AS THE
FOURTH MOST DANGEROUS CITY IN THE COUNTRY FOR PEDESTRIAN
DEATHS, ‘TERRIBLE’ WOULD PROBABLY BE AN UNDERSTATEMENT.
NEAR WALK BOTTOM
BY MIKE CLARK // J MAGAZINE
10 INCHES LAB
40
J MAGAZINE | FALL 2017

10 Most Walkable
here are few things worse
than knowing how to solve
T a problem and people refusing
to take the advice. Rank City WALK Score
U.S. Cities of 2017
That’s what happened in 1 New York 89.2
2013 when urban planner Jeff Speck visited 2 San Francisco 86.0
Jacksonville and told city leaders how to save 3 Boston 80.9
lives and make our city more livable. 4 Miami 79.2
“I told you guys what to do in 2013. Why 5 Philadelphia 79.0
aren’t you doing it?” Speck said to the Times- 6 Chicago 77.8
Union in a telephone interview.
7 Washington D.C. 77.3
Speck is an author, consultant and expert 8 Seattle 73.1
on walkable cities. His TED Talk in 2013 produced
more than 1 million views.
10 Long Beach 69.9
9 Oakland 72.0
“The worst idea America ever had was
suburban sprawl,” Speck said in that TED 49 Jacksonville 27.0
talk. And Florida is Ground Zero for sprawl.
SOURCE: walkscore.com
Speck has consulted in cities similar to
Jacksonville like Oklahoma City, Fort Lauderdale
and West Palm Beach. But Jacksonville
is just now waking up to the importance
of walkability.
This is more than aesthetics. It involves
safety and the vitality of cities
themselves.
The fact is that Jacksonville
is one of the most dangerous cities in the
country for pedestrians, ranking No. 4 on the
pedestrian death index compiled by Smart
Growth America.
Jacksonville’s walkability ranking is so
low, 27 out of 100, that we officially rank as
unwalkable.
Downtown and nearby neighborhoods
like Springfield and Riverside-Avondale
ranked reasonably well in the mid-’70s, but
Speck said those rankings are overrated
since the walkability scale does not account
for safety.
The problem can be summed up this way:
• Our city, like most in Florida, has too
much sprawl.
• Our roads have been designed to move
cars quickly without enough regard for pedestrians.
“The reason Florida does so horribly in
these rankings,” Speck said, “is because so
many Florida streets were designed by the
DOT or so many local streets were designed
with standards set by the DOT. Now the DOT
is reforming itself slowly and surely. But the
DOT’s basic methodology has been to apply
highway-style design criteria to local streets.”
That is why the Forest and Park streets
intersection in Brooklyn looks like a highway
from the air.
This encourages speeding and discourages
walking and bicycling.
“You’ve created a landscape where people
rely on the automobile to accomplish the
most minor tasks,” Speck said.
Speck’s book, “Walkable City: How
Downtown Can Save America, One Step at
a Time,” has become a bible among urban
planners. It’s the logical successor to the
seminal Jane Jacobs book, “The Death and
Life of Great American Cities.”
The good news for cities like Jacksonville
is that major improvements Downtown can
be made fairly easily, Speck said.
Road diets, which are being studied in
several Jacksonville locations, involve reducing
lane widths, slowing traffic and providing
more space for pedestrians and bicyclists.
In many cases, lanes can be eliminated or
reduced without hurting traffic flow, which
local consultants have discovered in Brooklyn,
for instance. “Four-lane streets can be as
inefficient as they are deadly because the fast
lane is also the left turn lane, and maintaining
speed often means jockeying from lane
to lane,” Speck writes.
A road diet may take a four-lane street
and replace it with three lanes along with a
center lane for left turns. After changes were-
FALL 2017 | J MAGAZINE 41

With two-way traffic and wide sidewalks, Laura Street
is one of the more walkable streets Downtown.
made to Orlando’s Edgewater Drive, crashes
fell by 34 percent. Since speeds were slower,
injuries fell by 68 percent.
Returning Downtown streets to two-way
streets can be done quickly, which produces
more safety, more business and even less
crime, Speck said. Think of Laura Street.
His plan for Oklahoma City led to most
downtown streets going two-ways with just
two lanes.
Another possibility for Jacksonville is to
tear down highway sections that dead-end
Downtown, like a portion of the Hart Bridge
ramp that ends at the sports complex. This
has been done with the Embarcadero in San
Francisco and the Westside Highway in New
York City.
“When you tear down a highway, the improvement
in property values is so great that
the increased tax revenue pays for that teardown
many times over,” Speck said. “If redevelopment
is happening, then tearing them
down will pay for it very quickly.”
Speck offers a general theory of walkability
as a good shortcut for a livable city.
“Get walkability right, and so much of the
rest will follow,” he writes.
Cities that simply created pedestrian
pathways failed because there is much more
involved. Speck lists four main conditions for
successful walkability, and each must work
in concert with the others.
The walk must be:
Useful. Most aspects of daily life are
close and organized. You need some place
to walk to.
Safe. The street has to be designed to
give pedestrians a fighting chance against
being hit by automobiles. People must feel
safe. Cars have a place but only in the proper
number and speed.
Comfortable. Urban streets feel like
outdoor living rooms with sensitive designs.
Interesting. Sidewalks are lined by
unique buildings that feel friendly.
Why hasn’t this happened already? Because
the people in charge in many cities are
thinking of their particular specialties, not
overall impact.
“The schools and parks departments will
push for fewer, larger facilities since these
are easier to maintain and show off,” Speck
writes.
“The public works department will insist
that new neighborhoods be designed principally
around snow and trash removal.
“The transportation department will
build new roads to ease traffic generated by
the very sprawl that they cause.
“Each of these approaches may seem correct
in a vacuum, but is wrong in a city.”
Making cities more walkable makes them
more wealthy, healthy and sustainable.
Walkability also fits into the trend of moving
back to lively, mixed uses that millennials
and empty-nesters increasingly prefer.
“For certain segments of the population,
chief among them young creatives, urban living
is simply more appealing; many wouldn’t
be caught dead anywhere else,” Speck writes.
“Massive demographic shifts occurring
right now mean that these pro-urban segments
of the population are becoming dominant,
creating a spike in demand that is expected
to last for decades.
“The choice to live the walkable life generates
considerable savings for these households,
and much of these savings are spent
locally.”
TRENDS ARE CLEAR
Walkability now is a key part of a national
trend back to urban cores.
Since the late 1990s, the share of auto
miles driven by Americans in their 20s has
dropped from 20.8 percent to 13.7 percent.
JEFF DAVIS
42
J MAGAZINE | FALL 2017

Teens who don’t have driver’s licenses
have almost tripled since the late 1970s from
8 percent to 23 percent.
Two-thirds of college-educated millennials
choose where they want to live and then
look for a job.
Three-quarters of them plan to live in urban
cores.
The typical working-class family pays
more for transportation than housing.
Meanwhile, senior citizens are abandoning
large lots for mixed-use urban centers.
Of 101 million new households expected
by 2025, 88 percent are expected to be childless.
In 1970, almost half of households included
children.
A scientific poll conducted for the National
Association of Realtors showed that only 1
in 10 respondents wanted to live in a suburb
with houses only.
“Urban Sprawl and Public Health,” a paper
by physician Howard Frumkin of Emory University,
documented how our built environment
is hurting our health.
Users of mass transit are three times more
likely as vehicle drivers to achieve their recommended
30 minutes of daily physical activity.
“Increasingly, it is becoming clear that the
American health care crisis is largely an urban
design crisis with walkability at the heart of
the cure,” Speck wrote.
Crashes far outweighed murders by
strangers in most locations.
One-third of Washington or San Francisco
residents take transit to work; just 2 percent of
Nashville and Jacksonville residents do.
Mass transit systems like streetcars, trolleys
or trams have slower speeds and frequent
stops.
As for bicycles, Jacksonville has too little
bicycle infrastructure. Where bicycle lanes
exist, the widths are too narrow, there is not
enough protection for bicyclists, and there
are too few bicyclists so drivers aren’t used
to seeing them.
Yet the benefits of bicycles are huge.
Ten bikes can park in the space of a single
car.
The typical bike lane handles five to 10
times the traffic volume of a car lane twice
its width.
Money spent on bike lanes generates
more than twice the jobs as car lanes.
If every American biked an hour a day instead
of driving, gas consumption would be
cut by 38 percent.
As bike lanes have been added to New
York City, pedestrian injuries have been cut
by one-third, Speck writes.
Back in 2013 when Speck made his presentations,
the Downtown Investment Authority
was in its infancy. CEO Aundra Wallace
took over in 2013.
The authority’s action plans include a
number of proposals to improve walkability.
A “road diet” plan in Brooklyn could lead to
narrower streets, more bicycle lanes, more
shade — in short, walkability.
Jacksonville for too long has had too
much planning and too little action. Downtown
finally is seeing some action, but urgency
is key.
Making more streets Downtown twoway,
for instance, shouldn’t be taking so
long.
“Downtown is the only part of the city
that belongs to everybody,” Speck writes.
But people need to feel safe and welcomed
Downtown.
Walkability is the key to success.
MIKE CLARK has been reporting and editing for
The Florida Times-Union and Jacksonville Journal
since 1973. He has been editorial page editor for the
last 12 years following 15 years as reader advocate.
Bring
Downtown
into your next
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2017
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2017 2017
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WINNER
WINNER
WINNER WINNER
WINNER
WINNER
2017
2017 2017
2017 2017 2017
2017
2017 WINNER • 2017 WINNER • 2017 WinneR
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12 HOURS IN DOWNTOWN
By Denise M. Reagan
Carley Levy serves
a handpulled
unicorn raspberry
lollipop at Sweet
Pete’s candy shop.
The handpulled
lollipops are a
specialty of shop
owner, Peter
Behringer.
Walk this way for food,
shopping & entertainment
JEFF DAVIS
S
ince I moved back to Jacksonville
almost 12 years ago, I have spent several
days a week Downtown. When
I worked at the Museum of Contemporary Art
Jacksonville for three years, I spent almost every
day in the center of the city.
That adds up to a lot of hours in the urban core
— morning, noon and night. When you spend
that much time Downtown, you know it like
CONTINUED ON NEXT PAGE
FALL 2017 | J MAGAZINE 45

LEFT: The sculpture “Showing the Way” — a memorial to Tillie Fowler — lights up the Northbank riverwalk near the Winston Family YMCA.
RIGHT: Mosaic artwork by RouxArt can be found in a variety of locations in Hemming Park. This pillar is near the park’s north entrance.
the back of your hand. And yet I still find
surprises almost every week.
Put on your most comfortable shoes for
this walking tour of the core.
8 A.M. | The Riverwalks
1
Take a morning stroll or speed it up
and get your workout along the Southbank
and Northbank riverwalks and the Main
Street and Acosta bridges. The whole
circuit is about four miles. I always admire
the sails that cast shade along the Southbank
Riverwalk and the memorial to Tillie
Fowler titled “Showing the Way,” which depicts
the spirit of the former U.S. representative
and Jacksonville attorney as an oak
tree, the state tree of her native Georgia.
Along the way, you’ll see many regular
walkers and runners who usually greet you
with big smiles — unless they’re struggling
up the long incline of the Acosta.
9 A.M. | Urban Grind
2
Downtown’s premier coffee shop
has two locations — 45 W. Bay St. and 50
N. Laura St. I order a large iced honey latte
and an egg casserole stuffed with the day’s
fresh ingredients. I deserve it after a major
walk.
3
9:30 A.M. | Hemming Park
I enjoy my coffee during a stroll to
Hemming Park to check out a mosaic by
RouxArt. “Flight of the Butterfly” involved
the public in its construction — including
my sister — and is situated directly across
the street from City Hall in the old St.
James Building. Head back toward the St.
Johns River on Hogan Street to see Skyway
pillars, electrical box coverings and
streetscape artwork from the Art in Public
Places DIA Urban Arts Project.
10 A.M. | Jacksonville
4
Walking Tours
Head to the escalators at the Jacksonville
Landing to take a Top to Bottom
Walking Tour. Hear the stories of the River
City from the Great Fire to Jacksonville’s
time as the original Hollywood. Head to
the top of the tallest building in Jacksonville,
and explore secret underground
tunnels beneath Downtown. Tuesday’s
tour includes a stop inside The Florida
Theatre. Thursday’s tour features a behind-the-scenes
look at the Jacksonville
Symphony.
NOON | Wolf & Cub
5
Browse this boutique at 205 N. Laura
St. that celebrated its first anniversary in
Downtown in July. Owners Emily Moody
Rosete and Varick Rosete select independently
produced products, distinctive
goods for the home and funky wearables
for women and men. Wolf & Cub offers
one-of-a-kind jewelry, hand-screenprinted
clothing and vintage curiosities that
stand out in a crowd. I bought my father a
T-shirt that proudly states “Jacksonvillain,
Consolidated 1968.”
1 P.M. | Bellwether
6
Choosing a place for lunch in Downtown
Jacksonville is often excruciating.
Too many places compete for my taste
buds: NOLA MOCA, Super Food & Brew,
Olio, Indochine, The Court Urban Food
Park ... the list goes on. On this occasion,
I visit one of the newest spots, tucked into
the tower at 110 N. Laura St.: Bellwether,
created by the pioneers behind Orsay
and Black Sheep. Start with the boiled
peanuts and pimento cheese, then try the
Bellwether Salad or the shrimp and grits,
which is made with Jacksonville’s own
Congaree and Penn middlins. Follow it
with a cold brew and some soft serve ice
cream, because this is Florida.
2:30 P.M. | Main Library
7
The first floor of the Main Library
has been transformed into Jax Makerspace,
a collaborative space for artists,
musicians, hobbyists, techies, writers
and more. It’s a great place to explore,
JEFF DAVIS (4); MAP: JEFF DAVIS
46
J MAGAZINE | FALL 2017

