Downtown's Blighted Surface Parking Lots Under Fire

[Metro Jacksonville]

Downtown's Blighted Surface Parking Lots Under Fire



In an effort to clean up the appearance of downtown, the JEDC has developed a Surface Parking Improvement Plan to address the blight stimulated by downtown Jacksonville's parking industry.

Full Article
http://www.metrojacksonville.com/article/2010-dec-downtowns-blighted-surface-parking-lots-under-fire

[CS Foltz]

I have one question..............how does the City calculate the "Storm Water Run Off Fee"? Especially for a place like say FBC? Yeah.......I know, churches are exempt.......if they can tax street cart vendors, it would seem to me that they could tax Churches also.................just like the rest of us! I have to pay a "Storm Water Fee" but I don't have drains that move water into the City system, Linkside is one of the few places that has ponds and drainage into the Boggy Bayou Eco System! In other words, that tax for me pays for upgrades in Jacksonville to parts of the world that I will never be in, that money goes to fill a Budget shortfall and with the exemption for all churches......it is a double whammy and not equitable! So how do the downtown garages pay their fair share?

[sheclown]

Does the city plan to help out the current parking lot owners/managers, or just slap them around a bit with new licensing?  What will the new regulations do to the cost or availability of parking?  Will this have any adverse effect on parking downtown?

Certainly improved parking lot appearance is a good move. Incentives might be nice.  Combo of carrot and stick always seems to work best.

[thelakelander]

I'm interested to read people's opinions on this particular issue.  I do know that a few of those lots had century old buildings on them when I came to town in 2003.  At this point, it appears they were demolished as a part of a "holding strategy" that avoids maintenance costs on existing buildings, while pulling in "temporary" profit for surface parking on those building foundations (without any investment in improving those sites).

As for the number of spaces, if these new regulations are adopted, my hope is that the availability of surface lots will decline.  While DT has its parking issues, they aren't availability related.

[thelakelander]

Here's one example:

"A three-story building originally built in the early 1900s was demolished on the western edge of Downtown, leaving several residents combing through the rubble for choice bricks.
Jacksonville Economic Development Commission Deputy Director Paul Crawford said his office issued the demolition permit because the building was condemned and had no significant historical value"
Hundred years comes down - Jax Daily Record 3/28/08



MJ took this shot of the E.C. Newsom Furniture Company's building coming down in 2008.  Since then, the building on the left of this photo and another on the same block have been demolished as well.



Here is an image of what the E.C. Newsom building used to look like back in the day.



This same block today.  I don't know the background of all the lots the JEDC has decided to target but on this particular one, I agree with their position.  Its completely unacceptable what has taken place on this corner the last couple of years.

[vicupstate]

Given the rule of unintended consequences, I would proceed carefully.  It is a problem that needs addressing. The first question is what has worked successfully elsewhere?

[Actionville]

Instead of making them look like prettier surface lots in the urban core, why shouldn't we just zone them out of existence: http://www.miami21.org/T6_Parking_Landscape.asp . In my opinion they don't have a place in the kind of environment downtown should be

[sheclown]

Icky parking lots is not the major contributing factor to the dead zone.  If downtown was a vibrant place, we wouldn't have so many building scars dotting the landscape.  It is the effect, not the cause.

Perhaps declaring downtown its own very special enterprise zone with significant incentives for remaining in the DMZ, like COJ tax credits which could be used (for any COJ tax) or sold, and an attitude of "gee, we're glad you are here brave business person" might go farther to promote growth downtown then spending bucks on studies that point to parking lots and a billion dollars to determine we need to spend money scraping bubble gum off of the sidewalks and plastic signs that encourage us to make a scene.

Let businesses keep more money in their cash registers and they will use it to promote their businesses and improve their properties. 

[Jaxson]

I have to agree that these unregulated parking lots give an apocalyptic feel to downtown Jacksonville.  Would it not hurt to at least do some simple weeding and landscaping? 

[sheclown]

How much did the study cost which told us this?  How much has been spent on studies for the last decade?  Certainly the consultant biz must be doing well on the downtown situation.

[Actionville]

3 yrs for this study?!?! If I'm reading that correctly, wow

[Kay]

I say it is about darn time.  The long-term goal should be to get rid of all of these surface parking lots via new development.  So the program should move us in that direction by disincentivizing ugly surface lots.  And if the owners do not improve the lots then the City should consider eminent domain (I know that's much harder to do).  The next time a property owner wants to demolish a historic building, say NO.

I truly believe that had Jacksonville not allowed all its great old buildings to be demolished downtown would be much more vibrant today.  Its revitalization would be soooo much further along.   

[hanjin1]

it took them how long to realize that surface parking lots were not good? good job jacksonville keep up the good work

[sheclown]

Half of Ionia Street is empty lots where houses used to stand.  if they were parking lots, perhaps the cars would crush the weeds.

Just sayin'

I don't know the history of the surface parking lot saga, nor do I know the players.  Just seems like a distraction.  I only hope one day Main Street is busy enough that folks will be lined up to park on Jennifer's scab on 7th & Main in Springfield.  Cuz right now, it is blighted and doesn't have anything on it.  

[Coolyfett]

Fix up that damn lot at Jefferson Station, wo