Does anybody REALLY believe that we are going to see a bigger downtown impact from Met Park upgrades than we would from a parking fix for the Landing? Not to mention that what he did may be illegal, since the money was dedicated to the Landing parking issue by ordinance in the settlement agreement between the City, Humana, Kuhn and the Landing.

I think a complete makeover of the Metro Park area is necessary. The Mayor’s 2 million (actually our 2 million) could have gone a long way there. I would install a GIANT ferris wheel that could be seen from many locations to draw people to this location. Next, I would build 2-story buildings like old town Jacksonville 1800′s and allow people to move into them if they would work the shops below. These artisans and entrepreneurs would cover the building and mortgage. It would be the biggest draw in the country. Hell, call it COWFORD. Kind of part entertainment, part history, part learning experience for children. This would include a petting zoo, six gun battles, walking history tours, shops to buy things, sailing and canoeing, woodworking shop, horseshoe making, and the works…

Everyone must wear period dress.

Now to excite the crowds, a giant lift to carry you up and across the river to the Southbank empty lot. Let’s get creative. I know this will bring the people. The Mayor just commits the land, the lift, the ferris wheel and the rest is down with investor capital from those who will work it. LET’S GET BUILDING!

If you are going to rejuvenate the downtown, remove the homeless in Hemming Plaza. The city’s response was to move 10 empty police cars to the area. FUNNY. We built the downtown library for the public but turned the $80 million dollar building over to the homeless. GOOD JOB.

Having lived in Jacksonville since ’64 I can remember the days of a wonderful downtown. It was full of life and smelled of fresh baked bread. Crowds of people made their way to the downtown to shop and enjoy life.

I’ve lived in Jacksonville since 1970, coming here from a small southern town. It’s been my consternation to try and figure out just what the people here call Jacksonville. Putting the consolidation aside, I thought that “Downtown” was the area from about Davis St., in the west, to about Washington St. to the East; and the river bank to the south, to about State Street, to the north.

The rest of all of this conglomeration is either suburb housing developments or the remnants of other communities. That makes it rather clear to me where Downtown re-development money is to be spent. And, yes, most of the population does consider that area a dangerous place to be, especially after dark.

If the city wants people to live there, the only option is to build it upwards. If people live there, they will need parking and transportation, entertainment, stores to obtain clothing, etc. If people from outside of the area are to be attracted to it for shopping or entertainment, they well have to have access to the very same things. Even a movie theater needs parking for its customers.

In my small-town mind, a downtown isn’t for people to live. They are places for people to have businesses. Their purpose isn’t to attract foreigners but to serve the people of the community. I ask you, where, from the football Stadium to the Acosta Bridge is any of the “valuable” waterfront dedicated to the people of Jacksonville? If it is so valuable, why is it tied up by government buildings and private business? Where is the welcoming in that small area that would encourage the citizens to take advantage.

It makes me wonder who really owns Jacksonville and why they want it prettied up? Who is supposed to be the beneficiary? It’s all been taken away. If down town is to be revitalized, it’s going to have to be given back to the people.

About 25% of us “homeowners” have paid off our mortgage and actually own our home, worked hard, done without some things, lived at bit below our means, and saved a few dollars, We’re getting XX#**+XX sick of being ripped and conned by la-la land socialists and greedy capitalists.

You wanna live in an artsy-craftsy cutesy-poo, urban downtown? Great! You go pay for it!

I quibble somewhat with #6. I think San Marco and Riverside are in much better shape than downtown already, so I don’t think that the good effects of making them even better off really trickles down to downtown. More generally, in the places I have lived I haven’t noticed much correlation between the prosperity of near-downtown neighborhoods and the prosperity of downtown itself. Some places have strong near-downtown areas and a weak downtown (like Jacksonville itself, also Atlanta) and others have strong downtowns surrounded by less prosperous areas (like Philadelphia and Savannah).

Also, there needs to be “beat cops” stationed in the downtown area from
Hemming Plaza to the Landing from 6pm-2am…….with a precinct station in the Landing…….Specially selected officers in non police type uniforms but regular sworn officers.

And finally, since our greatest asset is the River, use it more for events and use some imagination for marketing and promoting what gives our city its name, THE RIVER CITY….Whoops, almost forgot….work closely with the “upscale restaurant owners” already in place downtown to provide marketing support for the restaurants that cater to the downtown and tourist trade.

Number 3 is key not because those 55,000 workers “could” become residents, but because they “are” current customers for the existing businesses and restaurants. Forget worrying about what it would take to get them to move downtown, we need to figure out what it would take to get some of them to simply stay downtown for a few hours after work every once in awhile to eat, drink or shop.