LEFT: Marisa Yow’s painting “Lone Sparrow” is part of the art exhibit “Survive to Thrive: Life Beyond Sexual Violence” at the Main Library through Oct. 22.
RIGHT: A steak taco with chips and salsa waits to be served at the original Burrito Gallery location in Downtown.
create, meet new people and access the
library’s many resources. “Survive to
Thrive: Life Beyond Sexual Violence”
features works by Margete Griffin, Hope
McMath, Princess Simpson Rashid, Jim
Smith and several others. The exhibition
is open through Oct. 22. Then head up to
the Lovett Courtyard on the second floor
and relax with a book while overlooking
the center of Downtown.
8
4 P.M. | Sweet Pete’s
No Downtown Jacksonville outing
is complete without an excursion to this
sweet spot. Peter and Allison Johns Behringer
opened the sweetest destination
on Earth at 400 N. Hogan St., catty-corner
from Hemming Park. The destination
attracts busloads of school children
Downtown for tours of the candy-making
empire. Do not miss the salted caramels,
or you will be sorry. Beyond the
candy store and The Candy Apple Café
on the first floor is a second floor with
even more retro candy offerings and an
old-fashioned ice cream shop.
12 HOURS IN DOWNTOWN
8
Monroe St.
Adams St.
Forsyth St.
Water St.
N
Bay St.
Hogan St.
THE LANDING
ST. JOHNS
RIVER
FRIENDSHIP
FOUNTAIN
San Marco
6
Laura St.
3
4
2
7
5
Main St.
MAIN STREET
BRIDGE
1
1
Coastline Dr.
Riverplace Blvd.
Mary St.
Flagler Ave.
Ocean St.
9
10
Newman St.
Prudential Dr.
Market St.
11
10
6:30 P.M. | Burrito Gallery
Play a round of Thursday trivia on
the back patio of this Downtown mainstay.
The original location has been open
on Adams Street for 13 years. It has since
added locations at Jacksonville Beach and
in Brooklyn. Order a margarita to wash
down a blackened shrimp burrito with
black beans and guacamole while you try
to answer questions on current events,
’80s culture, sports and more. Don’t miss
Shaun Thurston’s mural “Raccoon vs.
Armadillo Magic Taco Standoff” behind
the back wall of the patio.
11
8 P.M. | The Hourglass
PUB & Coffee House
Arrive at 345 E. Bay St. just in time for
the weekly Mad Cow Improv Comedy
show with high-energy, fast-paced improvisation
games reminiscent of “Whose
Line Is It Anyway?” Based on suggestions
from the audience, this talented group
of players provides an evening of entertainment
that is never dull and never the
same show twice.
Kipp Ave.
9
5 P.M. | Bold City Brewery
After nine years operating its
tasting room in Riverside, Jacksonville’s
original craft brewery opened
its Downtown location at 109 E. Bay
St. Taste one of several Jacksonville-themed
craft beers made in
the Rosselle Street brewery, or try a
specialty beer brewed on location in a
three-barrel system.
Denise M. Reagan is senior PR manager
at Brunet-García Advertising, a longtime
journalist and a frustrated Downtown
enthusiast.
FALL 2017 | J MAGAZINE 47

EYESORE
SELF REPORT
The Riverwalks are a
glorious (and healthy) way
to experience our majestic
St. Johns River ... well,
mostly.
On the Northbank, as the
westbound walker exits
the corkscrew just east
of the railroad bridge, the
river view is spoiled by
visual pollution.
First, you find yourself
walking on graffiti. “DVK,”
would your mother be
proud of that? Didn’t she
teach you anything?
Then, you look over the
elevated walk at the small
basin at the foot of the
Acosta Bridge and see
trash from up and down
the river brought in by the
changing currents. Much
of it was washed from
streets and yards during
rain storms, and some was
tossed by careless boaters.
When high tide recedes
to low tide, the unsightly
litter is left on the exposed
mud banks.
Discouraged, you walk a
few steps farther along,
and you’re looking not at
the river but over at the
industrial-looking building
to the right, where
there are ugly piles of old
shipping pallets and metal
contraptions that look
like worn-out newspaper
racks.
Oh! That’s The Florida
Times ...
Please turn to page 51
BOB SELF
FALL 2017 | J MAGAZINE 49

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AFTER
CONTINUED
FROM PAGE 49
In the spirit of J and the
Times-Union’s commitment
to Downtown Now!
— and because what’s
good for the goose —
President Mark Nusbaum
ordered the clean-up of
the T-U’s own visual pollution,
so riverwalkers can
enjoy the magnificent St.
Johns and our cityscape.
BY FRANK DENTON
J MAGAZINE
Spot a Downtown eyesore and
want to know why it’s there
or when it will be improved?
Submit suggestions to
frank.denton@jacksonville.
com.
BOB SELF
FALL 2017 | J MAGAZINE 51

U the
RA B NTI
ES
IN WHAT MAY BE JACKSONVILLE’S MOST
UNIQUE NEIGHBORHOOD ASSOCIAtiON,
THE DOWNTOWN DWELLERS
ARE a DEDICATED GROUP OF
RESIDENTS WORKING TO
IMPROVE THE CORE.
BY ROGER BROWN
PHOTOGRAPHS
BY WILL DICKEY
J MAGAZINE
52
J MAGAZINE | FALL 2017

Downtown
Dwellers member
Thomas Dumas checks out
the view from the 38th
floor deck of
the Peninsula tower
along Jacksonville’s
Southbank.
FALL 2017 | J MAGAZINE 53

he motto of the
Downtown Dwellers
Association is simple
enough:
T
“Let the river
unite us. Let the
bridges bring us together.”
And its mission statement is also a
straight shot of prose — with no poetic
chaser.
‘The Jacksonville Downtown Dwellers
are north and south Riverbank residents
actively participating in the ongoing development
of the riverfront as an inviting, culturally
rich place to live.”
But don’t let the no-frills, low-hyperbole
language fool you.
The fact is the Downtown Dwellers Association
— a 100-plus strong collection of
residents living in various apartments and
condominiums across the city center — has
become an under-the-radar powerhouse
in its genuine quest to enhance and elevate
Downtown Jacksonville.
It has worked with the city’s Parks and
Recreation Department to strengthen Jacksonville’s
waterfront, including successful
collaborations that have led to dramatic improvements
to the Lone Sailor fountain area
and other sites along the riverwalks.
It has taken on its own beautification
projects — with some Downtown Dwellers
members even taking to regularly strolling
the riverwalks and picking up carelessly
discarded trash.
And it is actively helping to drive the local
dialogue on how Jacksonville can truly
fulfill the promise of the Southbank and
Northbank.
“Jacksonville is a growing mixture of
ideas, wants and opportunities,” said Sandra
Fradd, Downtown Dwellers’ feisty, witty
and charming president, in an email.
“We Downtown Dwellers are ... in places
where we can watch, see what’s happening
and in small ways maybe even influence it.”
Eric Smith — a beloved civic figure and
former city councilman who has his law
office Downtown and is playing a lead role
in helping Downtown Dwellers officially
incorporate as an organization — said one
reason Downtown still holds so much ap-
Downtown
Dwellers members
Sonia Vivian (seated,
from left) and Sandra
Fradd, with Gianni
Vivian (standing from
left), Thomas Dumas
and Howard Taylor,
pose on the pool deck
of the Peninsula.
54
J MAGAZINE | FALL 2017

peal is because each day, it’s easy to discover another of the “individual
pearls” that strung together, one by one, are making the
city center a much underrated work of art.
“I mean, Chamblin’s Book Store is a Downtown pearl,” Smith
said.
“Our library. Our river. Heck, the Desert Rider (on Hogan
Street) is a pearl — it’s got the best cheesy grits you will eat in a
restaurant.”
Added Smith: “There’s an untold number of these kinds of
pearls all across Downtown. And, to me, Downtown Dwellers is
one of those pearls because it‘s helping to unite the voice of the
residents who live in Downtown Jacksonville. And believe in it.”
It’s a voice that’s being heard in the corridors frequented by
Jacksonville’s leaders, decision-makers and influence-shapers.
For example, Parks, Recreation and Community Services Director
Daryl Joseph meets every month with Fradd and other
Downtown Dwellers members.
And they don’t travel to his turf for the sessions.
Rather, it’s Joseph who comes to the Peninsula of Jacksonville,
the Southbank luxury condominium complex where Fradd and
many other Downtown Dwellers live, for the meetings.
And he’s not the only one to make the monthly pilgrimage.
During a recent monthly meeting, Downtown Vision Inc.
CEO Jake Gordon also popped over to the Peninsula’s meeting
room to sit at a table with Fradd, Joseph and Tom Dumas, the
Downtown Dwellers’ treasurer.
“The best Downtown is one that has residents who love living
in it and want to make it a place that encourages others to live
there,” Gordon said.
“That’s exactly what the Downtown Dwellers Association is
doing. It really plays a valuable role.”
And when I reached out to City Hall for a statement or comment
on the work Downtown Dwellers is doing, it’s Mayor Lenny
Curry himself who provided an email response.
“Community partners like the Downtown Dwellers volunteer
their time supporting efforts at the Riverwalk, Hemming Park
and other downtown areas through a wide variety of roles,” Curry
said in his email.
“They not only help maintain the downtown area, but also
promote the vibrancy, strength and values of our city overall,”
added Curry, noting that he “truly (appreciates) the contributions
the Downtown Dwellers make to our city.”
Such glowing remarks — from Jacksonville’s most powerful
elected official — may explain why the Downtown Dwellers Association
doesn’t have a flowery motto or an extravagant mission
statement.
It doesn’t need them.
Its work and its growing status speak quite eloquently on their
own.
And it should and must inspire others who love Downtown
Jacksonville but question how they can make a footprint in improving
it to get up, get organized and get active.
GRADUAL STEPS TO MAKE A DIFFERENCE
Downtown Dwellers’ influence has been particularly impressive
given its low-profile origin and the gradual transformation
into a sizable group.
Its seeds were sown some four years ago when Fradd — who
had recently retired, relocated to Jacksonville and settled in the
Peninsula after years as a distinguished professor and researcher
at two Florida universities — attended a Downtown Vision Inc.
FALL 2017 | J MAGAZINE 55

opening this fall
in riverside
LOCAL SEAFOOD
CRAFT COCKTAILS
BRUNCH • LUNCH • DINNER
riverandpostjax.com
meeting to learn more about her new city.
“What I had noticed is that people on one side of the river
Downtown didn’t seem to go much to the other side,” Fradd said in
an interview at the Peninsula.
With a smile, she added:
“I’ve always been someone who looks across the fence and
says, ‘Hey, what’s going on over there? And why we can’t bring
what’s going on over there and here together?’ That’s the feeling
that really came to life in me after I went to (the Downtown Vision)
meeting.”
Eventually, Fradd struck up a friendship with Dorothy Merrick,
who lived at the nearby Plaza One condominium complex at Berkman
Plaza and had a similar desire to bring Downtown residents
and interests together.
The two began to organize informal, occasional meetings with
other Downtown residents to discuss their issues, concerns, ideas
and hopes regarding the area.
The meetings gradually became more frequent and drew more
people — and they led to more interaction and dialogue with city
officials who grew to respect and admire the group’s genuine interest
in making Downtown better.
And though Merrick eventually moved to Atlanta, members
kept the group operating and thriving while also choosing “Downtown
Dwellers” as its name.
“The energy has just continued to grow and spread,” Fradd said.
Currently, the majority of Downtown Dwellers group members
are from five Downtown luxury condo and apartment properties
— the Peninsula, the Plaza One, San Marco Place, Churchwell Lofts
and the Strand.
“We all feel a real investment in our Downtown, not just because
we live here but because we love Jacksonville,” Fradd said.
“We can see the importance of what we’re doing, and that’s
what is inspiring us to keep finding avenues to make a contribution.”
And the Downtown Dwellers is putting together an ever-growing
list of ways to keep contributing.
It has now officially incorporated as a group, which will
strengthen its ability to influence the Downtown conversation.
It’s working with the city on plans to collect highly detailed statistics
on just how many people use and visit the riverwalks on a
daily basis — data that will be useful as city officials explore ways to
maximize the location’s potential.
And Downtown Dwellers will soon launch a campaign to raise
awareness about the group’s work and continue to get more Downtown
residents involved.
That’s an impressive list of tasks.
And there will be many more, to be sure.
But you can expect the Downtown Dwellers Association to take
on each task with the same motivating purpose that’s brought it
this far so quickly:
A passionate love for Downtown Jacksonville.
An equally passionate desire to make Downtown Jacksonville
better, richer and more vibrant.
“To me, Downtown is still a bit of a hidden jewel,” said Dumas,
the group’s treasurer.
“We’re just trying to do our part to help polish the jewel.”
And ensure that it is hidden no longer.
ROGER BROWN has been a Times-Union editorial writer since 2013.
He lives in Downtown Jacksonville.
56
J MAGAZINE | FALL 2017

