Riverside Avondale an American Top 10 Neighborhood

[BoldBoyOfTheSouth]

Great thread!

[BoldBoyOfTheSouth]

Has Riverside/Avondale continued to top this list?

[Bill Hoff]

These type of lists typically change every year.

Neither Riverside & Avondale nor Springfield appeared their respective "best" lists after being named the first time.

[Kay]

These type of lists typically change every year.

Neither Riverside & Avondale nor Springfield appeared their respective "best" lists after being named the first time.

Riverside Avondale was selected by the American Planning Assoc. for a top 10 neighborhood.  Was Springfield similarly designated?  I was not aware.

[tufsu1]

^ well to be fair Kay, it was decided by some folks a few years ago to nominate Riverside-Avondale.  They could have just as easily nominated neighborhoods like Springfield and San Marco.

And as to staying on the list, the 10 neighborhoods, 10 streets, and 10 places chosen by APA change every year.  There will never be repeats.

[Bill Hoff]

10.msg361113#msg361113 date=1389729670]
These type of lists typically change every year.

Neither Riverside & Avondale nor Springfield appeared their respective "best" lists after being named the first time.

Riverside Avondale was selected by the American Planning Assoc. for a top 10 neighborhood.  Was Springfield similarly designated?  I was not aware.

Kay - no, it was "best of" whatever in a couple of magazines.

Tufsu - these type of lists may get published every year, but if X area, restaurant, venue, etc is featured, they must be doing something right.

[Jumpinjack]

^ well to be fair Kay, it was decided by some folks a few years ago to nominate Riverside-Avondale.  They could have just as easily nominated neighborhoods like Springfield and San Marco.

It would be nice to see someone work on a nomination for Springfield. How about it?

[tufsu1]

APA spreads these awards out geographically.  I would suggest waiting a few more years before submitting another Jacksonville neighborhood.

[Kay]

I agree.

I can think of one or two COJ planners who should also be involved in an initiative like this.

Institutionally as well as physically, we need to build on what's already out there.

If you're serious, I am. I suspect Lake and Stephen may interested in joining up on it as well. If downtown had possessed a RAP watching over preservation, we probably wouldn't have seen the wholesale destruction of so much of it.

If you think it's still worth it even after we've already lost so much of it, I'm game if you are. I would have questioned the need before a couple months ago, when the latest plan for the convention-doggle included a plan to knock down the historic Herkimer Block in order to replace it with...yet...another...parking garage. Since then I've been mulling it over, and have become convinced downtown needs its own preservation society, separate from any other agency.

By the way, a number of us advocated at a DIA planning meeting to make downtown a national register and/or local landmark district.  I think they heard us and hopefully are intending to take us up on that.  Just found out that was a recommendation in 2002 from Carlucci's Historic Preservation Taskforce.  Downtown buildings already have been surveyed so a good part of the work is done.  You may want to reach out to Melody Bishop and share your support of such an initiative.  She's heading up the planning committee for the CRA.  While so many historic structures have been demolished, we should not lose anymore.  We need to figure out how to get those buildings rehabbed and reused which will help downtown redevelop.

[Bill Hoff]

APA spreads these awards out geographically.  I would suggest waiting a few more years before submitting another Jacksonville neighborhood.

I would say San Marco has dibs anyways. : )

[mtraininjax]

I would say San Marco has dibs anyways. : )

At the rate San Marco is going with tear-downs of historic buildings and new construction of modern structures, it may lose its identity as historical by the time the awards are handed out. Stinks that you can have a historic district in San Marco that allows for tear-down of buildings. Same goes for Ortega.

[Tacachale]

It's not a historic district, for one thing. For another, the award is for overall planning, not just being "historic".

[mtraininjax]

It's not a historic district, for one thing.

Thanks, you are so right. Wow, I learned something new today. Only 3 historic districts in Jacksonville, Riverside/Avondale, Springfield and something called the St. Johns Qtr District where the former Cheek mansion sits now, as well as River Boulevard (between Villa Riva and Memorial Park, basically).

[Tacachale]

It's not a historic district, for one thing.

Thanks, you are so right. Wow, I learned something new today. Only 3 historic districts in Jacksonville, Riverside/Avondale, Springfield and something called the St. Johns Qtr District where the former Cheek mansion sits now, as well as River Boulevard (between Villa Riva and Memorial Park, basically).

There are different kinds of historic districts. Four are on the National Register: Avondale, Riverside, Springfield, and Old Ortega. There are also local historic districts that in some cases overlap with the National Register ones. For whatever reason, Riverside and Avondale are included together but parts of them (St. Johns Quarter) have their own. Springfield is also a local district.

 For whatever reason

"Old Ortega" is also listed in the National Register.