UNCOVERING
The Emerald
N e c k l a c e
THE VISION TO CONNECT McCoys Creek, Hogans Creek
and the S-Line Trail STARTED MORE THAN A CENTURY AGO
BY RON LITTLEPAGE // J MAGAZINE
Craig O’Neal.
reating a vision is easy and often
fun.
C
Turning that vision into reality
can be damn hard.
A case in point is the Emerald
Necklace, the long talked about and
dreamed of string of parks, waterways and
greenways that would loop Downtown and
tie the surrounding neighborhoods to each
other, to the core city and to the St. Johns River.
Downtown advocates and aficionados are
very familiar with the concept, which is seen
as a key element to truly revitalizing Downtown.
It was a key part of the Downtown master
plan that the City Council approved in
2000 titled: “Celebrating the River: A Plan for
Downtown Jacksonville.”
And it highlighted a master plan update in
2010 titled: “Reuniting the City with its River.”
Many, however, including long-time residents,
know little about the Emerald Necklace
or are even aware of the existence of three key
elements vital to it — McCoys Creek, Hogans
Creek and the S-Line Trail.
The plan has been talked about for decades.
Talk is cheap. Implementing the plan
won’t be.
And until true leadership makes it a priority
— leadership that extends beyond the
short-term lifespan of our elected leaders —
it won’t get done.
The two creeks have been abused for
years, and in places they are hidden away
under roadways and overgrown vegetation. It
can be difficult to convince people they are a
jewel waiting to be polished.
But Henry J. Klutho, the famed architect
whose designs added beauty and uniqueness
during the rebuilding of Jacksonville after the
Great Fire of 1901, saw something different.
He envisioned parks and greenways along
the creeks that would become gathering
places and tie neighborhoods to Downtown
— yes, there’s that concept again — and for a
time that became reality along Hogans Creek.
The creek was notorious for flooding, as
FALL 2017 | J MAGAZINE 59

was McCoys, and one proposed solution was
to put it underground.
Klutho and the city’s engineer, Charles
Imeson, came up with a better idea.
In 1929, the creek was channelized, and
two basins were created to retain water
during flooding.
But it wasn’t just an engineering exercise.
With it came a masterpiece of ornamental
balustrades, foot bridges and promenades
that ran along Hogans Creek from Downtown
to Springfield.
Christina Parrish Stone is the executive
director of the Springfield Preservation and
Revitalization Council.
“It was absolutely gorgeous,” Parrish Stone
said recently while walking through the park,
which is making strides to come back to full
life. “It was like Jacksonville’s Central Park. It
could be again, but it’s going to cost millions
of dollars.”
Keep that statement in mind along with
the fact that turning a vision into reality can
be damn hard.
As is often the case, the sins of the father
are visited upon the children.
“Unfortunately, I don’t think the city has
ever taken the steps to take care of the beautiful
project that resulted (from Klutho’s work),”
Parrish Stone said.
The creek became highly contaminated
with industrial wastes and fecal coliform.
Signs warn against fishing. The balustrades
and footbridges were allowed to fall into disrepair.
Buildings were plopped down in parts
of the park. Asphalt walkways were put in the
strangest places.
But it remains a magnificent piece of cityowned
parkland that once again can become
a masterpiece with effort and care.
That’s happening.
ity money has been found to
begin restoring the greenway
trails through the park with
the proper landscaping.
Parrish Stone talks excitedly
about a sculpture walk that will be added
C
JACKSONVILLE’S
EMERALD
S-LINE
RAIL TRAIL
NECKLACE BRENTWOOD
S-LINE
RAIL TRAIL
SPRINGFIELD
DURKEEVILLE
HOGAN’S CREEK
PARKWAY
NEW TOWN
SUGAR
HILL
NORTH
RIVERSIDE
LAVILLA
HOLLYBROOK
PARK
DOWNTOWN
CORE
FOREST ST
PARK
BROOKLYN
UNITY
NORTHBANK
RIVERWALK
MCCOY’S CREEK
GREENWAY
PLAZA
RIVERSIDE
N
SOUTHBANK
10
95
MLK PARKWAY
MAIN ST
MARKET ST
A. PHILIP
RANDOLPH
HERITAGE PARK
to the park soon.
The balustrades are not beyond repair.
Lighting will be improved.
The restoration of the park gets a big boost
from having a neighborhood as active as
Springfield.
The residents paid for and maintain a disc
golf course in the park. The annual “Springfield
Porchfest” brings crowds of people to
the neighborhood for live music on the inviting
porches of homes there and in the park.
“What my organization will continue to
do … is to bring as many people as we can to
this park,” Parrish Stone said.
“I can’t tell you how many people I’ve
brought here over the last seven years who
have lived in Jacksonville all of their lives or
most of their lives who had never seen it.
“I can say everyone who has walked
through here has been stunned that we have
something that has such tremendous potential
right here next to Downtown. Without exception,
everyone recognizes that this should
have been taken care of and that it has value
NORTHSHORE
SPORTS
COMPLEX
METROPOLITAN
PARK
ST. JOHNS RIVER
EASTSIDE
A. PHILIP
RANDOLPH
PUBLIC MARKET
LINDSAY MEYER

We want to partner with you. This vital initiative would not be possible if not for the generous support of
We want to partner with you. This vital initiative would not be possible if not for the generous support of
community partners and donors. To get involved, contact wanda.willis@fscj.edu or bill.allen@fscj.edu.
community partners and donors. To get involved, contact wanda.willis@fscj.edu or bill.allen@fscj.edu.

LEFT: McCoys Creek emerges in Murray Hill. It empties into the St. Johns River after emerging from a tunnel
beneath the Florida Times-Union property on Riverside Avenue.
and it should be corrected.”
The sins of the father are visited upon the
children.
The Hogans Creek corridor would form
the eastern leg of the Emerald Necklace from
where it flows into the St. Johns River at the
Maxwell Coffee plant and winds to the north
from there through the Springfield parks to
12th street.
McCoys Creek would form the western
leg of the necklace.
That creek reaches the St. Johns River after
flowing under the Times-Union building’s
parking lot.
Its path to there begins in a pond in Powers
Park in Murray Hill. Much of it is shrouded
in heavy vegetation.
Shannon Blankenship knows McCoys
Creek well. She is the outreach director for
the St. Johns Riverkeeper organization, and
in that position she has spearheaded monthly
cleanups of the creek for the past four years.
She is very familiar with the problems facing
the creek, starting with the most obvious:
trash.
“Most of the litter that we see out in the areas
where we have done maybe 12 cleanups
in the same exact spot over and over are plastic
bottles and tires and things that we see on
our roadsides all of the time and things that
come out of people’s yards and trash cans on
trash day,” Blankenship said in an interview.
“They have direct links to the waterway,
and it takes one storm so we are just cleaning
up what enters the creek almost every single
day at every cleanup.”
If McCoys Creek is to become a shining
part of the Emerald Necklace, infrastructure
changes will have to be made to stop
the deluge of rubbish.
And like Hogans, McCoys Creek is contaminated.
That is a big obstacle to the vision that
sees kayakers and other paddlers plying the
creek from the St. Johns River along developments
similar to the San Antonio River Walk
onward to the north where an abundance of
city-owned land paralleling the creek would
be turned into a greenway for walkers, bikers
and runners similar to the Atlanta Beltline.
There’s even talk of opening up the creek
to the daylight at the Times-Union parking
lot if the property, which is on the market, is
redeveloped.
“From the Riverkeeper’s perspective,”
Blankenship said, “what we’ve been trying
to do is to bring people to the water to see
the potential, to understand the recreational
benefit of it, because I think if more people
want to recreate on it, then we can have the
conversation about water quality.
“But if it’s just a ditch, just a place that
is collecting our storm water and our litter,
then we can’t begin to address those concerns.”
Having that long stretch of city-owned
property along the creek is a large advantage
for fulfilling the vision as the bones for the
greenway are already there.
The piece of the puzzle to connect the
Hogans Creek Greenway and the McCoys
Creek Greenway is the S-Line Trail.
The 4.8-mile rails-to-trails multiuse path
follows an abandoned length of CSX railroad
right-of-way.
The completed 14-mile loop would connect
both greenways to the Northbank Riverwalk.
The challenges to accomplish the goal
are difficult.
Both creeks are in floodplains. The contamination
is severe and will be costly to
mitigate. Money for such projects has been
scarce.
However, that could be changing as proposed
city budgets project spending for the
Emerald Necklace.
Other cities have done this. Why not Jacksonville?
Atlanta is one. The aforementioned Beltline
is described as “22 miles of unused railroad
tracks circling the core of the city’s intown
neighborhoods.
“From trails and walkways to open green
space and parks, the Atlanta Beltline works to
connect people throughout the city.”
Of course, there’s Boston, which has its
own Emerald Necklace that dates back to the
1860s and was designed by Frederick Law Olmsted.
It is a chain of parks linked by parkways
and waterways in Boston and Brookline. In
the past decade, $60 million has been spent
in making improvements.
According to the Emerald Necklace Conservancy’s
website, that historic park system
“serves as the backyard for city residents and
a destination for more than 1 million visitors
each year.”
Then there’s Yonkers, N.Y. Yes, Yonkers.
In the 1920s, engineers there decided to
bury the Saw Mill River in downtown to manage
sanitation and floods.
In 2011, after a decade of effort led by
Groundwork Hudson Valley, waters began to
flow above ground in downtown Yonkers for
the first time in 90 years.
BOB MACK (3)
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CENTER: Hogans Creek runs through Klutho Park as seen from the Broad Street bridge. RIGHT: A pathway is being added to Klutho
Park creating a designated pedestrian/cycling greenway that will connect McCoys Creek and Hogans Creek and the parks in-between.
And with that revitalized river came commitments
to build housing, offices and commercial
space along it.
One of the drawbacks in Jacksonville’s
attempts to accomplish a long-term vision
has always been sustained commitment and
leadership.
Mayoral administrations change regularly
as do City Council members. Often they
bring their own priorities.
Who is going to guide Jacksonville’s Emerald
Necklace to reality over the years it will
take to accomplish the vision?
Groundwork Hudson Valley is part of the
Groundwork USA trusts that are connected
to the National Park Service and the U.S.
Environmental Protection Agency. They are
local organizations “devoted to transforming
the natural and built environment of marginalized
communities.”
After a feasibility study was done in 2013,
Groundwork Jacksonville was established.
It’s a young organization whose mission is
now focused on the Emerald Necklace.
Alyssa Bourgoyne, Groundwork Jacksonville’s
interim executive director, explained,
“Long term, our role is to make sure the
health of the creeks in both the sediments
and the water and the land around them,
the greenways around them, are free of contamination.”
When asked who has to be the driver
behind Jacksonville’s effort, Bourgoyne was
quick with her answer: “Groundwork Jacksonville
has to lead it.”
She pointed to Yonkers as an example of
what a Groundwork trust can accomplish.
“It took them 10 years and $10 million to get
one segment of the Sawmill River completely
redeveloped,” she said.
“And I don’t mean we will put in a bike
trail, and we’ll deal with everything else later.
No, they spent 10 years and $10 million to
get one section fully taken care of, and they
have had huge success in that.
“But 10 years, right, it’s not for the weak
of heart, it’s not for people who aren’t willing
to remind themselves what the end game is.”
he vision for Jacksonville’s
Emerald Necklace continues
T to grow. There are proposals
to connect it to the Baldwin
Rail Trail and to the East Coast
Greenway — 3,000 miles of trails from Maine
to Key West that will cross the St. Johns River
using the Mayport ferry to tie A1A together.
So what do people see as the future of the
Emerald Necklace?
SPAR’s Parrish Stone sees neighborhoods
that are connected and thriving.
“Yes, all of our neighborhoods have different
names, but we are really all neighborhoods,”
she said.
“There is no wall between Springfield
and Durkeeville, between Durkeeville and
the Eastside, and connecting those neighborhoods
together is important for all of
them to succeed, and this trail can do that.”
Perhaps it comes from four years of picking
up the same trash over and over on Mc-
Coys Creek, but the Riverkeeper’s Blankenship
isn’t optimistic about major changes in
the next five to 10 years.
“I’ve been cleaning up on McCoys Creek
for years, and I can tell you the only difference
I have seen is that maybe 400 more
people know about it than when we started
four years ago,” she said.
“I know that doesn’t sound very hopeful.
I’m just not very hopeful on how fast this
could happen.”
But if the work proposed to be done is
comprehensive and not piecemeal, what
Blankenship sees is “the activity on the
Northbank Riverwalk and the activity on the
Baldwin Rail Trail being the same and actually
connecting and … just having it be a full
circle in downtown Jacksonville.”
Groundwork Jacksonville’s Bourgoyne’s
look into what she sees in the future for the
Emerald Necklace comes in a burst:
“Fully connected neighborhoods that
are engaged, and active living and healthy
spaces.
“Places that people want to go, and they
live at the beach, and they don’t need a
monthly bike ride with a group to come. It’s
going to look like green infrastructure and
art and a beautiful urban park.
“Trailheads, water fountains, restrooms,
bike racks. People kayaking. People swimming.
People fishing and eating the fish.
“The signs on Hogans Creek that say
don’t touch the water, that say don’t eat the
fish, will be gone.”
Creating a vision is easy and often fun.
Turning that vision into reality can be damn
hard.
Other cities have done it. There’s no reason
Jacksonville can’t do it as well.
Ron Littlepage has been with The
Florida Times-Union since 1978. He started
writing an opinion column in 1989. He lives
in Avondale.
FALL 2017 | J MAGAZINE 63

We know
Jacksonville.
Times-Union is a name you can trust.
We have built our business on a commitment to truth and
fair-dealing, and we take very seriously our role in the community
as the arbiter of truth, and the protector of our democracy.
The trust we have earned is a privilege and we work continuously
to keep and nurture that trust. We’re committed to pushing
the conversation of Jacksonville’s growth forward at every turn.
1 Riverside Avenue
Jacksonville, FL 32202
904.359.4318
jacksonville.com

AN URBAN REVIVAl
BY LILLA ROSS // ILLUSTRATION BY Torti Gallas + PARTNERS // FOR J MAGAZINE
66
J MAGAZINE | FALL 2017

A rendering of the Cathedral District
includes two-way streets along with a mix
of retail, residential and green space.
v
YOU MAY NOT KNOW MUCH ABOUT DOWNTOWN’S
CATHEDRAL DISTRICT. WHILE It doesn’t get the COVERAGE
of the FLASHY SHIPYARDS DISTRICT ALONG THE ST. JOHNS RIVER,
WHAT’S BEING PLANNED FOR THIS OVERLOOKED AREA
IS BOTH AMBITIOUS AND POTENTIALLY MIRACULOUS.
FALL 2017 | J MAGAZINE 67

v
TODAY’S CATHEDRAL DISTRICT
The Parks at Cathedral | 333 E. Church St.
St. John’s Episcopal Cathedral | 256 E. Church ST.
First Presbyterian Church | 118 E. Monroe St.
preserved residential HOMES | 100 block E. ChurcH ST.
First United Methodist Church | 225 E. Duval St.
Basilica of the Immaculate Conception | 11 E. Duval St.
PHOTOGRAPHS BY JEFF DAVIS // J MAGAZINE
68
J MAGAZINE | FALL 2017

v v
It’s still in the vision phase, but what a vision:
a neighborhood in the heart of the city with a heart for the city.
While most of the Downtown attention has been focused on Jacksonville’s
riverfront, St. John’s Episcopal Cathedral has been quietly working on its
own redevelopment initiative to make the environs around the church
a vibrant, walkable, multigenerational residential community.
STEVE NELSON
It’s an opportunity for private investors to invigorate an overlooked
part of the Downtown core with tax-generating residential
and retail developments.
It will need at least a little help from the city.
The vision is modeled on the medieval cathedral, which was
the center of village life, the
source of education, art and
worship.
It’s also the answer to a
problem that the Cathedral
helped create.
In the 1960s, the core city
was in serious decline as people
moved to the suburbs, a
crisis that eventually led to the
consolidation of Jacksonville
and Duval County in 1968.
“People were leaving the
core, but the Cathedral felt
called to stay,” said the Rev.
Kate Moorehead, dean of the
Cathedral. “So we surrounded
ourselves with ministries.”
Federal funding for urban
MAIN
N
OCEAN
E. STATE
E. UNION
E. BEAVER
E. ASHLEY
E. CHURCH
E. DUVAL
E. MONROE
E. ADAMS
LIBERTY
renewal was available, and before it dried up the Cathedral built
three high-rises for retirees and a nursing home, establishing one
of the city’s first nonprofits, the Cathedral Foundation, to manage
them. More than 600 people live in the high-rises, now managed
by Aging True, formed in 2011 by the merger of the Cathedral
Foundation and Urban Jacksonville.
The Cathedral got into education, establishing the Episcopal
School and a Downtown preschool. The congregation also was
active in Downtown Ecumenical Services and the Clara White
Mission. The Sulzbacher Center for the Homeless and Volunteers
in Medicine were started by Cathedral parishioners.
“When I came seven years ago, we realized that we had inadvertently
done ‘toxic charity,’” Moorehead said. “We had created
urban blight by creating all these nonprofits to minister to the
poor.”
So for five years they discussed and prayed about what they
should do next. They kept coming back to the idea of the medieval
cathedral.
“We started thinking, what if we had a vision to create a neighborhood,”
Moorehead said. “Not to displace the poor or discontinue
ministries, but to get people to move back in with us, into
the gritty exciting life of urban core.”
Moorehead wants to build
a community of people who
CATHEDRAL
DISTRICT
HOGAN’S
CREEK
want to live, work and play
Downtown but who are also
comfortable with diversity,
including the poor and elderly.
The goal is not gentrification
but ministry through a
supportive community.
So the congregation set up
Cathedral District-Jax, a nonprofit
with the goal of being
a catalyst for development
in the 33 blocks around the
church known to city planners
as the Cathedral District.
The project director of Cathedral
District-Jax is Ginny
Myrick, a former City Council
member with expertise in business development and government
relations. She will help brand and market opportunities in
the district.
“We’ve been likened to a preservation group, but we’re the
exact opposite,” Myrick said. “We’re about changing our neighborhood.”
And that means creating an identity and a sense of place.
A highway runs through it
But where to begin.
Moorehead and Myrick enlisted the support of the district’s
four other churches: First Presbyterian, First Methodist, Immaculate
Conception Catholic and Historic Mount Zion AME.
They also reached out to area businesses and the multitude of
nonprofits, many of which provide services to the homeless and
low-income residents in the area.
Last year, the Cathedral commissioned an Urban Land Insti-
FALL 2017 | J MAGAZINE 69

tute (ULI) study of the area bordered on
the north by State Street, on the east by
Hogans Creek, on the south by Adams
Street and on the west by Main Street.
Armed with ULI’s 34 recommendations,
it hired Torti Gallas + Partners of
Washington to develop a master plan
in partnership with Genesis Partners, a
Jacksonville urban planning firm. The
plan was unveiled in August.
An analysis of the 33-block area concluded
that the Cathedral District is a
great place to live — if you’re a car.
More than half of the property in the
district is devoted to parking. That and a
lack of green space gives the impression
that many of the surrounding buildings
are vacant. They’re not. Occupancy is
quite high, said Erik Aulestia of Torti
Gallas.
The district also is a maze of one-way
streets, which make the area difficult to
navigate. And many of the streets are designed
to move traffic quickly with rapid-cycle
stoplights and wide lanes. This
encourages motorists to speed through
the area without giving the neighborhood
— or pedestrians — a second
thought.
Conversations with stakeholders in
the district yielded a host of ideas for
what they would like to see happen in
the district. What emerged was the idea
of an ecumenical village with the five
churches at its core and with leafy residential
streets and strong education, arts
and retail components.
The vision statement: “The Cathedral
District is a leafy Downtown historic
neighborhood where you can live work,
learn, play, serve and pray together with
your neighbors.”
But how to make that happen?
“One of the impediments is that people
can’t envision it being different,” Aulestia
said.
An ecumenical village
Torti Gallas came up with recommendations
for the Cathedral District
that include brick-and-mortar projects,
changes in traffic patterns and a flock of
angels.
The plan calls for a core of residential
between Ashley and Duval streets. To
preserve the character of the neighborhood,
Aulestia recommended playing
off the architecture in the area, especially
the double-porch style of architecture
found in the older single-family homes
on the eastern edge of the district. Tree/
“We started thinking,
what if we had a vision to
create a neighborhood.
Not to displace the poor
or discontinue ministries,
but to get people to move
back in with us, into the
gritty exciting life of
urban core.”
Rev. Kate Moorehead
dean of the St. John’s
Episcopal Cathedral
grass medians along the street would
create a neighborhood feel.
The most obvious first project is the
redevelopment of the Community Connections
property east of the Cathedral.
The property has deed restrictions that
need to be changed, and a portion of it is
in the process of being declared an historic
landmark by the city, Myrick said.
But Chase Properties is interested in
building residential units that could be
ready in two years.
A vacant lot to the northwest of the
Cathedral also is suited to residential,
possibly mirroring the adjacent 51-unit
Parks at the Cathedral townhomes built
on land donated by the Cathedral. It
would surprise many people to learn
that the modern townhomes include internal
parking, a swimming pool and a
park-like courtyard and are individually
owned or fully rented at market rates.
A second component is a mixed-use
gateway on North Market Street with
street-level retail topped with two or
three stories of residential and an open
street plan with public art and green
space. The gateway would link the Cathedral
District to Springfield and be
appealing to employees at Florida State
College at Jacksonville and UF Health.
“With market-rate residential, you
could have critical mass that changes the
complete profile of the neighborhood,”
Myrick said. “And retail follows rooftops.”
The district already has a Harvey’s
supermarket and a Family Dollar within
walking distance and several fast-food
restaurants. Additional businesses like
salons, dry cleaners and a pharmacy are
needed to support a residential neighborhood.
But a school is what would really
make the Cathedral District a place to
call home. The Cathedral already operates
a preschool in the district with a
waiting list of 100. Many of the parents
work Downtown.
A University of North Florida survey
of employees at major Downtown companies,
commissioned by Cathedral District-Jax,
found parents of 7,000 children
who said they would be willing to send
their children to a Downtown school.
Myrick is in conversations with several
charter school companies about starting
a K-8 school of the arts that would be
a feeder to nearby LaVilla School of the
Arts. It could open as soon as next year.
One site that is being considered is a
four-story building owned by First Pres-
LILLA ROSS
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J MAGAZINE | FALL 2017

yterian Church that was designed in the
1960s to be a school, but never opened
because Riverside Presbyterian Day
School opened at the same time.
The building would need a sprinkler
system and some other upgrades, but it
already has a cafeteria and auditorium,
Myrick said. The playground could be on
the roof.
The flock of angels would descend in
the form of public art in the parks that
are badly needed in the district. Currently,
there is a pocket park at Duval and
Monroe streets that could be enlarged
and landscaped. Aulestia also suggested
putting in a large park in the northeast
corner of the district against the overpass.
Wherever the parks go, he said, they
should have an identity — targeted to
young children, dogs or activities like
chess or table tennis.
A diet for Downtown
And that brings the conversation
back to cars. If you want a residential
neighborhood with people walking their
dogs and kids playing, you don’t want
a highway running through it, Aulestia
said. That means putting Downtown on
a “road diet.”
Reconfiguring the streets to make
them two-way and restriping them to
make the lanes narrower slows down
drivers, Aulestia said. It’s being done on
Riverside Avenue and Forest Street in
Brooklyn and on Riverplace Boulevard
on the Southbank. It also will allow for
bike lanes and make sidewalks safer for
pedestrians. Urban planner Jeff Speck
has a lot to say about that in a story on
walkability on page 40.
It means that the decisions about
Downtown transportation need to focus
on people instead of vehicles, people
who prefer to travel on foot, by bicycle,
trolley or Skyway.
Safe passage needs to be provided by
maintaining sidewalks, slowing down
traffic signals and maybe getting creative
with intersections and crosswalks.
Painting designs on the pavement not
only can brighten up the area, especially
at gateway points but also make drivers
pay attention, Aulestia said.
Street art can also help create a sense
of place and link the Cathedral District
to the Sports complex and Elbow District
to the south and east, the business
district to the west and Springfield and
Hogans Creek to the north.
“There is momentum,
and this is a first-time
initiative being driven by
faith-based stakeholders.
It will take several years
to bear fruit, and I’ve
always been a big fan
of ripe fruit.”
Ginny Myrick
Cathedral District-Jax
project director
Parking is the tricky — and expensive
— part of the puzzle.
The way parking lots are scattered
around the district is a poor use of real
estate, but building more residential will
increase the demand for parking, at least
in the short-term, Aulestia said. In the
long term, demand for parking might
actually decline because fewer people
will be driving personal cars, opting instead
of ride-for-hire services like Uber
or public transportation.
But parking doesn’t come cheap.
Aulestia said a surface parking lot costs
$3,500 a space while a parking structure
costs $30,000 a space. Part of the solution
might be to add a layer of parking
to existing lots by using modular parking
decks, which are less expensive and can
be easily removed.
Restoring the balance
Neither Myrick nor Moorehead expects
any of this to happen quickly, but
they expect it to happen.
“This is a large, multi-year project
which I believe has hit the right time
in the history of our city,” Myrick said.
“There is momentum, and this is a firsttime
initiative being driven by faith-based
stakeholders. It will take several years to
bear fruit, and I’ve always been a big fan
of ripe fruit.”
To make it happen, the city needs to
step up and address the traffic and infrastructure
piece of the equation, as well as
provide incentives for the catalytic projects.
Aundra Wallace, chief executive officer
of the Downtown Investment Authority,
said the “road diet” for Downtown “is
very realistic.” However, funding must be
identified to address the one-way-to-twoway
street conversions and restriping.
“The overall development strategy is
very sound and practical,” Wallace said.
“The development of the Community
Connections location can serve as a catalytic
development project provided it’s financeable.
The charter school concept is
a component that would help residential
development in the urban core.”
As a nonprofit, Cathedral District-Jax
is in a position to attract money from
foundations, and there are several church
funds dedicated to urban renewal, Myrick
said.
It needs to happen, Moorehead said,
to restore the balance to Downtown.
“To really minister to the poor, you
have to live with them,” the dean said.
FLORIDA TIMES-UNION
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J MAGAZINE | FALL 2017

“That’s what we’re understanding now. In
an urban desert, they’re all by themselves.
People come in from the suburbs, do ministry
and then leave. That leaves them alone
without any real understanding and without
all their needs met. By keeping the ministries
but encouraging people to move back
in, we’re doing a much better job of serving
the poor.”
It’s a new style of ministry — and urban
renewal — that Moorehead thinks will resonate
with millennials, who are interested in
living in a diverse neighborhood.
“The inclination of many people is to
run away to gated communities or resorts,”
Moorehead said. “It’s scary to live and work
among people who are different, but it’s a
richer way of life.”
Redeveloping the Cathedral District is
not just about constructing housing and
retail. It’s about building community, too,
and that requires a safe environment where
people can start building relationships and
trust, she said.
Aulestia said he has worked on a lot of
plans to help revitalize struggling cities. He
thinks the Cathedral District is different.
“You have the commitment of a few individuals
to see it through, to take it every step
of the way,” he said.
“I love this city,” Moorehead said. “It’s an
extraordinary canvas for Downtown development.”
Lilla Ross was a reporter and editor for
The Florida Times-Union for more than
30 years and now is a freelance writer. She
lives in San Marco.
VOICES FROM THE NEIGHBORHOOD
Wiatt Bowers
Career: Senior planning manager, Florida
Transportation Planning
Age: 45
Residence: Parks at the Cathedral, 333 E.
Church St.
How long: 11 years
What do you like:
I moved to Jacksonville in 2006. I’m an urban
planner, and it’s important to me to be in the
urban core. I looked at San Marco and Riverside,
but what I love about my townhouse
is that it’s a relatively new unit with decent
square footage with a lot of the benefits you’d
find in a suburban neighborhood. I have a
garage, a deck and terrace, a pool. There’s a
grass side yard with trees. And I have all the
advantages of being in the heart of a city. I
can walk or bike places like the Arena, the
Stadium, the Landing. I don’t live a car-free life,
but I don’t drive as much as I would if I lived
in the suburbs.
What would you like to see:
More people. Everything else comes when
more people come, whether they are
residents or people coming to do something
to church on Sunday, or brunch. The other
thing I would like to see us have is more
multimodal transportation — bicycle facilities
with better transit connections to other
parts of the urban core.
Louise Henry
Retired
Age: 95
Residence: Cathedral Towers, 601 N.
Newnan St.
How long: 13 years
What do you like:
It’s wonderful living downtown. We have
24-hour security. Before I was living alone,
but now I have so many friends and people
looking in on me. I can go to church right
across the street at the AME Church. The
supermarket is a little over a block away. If I
feel like walking six or seven blocks, I can go
sit on the river and watch the boats and enjoy
the fresh air. There are all kinds of things
going on — bingo and Bible studies. There’s
a bus that takes us shopping. We’re not far
from the hospitals.
What would you like to see:
I’m not a complainer. I think it’s wonderful.
If you want to have a good life, this is the
place.
Jessica Olberding
Career: Energy trading company
Age: 31
Residence: The Strand on the Southbank
How long: 6 months
What do you like:
My husband and I are urban people. We enjoy
the atmosphere of the city. We have two
children, 5 and 16 months. We moved to the
Southbank because it’s as close as we could
be to Downtown and still be in the Hendricks
Avenue Elementary school district. Before
that we lived at the Parks at the Cathedral for
five years and really loved it. I love it that I had
great entertainment options for the kids. We
could walk to MOSH or the Main Library or
MOCA for the kids room or the kids zone
at Hemming Park. And I could go jogging over
the bridges with the stroller. I really like that I
don’t have a 45-minute commute.
What would you like to see:
I would love a charter school! Expanding
the Skyway to the stadium, San Marco and
Five Points is a great step. There needs to be
a drug store. Better grocery store options
would be good as Harvey’s has some notable
security issues. There is also a significant
presence of loitering vagrants and mentally
ill homeless which is really different from the
homeless presence I’ve seen in other cities
where I lived.
FALL 2017 | J MAGAZINE 73

Float
TRIPS
BY PAULA HORVATH // PHOTOGRAPH BY JEFF DAVIS // J MAGAZINE
74
J MAGAZINE | FALL 2017

AS DOWNTOWN CONTINUES TO GROW
WITH A STRING OF NEW RESIDENCES,
BUSINESSES AND ACTIVITIES, FINDING
MORE WAYS TO GET PEOPLE ONTO AND
ACROSS THE ST. JOHNS RIVER IS ESSENTIAL
As the sun set
on Downtown
Jacksonville, the
St. Johns River
Taxi carried a
load of passengers
under the Main
Street Bridge
from Friendship
Fountain to
Metropolitan Park.
s Downtown edges toward its future
as a more vibrant city center,
the network of waterways that define
it will become an ever more
A
important part of what will be a
lively urban scene.
Just imagine: sails skimming
across the St. Johns, the whir of motors as boats slip
under Downtown bridges, myriad docks extending into
the river at the Shipyards marina, and a flurry of activity
around the two creeks that form the extensions on
Downtown’s Emerald Necklace.
These waterways will give Jacksonville’s heart a vitality
matched by few other cities. Water is the fuel that will
animate its future.
A focal point in that reimagining of Downtown is a
lively crew of water taxis that will transport visitors and
residents alike to various points along the river as a way
of ensuring they experience the magic of the mighty St.
Johns.
Much of that is already in place with the service operated
by St. Johns River Taxi LLC. Since the company
took over management of the taxi flotilla in 2014, the
service has undergone an amazing transformation.
Today’s aquatic cabs not only transport people
across and up and down the river, they serve as river-based
entertainment venues for special tours allowing
riders to explore facets of the river not readily seen
from its banks.
Riders pay varying amounts for the taxi service. An
adult daily pass, for example, is $10 and allows riders to
travel all day; children and seniors pay $8. In comparison,
the sunset cruises, history and science cruises are
$15 for adults and $12 for children.
That’s historically not been enough to sustain the
service, but operators are faced with a Catch 22 when
they consider price increases. Hiking the ticket price
will cost the taxi’s customers, and decreasing the prices
will increase ridership to such an extent that it costs
more to run the service than it brings in.
To balance the books and keep the taxis afloat, the
city kicks in $120,000 each year, and various private
sponsors who see the River Taxis as vital to Downtown
contribute more.
Even with that, the service continually struggles to
make sure it remains viable. St. Johns River Taxi partner
Heather Surface admits that the support it receives “allows
us to break even. It’s very lean and mean.”
So the question now — as Downtown moves toward
its future — is how do the city and its business partners
ensure the survival of the River Taxi? And just as
important, what do we want the service to eventually
become as Downtown blossoms?
The first question can’t be answered until the city
collectively recognizes the service as an absolutely crucial
part of Downtown’s future. We can’t brand Downtown
as a unique waterway-defined segment of the city
without giving people a way to get onto and across the
water.
And increasingly, as Downtown is built out with hotels,
residences and other businesses, the taxis will contribute
enormously to a healthy economy.
Indeed, Savannah has recognized the importance
of its river taxi system. There, the Savannah Belles are a
vital part of Chatham Area Transit.
“At the end of the day, everyone realizes (the water
taxis) are in our best interests,” explains Nick Helmhold,
who formerly helped to direct the Savannah Belles and
now serves as an urban planner in Savannah. “In my
opinion, they’re very important to our economy.”
That’s the kind of attitude that must be adopted
here. It seems the city has signaled its belief in the importance
of the taxis, but local businesses haven’t been
as supportive.
In fact, after the city, the next biggest contributor to
the service isn’t a business at all — it’s the Riverkeeper,
which has given the St. Johns River Taxis $55,000 each
of the last two years to offer a fantastic program that introduces
underprivileged children to the river.
The next largest sponsor, at $30,000, is the Jacksonville
Jaguars, who rightly recognize the taxis provide an
essential service for football fans on game days. There
are other smaller sponsors as well, including The Florida
Times-Union’s in-kind sponsorship.
But few of those sponsors are assured for next year.
“Our approach was to hopefully prime the pump
with the hopes that other stakeholders Downtown will
join our commitment to protect this community asset,”
FALL 2017 | J MAGAZINE 75

says Mark Lamping, president of the Jaguars.
“But we shouldn’t have to do it alone. It’s
important that those who care about Downtown
Jacksonville consider a commitment
no matter how small.”
9
6
8
95
12
11
1
Shipyards
10
2 7
3
Friendship 4
Fountain 13
THE FUTURE OF THE RIVER TAXI?
City Councilwoman Lori Boyer’s vision for expanding the routes of the
St. Johns River Taxi, would eventually include eight more Downtown taxi stops.
EXISTING TAXI STOPS
FUTURE STOPS
The Landing
The
District
Baseball
Grounds
1 Jacksonville Landing 6 Riverside Arts Market 11
2 Friendship Fountain 7 Sports Complex
12
3 Doubletree Hotel 8 Brooklyn neighborhood 13
4 Lexington Hotel 9 Cummer Museum/Five Points 14
5 Metropolitan Park 10 USS Adams
5
EverBank
Field
Metropolitan
Park
St. Johns River
hat’s perhaps most remarkable
looking at
the relatively short list
W of taxi supporters is
the absence of many
Downtown stakeholders,
including the
names of some hoteliers whose guests could
benefit from the service.
This kind of shortsightedness is the attitude
that could limit the revitalization of
Downtown.
Surface has over the past couple of years
put together a hefty packet of the ways supporters
could contribute, ranging from inkind
donations to cash donations that would
allow a business to hand out free taxi tickets
to all its employees. She’s been dedicated in
pitching her ideas to Downtown businesses
— obviously with widely varying results.
The second question — what should the
River Taxi become — is a bit harder to answer.
There is, however, at least a groundswell
of belief that the service should offer
free rides for at least some of its trips.
There are several ways — with planning
— this could happen.
In Savannah, for example, the service is
free from 7 a.m. to midnight, seven days a
week. It’s paid for with a nightly $1 per occupied
hotel room tax, also called a bed tax, all
of which is funneled to the taxis.
Jacksonville currently has such a bed tax,
but much of it goes to the Jaguars for stadium
improvements and maintenance, effectively
supporting and recognizing the impact the
team and owner Shad Khan’s other ventures
have on the local economy. The remainder
is targeted for other visitor-related city projects.
Capt. Cap Fendig, who years ago helped
start the St. Johns River Taxi then managed
the Savannah Belles before opening his own
tour business on St. Simons Island, believes
another way to support partially free services
would be through a fee that Downtown hotels
voluntarily agree to charge each guest.
Called folio charges, these fees could then
go directly to the River Taxis to support some
free services, especially for hotel guests. Such
a plan would require that hotels strongly buy
into the service as a valuable partner.
“Jacksonville really needs (the water taxis)
to promote and stimulate the economy,”
Fendig says. “This is a very doable thing.”
Neither Surface nor Fendig see such support
as substantial enough to make all River
Taxi services free, but free weekday service is
a definite possibility. The cost of more specialized
services — such as the various special
cruises — would still have to be borne by
the rider.
That’s precisely the model chosen by
Baltimore, which has a private partner that
operates its water taxis. The Baltimore Water
Taxis operate both specialized tours and
14
N
Fuller Warren Bridge
Times-Union property
The District
Possible future park
cruises, but also a free water taxi called the
Harbor Connector.
The Connector is a free water-based
shuttle service that transports its downtown
commuters around the harbor Mondays
through Fridays. It’s funded by a city parking
tax charged to motorists using city-owned
parking garages from which the taxis get a
share.
For Baltimore riders, the service is essential.
“It’s absolutely beloved,” says Colby
McFarland, transit services administrator for
the Baltimore City Department of Transportation.
Why? “Because we have a lot of congestion
in the inner city, so why not take advantage
of our waterways,” he says. “Jacksonville
is congested too, so such a service would
work there.”
hatever system is ultimately
chosen for the
river taxis, most agree
W
that keeping the aquatic
service running is
crucial.
City Councilwoman
Lori Boyer, for example, who champions
using the river as a way to enhance Downtown,
says resources such as the water taxis
are crucial to attracting visitors and tourists.
Jake Gordon, CEO of Downtown Vision,
also sees the taxi as “a great amenity. I definitely
would not want it to go away.
“As a river city, we’d love a vibrant Downtown,
and that means people interacting
with the river.”
And as far as the Jaguars’ Lamping is concerned,
“We believe that one of the greatest
assets of Downtown Jacksonville is the St.
Johns River. And … it should be similarly
important for everyone who’s interested in a
vibrant, thriving Downtown.”
So, come on, Jacksonville, it’s time we
recognize and support the value the St.
Johns River Taxis bring to Downtown. As the
city center grows and morphs into the destination
we know it can be, it’s time everyone
pledges to ensure the taxis are an integral
part of that future.
Downtown’s identity as a destination for
visitors and locals depends upon how well
it can leverage all the components that will
make it a distinctive attraction. And water is
one of the primary ingredients.
Paula Horvath is an editorial writer and
editorial board member at The Florida Times-
Union and teaches multimedia journalism at the
University of North Florida.
STEVE NELSON AND JEFF DAVIS
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John A. Graham, 67, an
Army Veteran who served
in Korea and was originally
from Philadelphia has been in
Jacksonville for 12 years and
homeless for the last year.
78
J MAGAZINE | FALL 2017

DOWN
TOWN
HOME
LESS
NESS
WHILE THE
DOWNTOWN
HOMELESS PROBLEM
HAS BEEN AROUND
FOR YEARS, SOLUTIONS
HAVE NOT COME
EASILY
BY PAULA HORVATH
PHOTOGRAPHS BY BOB SELF
J MAGAZINE

There‘s
not much worse for a downtown trying to
revitalize its image than being cast as someplace
where transients loiter, waiting to accost
visitors or simply sprawling on the sidewalks.
For years, that’s been the picture of Jacksonville’s
Downtown: Shabbily dressed
people drinking beer out of paper bags. Panhandlers
roaming the blocks of Downtown,
asking people for money and drugs. People
sleeping on broken-down cardboard boxes
under Downtown bridges.
Some are homeless. Some are mentally
ill. Others are simply out of work. They all depend
upon Downtown as a place to socialize
and access services.
Make no mistake, the vast majority are
not dangerous, but they can frighten. More
than one person admits it’s a little scary
braving the streets of Downtown in search of
restaurants and entertainment.
For some people, it’s also a reason to just
stay away. Why even go Downtown, one
woman reasoned, “There’s nothing there except
drunks and bums.”
The challenge Downtown movers and
shakers are faced with today is how to shed
that image. It’s absolutely clear that Downtown
is never going to become a destination
for sightseers or fun-seekers or a healthy environment
for businesses to grow when it’s
dominated by people perceived as alarming.
It’s not a problem that hasn’t been tackled.
For decades, Jacksonville’s collection of
wonderful nonprofits and humanitarians
have worked hard to help the poor, homeless
and disadvantaged in the city center
and elsewhere. These generous individuals
Scenes in and around Hemming
Park and the Main Library.
80
J MAGAZINE | FALL 2017

possessed compassionate hearts and toiled diligently to
make a difference.
But they can’t find solutions alone.
The real trouble in Jacksonville is that city leaders have
stubbornly refused to step forward to help solve the problem.
Business leaders have bemoaned the fact that Downtown
has an image problem. City
government leaders have contributed
resolutions and dire words.
It hasn’t been nearly enough.
And it’s not that we don’t know
some of the steps that need to be
made. Cities like Orlando, Cleveland
and Salt Lake City have made
enormous strides toward solving
not only their problems with their
city centers, but in solving their
homeless problem in general.
The key to all these efforts has
been that everyone in the community
must be deeply involved
in seeking solutions — together.
The hearts of the nonprofits and
humanitarians aren’t enough.
Faith leaders are required to join
the effort, as are those from government
and business sectors.
Everyone who sees Downtown
as a diamond in the rough must
be on board to polish its image.
That has begun to happen
here. As J magazine went to press,
a diverse group of community
leaders from all walks of life began to talk, brought together
by Dawn Gilman, the executive director of Jacksonville’s
Changing Homelessness.
This kind of collaboration will be essential if Downtown’s
to progress.
“Agencies talking among themselves doesn’t move the
needle,” Gilman says. “The more (everyone) starts talking
about how we truly change homelessness in our community,
the better it will be.”
Indeed, that was the approach taken by Orlando several
years in Central Florida with the formation of an extremely
dedicated working group of homeless advocates and faith
leaders as well as city and business representatives. They
decided their goal would be to decrease the population of
homeless people who used city center streets as their beds
each night.
Much like in Jacksonville, city planners and others
were nervous that their strategies to pump up the vibrancy
of Orlando’s center would be hampered by the number of
people who hung out on urban corners and in parks.
The city had already spent millions of dollars to improve
and build downtown entertainment venues, and
businesses were ready to come in with millions more
in retail stores, offices and restaurants. But would there
be anyone to patronize these establishments if they felt
threatened?
The charge to decrease transience on Orlando’s downtown
streets was led in part by Andrae Bailey, then-CEO
U.S. CITIES WITH the
largest homeless
populations IN 2016
While the total homeless population has
fallen almost 14% since 2010, there are still
close to 550,000 people in the U.S. who
don’t have a fixed abode.
of the Central Florida Commission on Homelessness. He
gathered together leaders and compiled volumes of data,
then guided the group toward a discussion of solutions
and population targets.
The target seemed obvious: The city’s urban center
needed to be able to become a destination, so the group
decided their focus would be on
HOMELESS
CITY
POPULATION
1. New York 73,523
2. Los Angeles 43,854
(includes Los Angeles City and Los Angeles County)
3. Seattle 10,730
(includes all of King County)
4. San Diego 8,669
(includes San Diego City and San Diego County)
5. District of Columbia 8,350
6. San Francisco 6,996
7. San Jose and Santa Clara, California 6,524
(includes San Jose and Santa Clara City & County)
8. Boston 6,240
9. Las Vegas 6,208
(includes Clark County)
10. Philadelphia 6,112
SOURCE: U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development
downtown for both humanitarian
and economic reasons.
Using that logic, Bailey’s
group decided to target one
group of people who seemed to
be the most problematic. These
were the individuals who often
attracted much of the public
criticism — the chronically
homeless who often also have
mental and physical health
problems.
It wasn’t hard to find them,
Bailey says. A survey at one
downtown Orlando shelter
showed that of the 36,000 nightly
stays over the previous year, a
mere 111 people had accounted
for 18,000 — or half — of those
stays.
Certainly not all these people
presented a problem for
downtown visitors, but many
did.
“Not everyone is created
equal when it comes to their
impact on others,” Bailey says. “What we found was that
these chronically homeless folks didn’t have the capacity
to get a job. These folks were the ones who needed (help).”
In Jacksonville, and especially Downtown, the same
thinking may hold. Bailey lauds the city for decreasing its
homeless-veteran problem by 75 percent during a concerted
effort and believes it’s a good sign.
“So far, Jacksonville has done a great job helping its
homeless veterans,” he says. “The next step is to get the
chronically homeless into housing. You’d be taking out
the scariest people. That would make a huge difference.”
The Orlando team funded its effort by cobbling together
state and federal programs and grants and private donations,
including $6 million from Florida Hospital, after
the group gathered data showing that rapid re-housing
could make a difference.
In the three years Bailey led the effort to tidy up Orlando’s
streets, homelessness in the city was reduced by 50
percent. He now leads a national initiative, Lead Homelessness,
focused on recreating nationally the approach
that worked so well in Orlando.
Key to the success of Orlando’s approach was the active
involvement of the entire community, he stresses.
“Good intentions don’t cut it when you have a complex
problem. You have to work through partners. You have
to get people to work with you or you can never push the
CONTINUED ON PAGE 91
FALL 2017 | J MAGAZINE 81

Born and raised in Jacksonville, Sylvester
Black was homeless for years after getting
out of prison on a variety of charges. After
getting his life together with the help of City
Rescue Mission, Black got a job mentoring
youth with the Public Defenders Office.
82
J MAGAZINE | FALL 2017

OFF
THE
STR
EET
FOR SYLVESTER
BLACK, the lessons
he learned LIVING
DOWNTOWN
ON A PIECE OF
CARDBOARD ARE
ONES HE’LL NEVER
FORGET
BY PAULA HORVATH
PHOTOGRAPHS BY BOB SELF
J MAGAZINE
FOR THE
homeless, anonymity is protection against
a world constantly confirming how little
you’re worth. In fact, the less a person knew
about you, the better, the tall man figured.
“Black,” they called him on the streets of
Downtown Jacksonville. Just that one word
— Black — a moniker based upon his dark
skin. He was taciturn and cautious, he talked
with few people and called even fewer
his friends.
For 27 years, a period that accounted for
most of his life at that time, Black had been
in prison. He’d been convicted of burglary
when he was 21, and a Jacksonville judge
sent him to prison for the first time. To
guards, he was Inmate No. 275956 and not
much else. Inside those walls, behind those
bars, he’d seen the fires of hell. It had hardened
him.
Finally set free, he wanted nothing to do
with four walls after he found his childhood
home on West 22nd Street had been condemned
and demolished by the city. There
isn’t anything here for me, he figured, so
that first night he made his way to sleep near
Downtown under the stars.
For the next 2½ years Black spent most
nights under those same stars curled up on
a piece of cardboard to keep the early-morning
damp away from his skin. Black and other
homeless men and women called home
an empty lot behind the City Rescue Mission,
a place they called Cardboard City.
Today the 58-year-old Black is neither
homeless nor alone. About 10 years ago, he
left Cardboard City, determined to make a
better life for himself. He has done that with
the help of City Rescue Mission programs,
which he said helped him find God, and a
FALL 2017 | J MAGAZINE 83

“People need to stop looking down at these
people and reach out to see if there’s anything
we can do to help them.” SYLVESTER BLACK
job with the Public Defender’s Office. He met
his wife, Francine, and they married seven
years ago. The couple now live in an apartment
and have applied through Habitat for
Humanity for a house.
He’ll even tell people his name now —
proudly. Sylvester Black, he says chuckling.
He sees humor in the fact his fellow homeless
people invented a name for him without even
knowing it was his real name. Although most
of his time is spent at the Public Defender’s
Office, where he mentors youngsters who’ve
gotten into trouble, Black still makes a point
to go for walks in the community he used to
call “home,” Hemming Park and the area behind
the Main Public Library.
But back then he was just one of the some
400 homeless men and women who sleep
outside somewhere in Downtown Jacksonville
every night. In addition to those, another
1,600 or so homeless people across Northeast
Florida find some place other than the
streets to rest their heads. It might be within
a homeless shelter or another facility, but
when dawn breaks, they’re often out on the
streets again.
Now that Black has found his own shelter
off the streets, he’s determined that other
Jacksonville residents get a clearer picture of
the people with whom he once shared his
space under the stars Downtown. He’s aware
that there’s much criticism of homeless and
transients who frequent parks in the city’s
heart, but says much of that is based upon
misunderstanding.
In particular, Black is adamant that, in
many ways, homeless people are little different
from the business people who blindly
brush past them while crossing Hemming
Park. People encounter difficulties in their
lives, but sometimes, because of a lack of
money, ability or status, those difficulties
consume them. For a small number of people,
the struggles leave them without a home
to call their own.
It’s the discrepancy between who the
homeless really are and who they’re thought
to be that really concerns Black. They’re not
people to be feared or people to be ignored.
They are instead people who, like everyone
else in this city, sometimes need help. And
although Black is no longer one of them, he’s
adamant that his job is to help “introduce”
them to the non-homeless people of Jacksonville.
These days Black is greeted warmly by
both those seated on the walls beneath Hemming’s
big trees and walking along its bricked
pathways. Men in suits and women in office
attire hail him and shake his hand. Others
Eddie McNeal,
57, has medical
issues that
make it difficult
to work
because of the
pain. He lost
both his job
and his home
seven months
ago because of
health issues.
clad in humbler attire shout his name, “Hey,
Black,” as they see him step into the square.
But it wasn’t always that way.
“Back then people would give you a look
like you’re the lowest thing on the Earth,”
he says, remembering his homeless days.
“They’d be scared of you so they’d cross the
street or grab their purse closer. You ain’t gotta
worry about getting your space when you’re
homeless.” He shakes his head slowly.
While his work with young people in trouble
through the Public Defender’s Office is
84
J MAGAZINE | FALL 2017

“Everybody isn’t bad. Sometimes you
have unforeseen circumstances that
happen in a person’s life.” TODD WASHINGTON
rewarding, it’s not really where his heart lies.
He’d love to be back on the streets, not in
residence but as a guide to help those he left
behind find their own paths out of homelessness.
He’s aware of the controversy surrounding
the homeless, especially those who
frequent Hemming, with businesses and City
Hall searching for ways to clear them from the
plaza to make way for more well-to-do visitors.
Black says many of those living on Jacksonville’s
streets are people with few other
choices. “Many have lost jobs or lost their
loved ones. Or they just leave their homes because
they don’t feel like nobody loves them
anymore. Yet we don’t look at them as someone
who’s down and out; we look at them as
somebody we don’t want around.”
They’re people such as Eddie McNeal, 57,
who’s had little choice but to make the streets
his home. He’d been a furniture mover most
of his life, hoisting other people’s belongings
from one home into another. At least he’d
done that until he found out that seven discs
in his back had been injured by the work after
his hands and feet starting losing feeling. The
injuries were so severe, in fact, that he was in
the hospital for weeks, only to get out and find
out he’d not only lost his job but been evicted
from his apartment. He’s been on the street
ever since.
And they’re people such as the extremely
articulate Todd Washington, a 48-year-old
who spent his time in Hemming after he
moved here from up north to make a new
start. When he and his wife got off at the Amtrak
station in Jacksonville, they were routed
to Downtown streets, which they made their
home for the next six months, sleeping wherever
they could. An Army veteran who says he
graduated from Howard University, Washington
now has a job at a Jacksonville hotel.
“I USED
to frequent this park,” Washington says, glancing
around him. “I had a backpack with all my
clothes and belongings.” What would he like
others to know about the homeless? “That
everybody isn’t bad. Sometimes you have unforeseen
circumstances that happen in a person’s
life.”
Black would also like people to know that
most of the people who haunt Hemming aren’t
even homeless. “You see those cats with
the backpacks?” Black says, motioning toward
a dozen or so people waiting for the main library
to open. “That’s how you can pick the
homeless out.”
The majority — without backpacks — are
people who have homes to go to at night, so
they aren’t forced to carry their entire world
on their back. His comment is borne out by a
Changing Homelessness survey conducted in
Hemming that shows as many as 80 percent of
Hemming’s inhabitants aren’t homeless.
They filter into the plaza every morning
because they have nothing else to do. They’re
retired, they’re disabled or they’re out of work.
They want to use the free services offered by
the library, and, probably most importantly,
they’re looking for social contact. Nearly every
day, informal groups form, playing dominoes
or chess, offering daytime respite for people
who’d otherwise find themselves alone. You
can spot them easily, Black again points out,
because they lack the backpacks of the homeless.
Black is adamant that it’s often these present-but-not-homeless
Hemming Park residents
who cause the problems with panhandling
and drinking so often noted by outsiders.
He suggests that perhaps a Downtown social
center where they could meet, use computers,
play chess and dominoes and simply socialize
would be an important addition to the city.
One that would be utilized frequently by many
while emptying Hemming of the people simply
there to hang out.
Such a center could be either separate
or part of the kind of day resource center for
the homeless envisioned by the Interfaith
Coalition for Action, Reconciliation and Empowerment,
or ICARE. In addition to the
social spaces and technology utilized by the
non-homeless denizens of Hemming, such
a center could also offers services that cater
specifically to the homeless, such as shower
facilities and access to service providers. That
may be a long time in coming as the city has
declined to fund such a project.
But the needs of the homeless are more
expansive than just a social center. They range
CONTINUED ON PAGE 91
FALL 2017 | J MAGAZINE 85

WITH THE OPENING OF THE UPSCALE COWFORD CHOPHOUSE
EXPECTED LATER THIS YEAR, THE ELBOW DISTRICT IS ABOUT
TO GET A MUCH NEEDED SHOT OF ADRENALINE
Elbow
BOOM
BY JASMINE MARSHALL // ILLUSTRATION BY JEFF DAVIS // J MAGAZINE
I
t’s no secret to young folks that Downtown
Jacksonville is entering its Renaissance.
We come in search of a good time, local grub
and a good backdrop for shots worthy of Instagram,
bringing with us a sense of exploration that’s duly
rewarded with land yet uncharted in the city we call
home. Even a once-monthly visit yields spoils in the
ANATOMY OF THE ELBOW
1 Indochine • 21 E. Adams St. #200
2 Burrito Gallery • 21 E. Adams St.
3 THE 5 & DIME THEATRE CO. • 112 E. Adams St.
4 Super Food & Brew • 11 E. Forsyth St.
5 Dos Gatos • 123 E. Forsyth St.
6 Azucena Corner Deli • 100 E. Forsyth St.
7 Casa Dora Italian • 108 E. Forsyth St.
8 THE SPACE GALLERY • 120 E. Forsyth St.
9 Florida Theatre • 128 E. Forsyth St.
10 1904 Music Hall • 19 N. Ocean St.
11 Downtown Cigar Lounge • 11 N. Ocean St.
12 Spliff’s Gastropub • 15 N. Ocean St.
13 Cowford Chophouse • 110 E. Bay St.
14 Bold City Brewery • 109 E. Bay St.
15 Bay Street Bar & Grill • 119 E. Bay St.
16 D & G Deli and Grille • 223 E. Bay St.
17 Olio • 301 E. Bay St.
18 Live Bar • 331 E. Bay St.
19 Myth Nightclub • 333 E. Bay St.
20 Element Bistro + Bar • 335 E. Bay St.
21 The Hourglass Pub • 345 E. Bay St.
22 STUDIO ZSA ZSA Lapree • 223 E. Bay St.
FOOD | DRINKS | LIVE ENTERTAINMENT
ART | COMING SOON
86 J MAGAZINE | FALL 2017 RE
SOURCE: theelbowjax.com

MONROE
TO HEMMING
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2
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MAIN
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form of new businesses, music and art.
It’s about time intergenerational crowds,
to use a polite term for you older folks, took
notice, too.
Leading that charge is “The Elbow,” the
L-shaped stretch greeting visitors just off
the Main Street Bridge that aims to continually
cultivate the growing nightlife Downtown.
The independent collection of more
than 20 local establishments is responsible
for much of Downtown’s weekend
buzz, bolstered by the monthly art walks,
lounges, local fare and gallery space.
Its pickings — a smattering of bar, food
and entertainment venues — have the
propensity to become a second home for
young locals and retirees alike, supplying
experiences that run the gamut from
rave-style bashes at nightclubs to prohibition-era
themed bars and a historic
theater hosting everything from stand-up
comedy to ballet troupes. And though
its appeal draws a relatively millennial
crowd, The Elbow is wholly dedicated to
showing every generation what fun there
is to be had Downtown.
It’s as unique as it is rare: a concentrated
group of businesses owned and operated
by River City natives that was once only
a pipe dream to anyone who had borne
witness to the dilapidated collection of
buildings lining the streets of Downtown
as recently as 2011.
Today The Elbow hums with life.
The goal of the business owners in the
area isn’t just monetary; they know their
pursuits are bigger than they are, with
many forefronting the movement Downtown
and determined to revive the creative
and social energy that roused the city
in its heyday.
An eclectic mixture of restaurants,
pubs and after-hours establishments, The
Elbow is essentially a geographic area that
extends a few blocks north and east from
the intersection of Ocean and Bay streets.
At its heart is the Florida Theatre, and it
includes such longtime favorites as Dos
Gatos and Indochine as well as newcomers
like the soon-to-be-opened Cowford
Chophouse and Myth Nightclub and Element
Bistro. The last venue embodies
the young hybrid spirit of a 2-in-1 with
offerings that run the gamut from live DJ
sets housed under Jacksonville’s only LED
video ceiling to organic, locally sourced
cuisine and craft cocktails.
The Elbow’s draw is just as varied.
While many of the dining establishments
and, of course, the Florida Theatre cater to
patrons of all ages, many of the after-hours
lounges and pubs attract a somewhat
younger crowd. Some feature live music
while others highlight specialty drinks and
tasty grub.
he district’s businesses
are owned by
Downtown pioneers
T who were able to
look past the area’s
run-down buildings
and see a diamond
in the rough. Cases in point are friends
and business partners Duane DeCastro,
Jason Hunnicutt and Brian Eisele, who
saw something different — something
worth salvaging in between what Downtown
was and what it could be. Now,
they’re an integral part of what it’s becoming.
Together, the three helm 1904 Music
Hall, the premier music venue and bar at
what is arguably the forefront of The Elbow.
Flanked by the historic Florida Theatre
and the 1904 team’s second venture,
Spliff’s Gastropub, the music hall is one
of the first Elbow tenants that visitors see
from the bridge.
Outside, it’s deceptively unassuming.
With curtains blocking light from windows
of its Ocean Street storefront, the
venue opens to a dimly lit standing-room
concert space of stripped rafters; bare,
warehouse-style floors; paper lanterns
and an open bar. Large-scale murals,
equal parts unusual and beguiling, cover
the walls from floor to ceiling in the space
leading to a stage with all the works.
The lounge-turned-music venue
didn’t always carry with it the narrow
focus of fostering Jacksonville’s growing
music scene, but five years into its opening,
it’s become a premier haunt for patrons
and musicians.
“From the beginning, it was just our
intention to offer a destination Downtown
for everyone, from performers all
the way down to the patrons,” says Eisele.
“We wanted to offer the whole nine, from
the sound systems to the light rigs, just
to make 1904 an exciting place to see a
show.”
The trio met through music, food and a
mutual friend, with DeCastro and Hunnicutt
forming a band together that would
later influence a love of Jacksonville’s
budding music scene. In 2010, following
DeCastro’s move back to Jacksonville
after a short stint in South Florida, the
friends began to explore ventures in food
and drink — organic sandwich shops and
Located in the century old
Bostwick Building at the corner of Bay
and Ocean Streets, this rendering shows
what Cowford Chophouse is
expected to look like when complete.
The newest addition to The Elbow will
feature two floors of tables, private
dining rooms and a rooftop bar.
a kava bar among them — before they realized
it wasn’t what they wanted. Moreover,
it wasn’t what Downtown needed.
The partners tapped into the bonds
formed through craft beer and live music,
leveraging their knowledge and connections
in both realms and following a
hunch to the venue that would later become
1904.
“Opening (a music venue) up in the
heart of the city ... we’d looked in Springfield,
Riverside and all over the city, but
Downtown was kind of calling our name,”
Hunnicutt explains. “At the time there
were others around Jacksonville, but we
felt it was a really good asset to have one
Downtown. It felt like a good opportunity
to bring a new wave of nightlife to the
area.”
The urge was compounded by the
need to address what was sorely missed
Downtown, DeCastro says, noting how
courtesy of the Cowford Chophouse.
88
J MAGAZINE | FALL 2017

different the area looked just six years
ago, well before the city at large began
to funnel a trickle of interest back into
its heart. When the music hall reached
capacity for the first time during a New
Year’s Eve party headlined by Greenhouse
Lounge, they realized they needed
to focus their business around live music.
“There’s so many great artists in this
town, and there weren’t nearly enough
venues,” DeCastro recalls. “So we saw
kind of a niche there. And reaching capacity
for the first time that night was the
first time we realized, hey, maybe we’ve
got something here.”
The artists realized it, too. Among
1904’s regulars are the Parker Urban
Band, whose vocalist, John Parkerurban,
says the experience offered by the music
hall is like no other.
Parkerurban remembered taking the
1904 stage for the first time as a warm experience
not unlike the full-scale festivals
he and his band have performed at, citing
the quality of production and the hospitality
of the owners as components of a
“great experience.”
“The vibe of a venue is so important
because as an artist, you draw inspiration
from your crowd and your surroundings,”
he says. “And at 1904, everything adds to
the flavor of the vibe — the artwork on the
walls, the sound production and the light
system all (have) the same quality of a
large stage or a festival. It’s an experience
... every musician should have.”
The music hall’s role in quenching the
city’s growing thirst for live music experiences
wasn’t lost on the band, either.
“It’s definitely a key venue because
they’re offering a place where musicians
who aren’t usually heard can go,”
he says. “Phenomenal local bands who
are so much better than what the radio
has to offer, international and national
touring bands go there. Them getting that
chance, and 1904 giving them that opportunity,
has really enriched the music
scene Downtown.”
ostering that niche
in more ways than
one, 1904 keeps its
F
appeal broad; the
music hall acts as
an event space and
gallery in just as
great a capacity as a music spot and a bar.
DeCastro says that variety has afforded
them a crowd of new and returning faces,
occasionally pulling in families while
dutifully supplying a millennial demographic
with artists like Universal Green
and PVRIS. It’s with pride that the owners
offer something that patrons young and
old alike feel comfortable with, whether
FALL 2017 | J MAGAZINE 89

their space plays host to weddings and
wrestling matches or sees an electronic
dance music, hip hop or death metal set
within the span of a week.
Whatever the offering, the business
calls to memory the same refuge as a
speakeasy: a stylish, well-stocked
“hole in the wall” that readily provides
entertainment for a crowd
of all ages and genres.
Having cemented a place
in The Elbow, 1904 feeds
into what Hunnicutt describes
as the symbiotic
nature of Downtown businesses
with the shared
goal of bringing people
back to the area, filling the
void where local artistry
often falls.
“I think what we really
contribute is the music,” he
says. “But I also think that
as a part of The Elbow, we’re
working to make Downtown a
destination. We’re playing a role
in consistently bringing people from
around the city — not just to our venue,
but to a place where they can view murals,
see the river, the architecture Downtown
and all of the things that make this
city special.”
The trio recently acquired a grant
through the Downtown Investment Authority’s
Retail Enhancement Grant Program
that enabled them to add 80 seats
to 1904’s newly renovated courtyard patio
for an outdoor bar and beer garden open
seven days a week.
With the loftier goal of franchising
Spliff’s, they hope to add yet another
notch to their contributions to the
Downtown area. In the meanwhile,
though, they just want
to see more people return for
Downtown’s renaissance.
“It’s taken time for us to
build a reputation, and it’s
been nice to see such a warm
reception from the city,” De-
Castro said. “And hopefully
we’ve helped in showing people
what Downtown is like.”
JASMINE MARSHALL is a Jacksonville-based
journalist and creative writer.
She graduated from the University of North
Florida in 2015. In her spare time, she can
be found trekking the First Coast with her
camera.
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J MAGAZINE | FALL 2017

DOWNTOWN HOMELESSNESS
CONTINUED FROM PAGE 81
boulder up the hill.”
Barbara Poppe, an Ohio consultant who
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project, agrees.
“You want government, nonprofit, business
all going in the same direction. For so
many obvious reasons, you have to have everybody
at the table.”
Like Bailey, Poppe has made solving
homelessness her life’s work. She served as
an advocate in her hometown of Columbus,
Ohio, for many years before then-President
Barack Obama named her executive
director of the U.S. Interagency Council on
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Assistant Laila Samiian,
Professor
Samiian, MD
Professor & Chair& Associate Chair Associate Professor Professor
Assistant Assistant Professor Professor
Assistant Andrew Obstetrics Scott Lind, M. MD
Radiation Andrew Obstetrics Professor
and MD Kaunitz, Gynecology
Oncology M. Kaunitz, and Gynecology MD
MD
Professor Alice Hematology Fauzia
Pathology
Fauzia Hematology Rhoton-Vlasak, N.
N.
& Rana,
Rana,
Chair
and
and Oncology MD Oncology MD
MD
Radiology Martha
Assistant Martha Lara Radiology Zuberi, C.
Surgical C. Wasserman, Oncology
Professor Wasserman, MD MD
MD
Assistant
Surgery
Radiation Professor
Reproductive
& Chair
Endocrinology
Hematology and Oncology
Professor Professor & Oncology Associate Chair & Associate
Chair
Chair Pathology Associate Professor
Professor Professor
Assistant Surgical Assistant Professor Oncology Professor
Radiation For more information or RSVP, call 904.244.6069 by Sept. 28. Seating is limited.
Obstetrics
Scott Lind,
Surgery Obstetrics Oncology and
MD
Gynecology
and Gynecology Pathology
Alice
Hematology
Rhoton-Vlasak,
This event is Reproductive open only to adults and 18 Endocrinology
and Oncology
MD
older.
Radiology Surgical Lara
Hematology Radiology
Zuberi, Oncology MD
For more information or to RSVP, call 904.244.6069 by Sept. 28. Seating is limited. and Oncology
Professor & Chair
Associate Professor
Assistant Professor
This Scott Lind, Scott MD Lind, MD
Alice Rhoton-Vlasak, MD MD Lara Zuberi, Lara Zuberi, MD MD
Brian
Surgery
event is open only to adults 18
G. Professor Celso, PhD & Chair
Reproductive
and older.
John D. Murray, Endocrinology
MD
Assistant Smita
Hematology Professor Sharma,
and
MD
Oncology
Brian
Professor
Brian
Assistant
G. Surgery Celso,
& Chair
G. Scott Celso,
Professor
PhD
John
Associate
Lind, PhD MD
John
Assistant Reproductive D. Murray,
Professor
D. Murray,
Professor Endocrinology MD
Hematology Smita
Assistant
MD MD
Lara Smita
Assistant and Sharma,
Professor
Oncology
Zuberi, Sharma, MD Professor
MD
Assistant Scott Surgery Lind, MD
Psychology
Professor MD
Assistant
Reproductive Alice Rhoton-Vlasak,
Professor & Chair
Plastic Surgery
Professor
Endocrinology
UFHealthJax.org
MD Assistant
Hematology Lara Zuberi,
Assistant Professor
Assistant Assistant Radiology
Professor
and MD Oncology
Professor
Psychology
Professor & Chair
Plastic Associate Surgery Professor
Surgery
Reproductive Endocrinology
UFHealthJax.org Radiology
Assistant For more information or to RSVP, call 904.244.6069 by Sept. 28. Seating
Professor
Hematology is limited. and Oncology
Psychology
Surgery
Plastic Reproductive SurgeryEndocrinology
Radiology
This event is open only to adults 18 and older.
Hematology and Oncology
For more information or to RSVP, call 904.244.6069 by Sept. 28. Seating is limited.
This Andrew event M. Kaunitz, MD
Fauzia N. Rana, MD
Martha C. Wasserman, MD
Andrew For is
Andrew
Professor
M. more open
M. Associate
Kaunitz, information only to adults
MD or to RSVP, 18
Kaunitz, MD
Chair
Fauzia call and older.
For more information to RSVP, call 904.244.6069
Fauzia
Professor
N. Rana, by MD by Sept. Sept. 28. Seating 28. Seating is limited. Martha is limited.
N. Rana, MD
Martha
Assistant
C.
C.
Professor
Wasserman, MD
This event is open only to adults 18 and UFHealthJax.org
This Professor event Wasserman, MD
Professor
Obstetrics
& is
&
and
Associate open only
Associate
Gynecology
Chair to adults 18 Professor and older.
Chair Professor
Hematology and Oncology
Assistant
Assistant
Radiology
Professor
For more information or to RSVP, call 904.244.6069 by Sept. 28. Seating limited.
Obstetrics and Gynecology Hematology and Oncology Radiology Professor
This Obstetrics event For more
and is open information
Gynecology only to or adults to RSVP, 18 Hematology
call and 904.244.6069 older. and
by
Oncology
Sept. 28. Seating is
Radiology
limited.
This event is open only to adults 18 and older.
For more information or to RSVP, call 904.244.6069 by Sept. 28. Seating is limited.
UFHealthJax.org
“You can’t revitalize your
downtown when there
are (homeless) people
on the sidewalks who’ve
been there for years.”
Andrae BAILEY
UFHealthJax.org UFHealthJax.org
OFF THE STREET
CONTINUED FROM PAGE 85
For more information For more information to RSVP, call or 904.244.6069 to For RSVP, more call information by 904.244.6069 Sept. 28. or Seating to by RSVP, Sept. is call limited. 28. 904.244.6069 Seating is limited. by Sept. 28. Seating is limited.
This event is open This only event to is adults open 18 only and to This older. adults event 18 is and open older. only to adults 18 and older.
have to have an organized community response
to homelessness to get something
done.”
So, what will it be, Jacksonville?
Certainly this is at its heart a humanitarian
issue. How do we find homes quickly for
those who have none?
But it’s also an economic issue. Repairing
Downtown’s image is inextricably intertwined
with solving the homeless issue.
“Jacksonville and Orlando are so similar
when it comes to homelessness. We’re governed
by the same sort of economic principles,”
Orlando’s Bailey says. “You can’t
revitalize your downtown when there are
(homeless) people on the sidewalks who’ve
been there for years.”
The time is ripe for changes to occur but
not one group can do it alone.
It’s up to all of us.
Paula Horvath is an editorial writer and
editorial board member at The Florida Times-
Union and teaches multimedia journalism at the
University of North Florida.
from the obvious need for a job and housing to health care. Black believes,
however, that the only way Downtown can make a dent in the
homeless who daily make their way into the plaza is by providing them
with services that will help them.
“Half of these people here who are homeless have issues,” Black
says, adding that mental health and medical outreach services are particularly
needed. Although there are currently a few care providers who
venture out to meet the homeless on the streets, there aren’t enough to
make sure that every homeless person takes prescribed medications or
gets the care needed.
John S. Graham, 67, who moved to Jacksonville from Philadelphia
12 years ago, agrees with Black. A year ago, he too became homeless —
the first time in his life. Like many of the other homeless in Jacksonville,
Graham is a veteran. He spent six years in the Army and served in the
Korean War. After returning from the battle zone, he worked as a trash
collector for decades before moving to Florida. Graham feels abandoned
now by the country he served.
“People think that all the homeless people are the same, but they’re
not. A lot of them are mentally ill,” he says.
But the real solution, according to Black, lies in changing the hearts
of others. “People need to stop looking down at these people and reach
out to see if there’s anything we can do to help them,” he says emphatically.
“You know we talk about people, but what do we do to help them?
Sometimes they just need to make a phone call or have someone listen
to what they have to say. I think we need to stop looking at people and
being so judgmental.”
FALL 2017 | J MAGAZINE 91

92
J MAGAZINE | FALL 2017

The BIG
PICTURE
SUPERSIZED
CULTURE IN
DOWNTOWN
After a wildly
successful inaugural
year in 2016 that
brought a dozen
internationally
recognized mural
artists to Downtown
Jacksonville (including
Barcelona artist
Kenor, who painted
this vibrant mural
in the 300 block of
West Adams Street),
ArtRepublic
returns in November.
Under the guidance of
founder and curator
Jessica Santiago,
the 2017 edition of
ArtRepublic, will
feature 19 artists
during an extended
12-day exhibition from
Nov. 1 to Nov. 12 with
public art exhibits, a
fashion design gala, a
lecture series and an
immersive digital art
exhibit. ArtRepublic is a
privately funded, public
art organization that
helps artists create
boundary-pushing
work that inspires
communities globally.
MORE INFO:
artrepublicjax.org
PHOTOGRAPH BY
JEFF DAVIS
J MAGAZINE

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No view is promised. Views may also be altered by subsequent development, construction and landscaping growth. Seller does not represent/guarantee that the project will be
serviced No view is by promised. any particular Views public may also school/school be altered district by subsequent or, once serviced development, by particular construction school/school and landscaping district, growth. that the Seller same does school/school not represent/guarantee district will service that the the project project for will any be
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serviced more particular information by period any particular of about time. the Eligibility public school school/school requirements district’s boundary district (including change or, once geographical) process serviced prior by may a to particular change executing over school/school purchase time. You contract. should district, independently that Persons the same photos school/school confirm do not which reflect district schools/districts racial will preference service serve the and project the housing project for any and is open learn to
particular all more without information period regard of about to time. race, the Eligibility color, school religion, requirements district’s sex, boundary handicap, (including change familial geographical) process status or prior national may to change executing origin. over Prices, a purchase time. plans You and contract. should terms independently Persons are effective photos confirm the do date not which reflect of schools/districts publication racial preference and subject serve and the to housing project change and is without open learn to
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particular notice. price and Depictions period availability of time. of may homes Eligibility vary. or Ryland other requirements features Homes are of (including Florida artist conceptions. Realty geographical) Corporation Hardscape, may CQ268118. change landscape over Standard time. other Pacific You items should of Florida shown independently (CQ1038741). may be decorator confirm Standard suggestions which Pacific schools/districts of that Tampa are not (CQ1038743). serve included the in project CAJAX196 the purchase and learn
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all without regard to race, color, religion, sex, handicap, familial status or national origin. Prices, plans and terms are effective on the date of publication and subject to change without
notice. Depictions of homes or other features are artist conceptions. Hardscape, landscape and other items shown may be decorator suggestions that are not included in the purchase
price and availability may vary. Ryland Homes of Florida Realty Corporation CQ268118. Standard Pacific of Florida (CQ1038741). Standard Pacific of Tampa (CQ1038743). CAJAX196

QUESTIONS & ANSWERS
By Mike Clark
Unlocking the core’s
unrealized potential
Alex Coley on the remarkable
growth of Brooklyn to becoming
a ‘walkable urban place’ to
moving people Downtown
with ‘pedestrian accelerators’
he introduction of the apartments at
T 220 Riverside caused a wonderful
revival of the Brooklyn neighborhood.
The momentum from that development — and
Unity Plaza — ignited a retail flurry anchored by
a Fresh Market and
ALEX COLEY
LIVES IN:
Jacksonville Beach
WORK:
Principal and co-founder
of NAI Hallmark Partners.
a handful of restaurants
and shops. At
the center of the Unity
Plaza/Riverside
220 project has been
Alex Coley, principal
and co-founder of NAI
Hallmark Partners, the developers of the project.
Coley, who has lived in Jacksonville since 1979, was
interviewed by Times-Union Editorial Page Editor
Mike Clark.
On a scale of 1 to 10, 1 being a ghost town and 10 being
a tourist attraction, what grade would you give to Downtown?
I love Jacksonville, it’s been very good to me, I want to be kind and
loving to Jacksonville, so I’m giving it a 5.
What are the best assets of Downtown?
It’s trite to say the river. I’ve been so fortunate to visit each of the
Rouse festival marketplaces back when our marketplace (the Landing)
was under construction. I met with the managers of each one of them.
I’ve been to San Antonio and Portland. I’ve been blessed to really
FALL 2017 | J MAGAZINE 95

study great spaces and great cities in the U.S. and around the world.
Maybe the best attribute we have is unrealized potential and good
infrastructure to start with.
That’s a good point.
It’s not a blank canvas, but we haven’t made colossal mistakes that
are irreparable. Good solid building blocks are in place for a real cultural
renaissance. We haven’t made some of the cataclysmic mistakes.
What sort of mistakes have we avoided?
Infrastructure mistakes, highways right through the middle.
Washington, D.C., took a lot of grief for building one-way streets right
through urban neighborhoods so that suburbanites could come and
go through downtown. We had Jeff Speck come to town a few years
ago. He wrote the book “Walkable City: How Downtown Can Save
America, One Step at a Time.” Particularly with Brooklyn and Five
Points, he noticed the walkability of those little small streets. Maybe
the greatest attribute is truly unlimited potential. And I’ll go one step
further and say we’ve made a really good start, what’s been done in
Brooklyn and what’s happening in Five Points and Riverside and to
some extent on the Southbank is a good down payment.
You have mentioned Bryant Park in New York City and Pioneer
Courthouse Square in Portland. Not everything can relate
to Jacksonville, but are there particular urban role models that
could work here?
Absolutely. There are lots of examples. Highlands Park in Atlanta,
a lot of places have little pockets of wonder. It requires density, livability,
walkability. The Urban Land Institute has embraced it with open
arms. They call them WUPS - Walkable Urban Places. And if you look
at what a Walkable Urban Place is and you take Jeff Speck’s work, you
create pods of livability and walkability, you connect them through
pedestrian accelerators, it makes life wonderful. You have people in
Five Points-Riverside accelerating to Brooklyn. The distance between
Unity Plaza and the Times-Union building is the same distance from
the Times-Union building to the Landing. I’ve walked them both. A
pedestrian accelerator would make that fun. The Downtown Investment
Authority is working on a road diet (reducing, altering roads for
pedestrians) so there will be more pedestrian-friendly assets coming.
What exactly would a pedestrian accelerator look like?
It could be a rapid transit bus. Cleveland has a good example of
a bus system that could augment our Skyway Express at grade level.
Elevated transportation is expensive, and since the streets are there
already, the buses can get around quickly and people can walk out
of their buildings and walk on and walk off. In Speck’s book, he talked
about how the big auto companies bought up trolley systems.
We had one on Main Street.
They bought them up and destroyed them so we would use our
cars. So back to the future, the grid is still there and you could use
some of the same infrastructure. JTA has been good partners with us
at 220 Riverside. They are working on plans for the Ultimate Urban
Circulator that follows this line of thinking.
So what’s your assessment of 220 Riverside? How has it gone?
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It took a little longer to get it delivered. The apartments were
leasing up quicker than we imagined. We planned a three-year
lease-up and we were done in eight months, which is borderline
historic in the industry. It has stayed occupied. Our partners bought
our interest last year.
It’s like 96 percent occupied.
I understand that it goes between 96 and 98 percent. The rents
they are achieving are above pro forma rents, and they’re escalating:
We think the market’s proven. Everybody said it couldn’t be done,
Jacksonville wouldn’t pay for quality. We theorized that nobody
had ever offered quality, and if we did, people would be excited to
have it. There wasn’t a good urban project that presented a sense
of community. The previous projects didn’t have the scale and the
fresh look and the smaller unit sizes that allowed us to deliver the
competitive monthly rent number. When we delivered the product,
the market just loved it. We’re fast and furious on the second phase.
The images are beautiful; it will be another step up.
What’s your assessment of Unity Plaza?
It took a little longer. I think the community needs to develop
around it. It will evolve into a vibrant community as the residences
continue to develop.
What are some of the difficulties of getting development
approved, especially Downtown? I’m talking about systems, not
people. Do we have too many hoops?
We don’t have the most streamlined process. There are places
around the country with streamlined permitting that will facilitate
development. We’re competing with every place in the world for
capital, both monetary and intellectual, and for people. Projects like
Brooklyn create a positive frame of reference. People decide where
they want to live, and then they figure out how to make a living. It’s
critical that these projects get done. We could do more to create a
sense of urgency to facilitate that process.
Orlando has a neat little district, called Creative Village. They
have a lot of exciting new development activity there. If you’re a
business and locate there, they will turn themselves inside out to
make you comfortable, to make it easy for you. It would be interesting
to see a comparison of five or six peer cities and how they do the
permitting process. Orlando, Austin, Phoenix, Nashville, Charlotte,
cities that are in our peer group, do things that make them competitive.
There is an overarching mission that they are dead-set on
completing. It may be 10,000 housing units Downtown or absolutely
walkable, livable kind of a place and we’re not going to stop until
we get there. And we’re going to build the infrastructure required
to make that happen. We started the Brooklyn projects without
that in place. Our partners in Brooklyn were the master developers
of The Gulch in Nashville, and they have a fabulously streamlined
permitting process there. So have the vision, build the infrastructure,
streamline the process, and recognize that until critical mass
is achieved, you may have to discount the price. I’m talking about
incentives. There are very few Downtown projects that can operate
without some kind of incentive, a clearly defined, easy-to-accomplish
incentive package that a developer sitting at his desk in Boston
could grasp and expect to realize. This would facilitate the process.
I recall 220 Riverside had some kind of tax incentive, right?
A REV grant, Revenue Enhancement Valuation Grant.
What did that mean financially?
It works like project-specific tax increment financing. The
additional tax revenue is shared back with the project. There is a
little bit of a real estate tax rebate.
That seems fair in return for having a breakthrough.
It’s easy to turn on and off. If it’s creating problems, stop doing it,
but until it reaches that critical mass, double down on it.
Where is Downtown Jacksonville headed? Where is Jacksonville
in five or 10 years now that it looks like we have this
positive momentum?
That’s a big question, but we can take it in bite-size pieces. I see
3,000 or more people living in Brooklyn in five to seven years. The
Times-Union site will sell, other sites in the neighborhood are either
sold or are selling, so property is getting in the hands of people who
can’t afford to sit on it. They have to do something with it. Wonderful infrastructure
is in place. Walkable streets will add to that. Additional development
will happen pretty quickly. It’s to our peril not to accelerate
this. There is a cycle, if we miss this, we’ll be sitting for a decade waiting
for another cycle to come around. I see Brooklyn as a fait accompli.
Then what’s happening over in the stadium area is a similar kind of
renaissance. As a pilot, it’s hard to get a plane in the air, but once it’s in
the air, it’s hard to stop it. There’s been lift-off over there with Daily’s
Place and all the development around it and Shad Khan’s backing and
significance. I’m pretty sure there’s a convention center in the offing,
probably another hotel. Then when we have those pedestrian accelerators
to make it easy to get from place to place, it all becomes part of a
single big amenity package that helps us answer that first question.
MIKE CLARK has been reporting and editing for The Florida Times-Union
and Jacksonville Journal since 1973. He has been editorial page editor for the
last 12 years following 15 years as reader advocate.
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FALL 2017 | J MAGAZINE 97

THE FINAL WORD
Public and private
investments fueling
Downtown progress
LENNY
CURRY
PHONE
(904) 630-1776
EMAIL
MayorLennyCurry
@coj.net
here is great momentum in Jacksonville.
With strong economic
T
growth, a vibrant business environment
and thousands of new jobs across
a variety of sectors, these are exciting times
for the city we love.
This is especially true of Downtown Jacksonville.
Progress in our urban core includes increased public and
private investment, infrastructure improvements, major
commercial projects and attractive new opportunities for
living and playing Downtown.
Downtown is the heart of a community. An attractive,
stimulating and thriving city center communicates a city’s
unique character. That’s because a great downtown is a
center of activity for culture, entertainment commerce
and living. It showcases a city’s strengths and values.
That’s why I’m determined to transform Downtown Jacksonville
into a place that shows the world what a dynamic
city we are.
Over the last two years, approximately $30 million
in public investment has been devoted to improving
downtown. The Downtown Investment Authority (DIA),
a key partner with the City of Jacksonville on urban core
revitalization, uses public dollars generated through the
Downtown Development Trust Fund and Community
Redevelopment Area resources to create incentives
designed to spur economic growth in the central city. I
work closely with the DIA to ensure that projects achieve
the highest possible return on our investments of taxpayer
resources. These investments are guided by two main
principles: smart and responsible fiscal management,
and leveraging public dollars to attract private dollars.
Government can’t do it alone. Many have heard me
repeat an adage often used, stating that “you can’t be
a suburb of nowhere.” Downtown is important to our
city, requiring all of Jacksonville to share and support its
success. Success demands collaboration. Private sector
investment is the real key to achieving truly big, bold and
innovative things downtown. It is a City priority to create
a business climate that supports and engages private
investors, as well as other stakeholders.
Since my election more than two years ago, I have kept
Downtown development as a top priority and maintained
my commitment to getting things done. I’m happy to
report that the results validate our strategies, and I can
proudly say Downtown Jacksonville is beginning to thrive.
That $30 million public commitment has sparked private
capital investment resulting in more than $250 million of
Downtown development. Economic development projects
have added 950 jobs downtown. Major infrastructure
enhancements include street lighting and parking
improvements. A free Wi-Fi network is allowing citizens,
visitors and downtown workers to access the Internet on
their computers and mobile devices.
Several major residential projects currently under
construction will breathe more life and energy into our
downtown core. Investments in commercial, residential
and retail projects will result in more than 1,000 new
apartment units, a 131-room hotel, and 82,000 square feet
of renovated commercial, office and retail space.
Expanded entertainment offerings include the
growing Elbow entertainment district. The new state-ofthe-art
amphitheater at EverBank Field will attract more
visitors and premium events to the area. New restaurants
and shopping venues, the new Winston Family YMCA
and colorful displays of public art throughout downtown
add to a growing list of diverse attractions for all ages and
interests.
Want more proof that Jacksonville’s city center is becoming
a premier destination? National media are taking
notice of downtown’s evolution. We’ve ranked high in
several national lists in recent years including Huffington
Post’s “5 Secretly Cool Cities,” Forbes’ “Cities with the
Most Vibrant Employment Scene” and Global Trade’s
“Cities for Logistics Infrastructure.” Additionally, the
American Planning Association named Laura Street one
of the top five best thoroughfares in the U.S., highlighting
the street’s use as a hub for community activities, like the
monthly Art Walk.
Of course, there is much work to be done, but I am
excited about our progress so far and see great potential
for the future. From riverfront improvements, to the restoration
of the Laura Street Trio and the development of the
Shipyards, I look forward to many more big and bold projects
that reshape and reinvigorate the heart of our city.
Continuing Downtown Jacksonville’s transformation
into a showcase for residents and visitors alike, and an
attractive space for commercial growth and innovation,
remains a top priority of my administration. We will continue
to commit to projects and partnerships that involve
visionary ideas, attract private investment and encourage
economic growth. We are building a Downtown Jacksonville
that every citizen can enjoy with pride.
LENNY CURRY has been the 44th mayor of Jacksonville
since 2015. He and his wife Molly and their three children
live in San Marco.
98
J MAGAZINE | FALL 2017

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