Cool Stuff in Other Cities

[dcluley98]

I'd say I-4 is pretty  "unique" to Florida. 

[spenser1058]

6 minutes ago, dcluley98 said:

I'd say I-4 is pretty  "unique" to Florida. 

It is but it’s very like I-5, for example. A1A along the ocean is Florida the way we wish Florida was (my favorite part is crossing the Bridge of Lions in St. Augustine right at Castillo de San Marcos and heading through the tidal pools out to Marineland in all its 1930’s quaintness (sadly, Palm Coast sprawl is degrading it but I’ll always remember that bike ride down to Daytona along the 2-lane coast road).

Sadly, I-4 is just mostly a mess. Of course, if referring to I-5, make sure to call it THE I-5. Californians are kind of anal-retentive about that for some reason.

Edited April 22, 2020 by spenser1058

[spenser1058]

We’ll finish up tonight with Hog Town’s* own Tom Petty:

https://youtu.be/1lWJXDG2i0A

*aka Gainesville

[prahaboheme]

2 hours ago, spenser1058 said:

It is but it’s very like I-5, for example. A1A along the ocean is Florida the way we wish Florida was (my favorite part is crossing the Bridge of Lions in St. Augustine right at Castillo de San Marcos and heading through the tidal pools out to Marineland in all its 1930’s quaintness (sadly, Palm Coast sprawl is degrading it but I’ll always remember that bike ride down to Daytona along the 2-lane coast road).

Sadly, I-4 is just mostly a mess. Of course, if referring to I-5, make sure to call it THE I-5. Californians are kind of anal-retentive about that for some reason.

There’s somewhat of a historical justification for southern Californians for giving directions by stating “the” before the freeway number:  https://www.kcet.org/shows/lost-la/the-5-the-101-the-405-why-southern-californians-love-saying-the-before-freeway-numbers

[spenser1058]

There’s been a lot of back and forth but several times during the past decade, Savannah’s growth rate has rivaled Orlando’s.

As this New York Times article shows, you can insist on a quality of life if you aggressively let the developers know who’s running the show.

Also only briefly mentioned in the article: what we think of today as Savannah really only goes back to the 1950’s. Colonial Williamsburg restoration was conceived in the ‘30’s. The roots of Miami Beach’s deco district only go back to the late ‘70’s. In each case, the conventional wisdom was they were beyond repair when they started.

What it all comes down to is a matter of will, something this administration has never had when it comes to preserving Orlando’s past for those yet to come.

https://www.nytimes.com/2019/08/06/business/savannah-georgia-development.amp.html

 

Edited April 24, 2020 by spenser1058

[prahaboheme]

I've always been impressed by Savannah and lately things have really kicked into high gear -- the quality of infill is some of the best anywhere in the South.  The revitalization of Broughton St. is proof that retail corridors can thrive in the 21st century.  I was in Savannah over Thanksgiving (seems like ages ago now!) and there is absolutely a "buzz" around the ongoing development and activity happening all over the city.  Great examples of how buildings, some of which were deemed "too far gone" have been reclaimed for future generations.

And i'm sure some of those buildings were "rat infested" too.

[spenser1058]

It’s interesting to compare Savannah with Jacksonville. In the ‘50’s, they were somewhat equal but Jax chose to grow (the huge regional Prudential HQ in Jax was supposed to go to Savannah) while the Georgia city was still trying to decide what it wanted to be.

What a difference 50 years make. Savannah’s downtown is the envy of the nation (with precious few tall buildings) and is growing apace because of its history not despite it.

Jacksonville, otoh, turned itself over to the developers and they keep creating massive gaps downtown by bulldozing historic buildings. The result: downtown Jax is going nowhere fast but the developers insist this is the path to success. It is, for them, but not for the residents.

 

[spenser1058]

American cities may start to look a lot different after the pandemic:

https://www.theatlantic.com/ideas/archive/2020/04/how-pandemic-will-change-face-retail/610738/

From The Atlantic 

[orlandoguy]

This was incredibly depressing to read. But interesting!

[JFW657]

Predicting the future with any high degree of accuracy doesn't have much of a track record.

For all we know, some techno-whiz companies will turn their attentions to creating devices and gizmos that will eliminate or drastically lessen the likelihood of catching or passing airborne pathogens on to others.

Possibly some kind of UV lighted, or maybe disinfectant infused face masks.

Or UV lighting systems that can be installed inside buildings which kill pathogens in the air before they can infect people.

If it can become mostly guaranteed safe to be around people in public again before too much time passes, things could return to normal again in a reasonable time period as well.

My immediate worry is how scarce food may become and how high the prices may become very shortly.

The head of Tyson Foods issued a dire statement yesterday in which he warned that the US food supply chain is breaking.

Meat processing plants are shutting down, dairy farmers, as well as vegetable producers, are finding themselves stuck with surplus products and are being forced to dump them.

This is starting to look frightening. 

[JFW657]

Will this become indicative of the newest public wear fashion?.....

I took a screenshot of that from an ad that was showing up on my computer.

Maybe install little UV lights on the underside of the brim? 

[spenser1058]

Developers always mean well right? The George Washington Hotel in Downtown Jacksonville was demolished to become a parking lot (despite once hosting a Beatles press conference and featuring the city’s first neon sign). It’s still an empty parking lot 47 years later, eclipsing even Orlando records.

Other types of  structures lost in Jax have been saved in places like Savannah and Charleston. 

Folks, this is the progress developers want us to have here in Orlando!

https://www.thejaxsonmag.com/article/six-places-jacksonville-should-have-saved-page-2/

From The Jaxson

 

 

[spenser1058]

In one of the most successful preservation districts in the country, Jacksonville is proposing an extensive bicycle route for Riverside/Avondale along the path of the city’s old streetcar network:

https://www.thejaxsonmag.com/article/bicycle-enhancements-planned-for-riversides-oak-st/

From The Jaxson

Edited April 30, 2020 by spenser1058

[spenser1058]

This is also a great opportunity to check out what can happen when people power is brought to bear against those who would destroy our past for profit (and the tricks they use to skirt the rules like “demolition by neglect).

Imagine how much livelier Parramore, for example, would be if this approach had been used

https://riversideavondale.org/about/

[spenser1058]

Jacksonville has a new downtown Regional Transportation Center for JTA (local buses), BRT, the Skyway (a peoplemover) and a pedestrian bridge to the new intercity station (Greyhound, etc.).

https://www.thejaxsonmag.com/article/jacksonville-regional-transportation-center-now-open/

From The Jaxson

I do wish we had Greyhound adjoining Lynx Central like that.

[smileguy]

15 hours ago, spenser1058 said:

Jacksonville has a new downtown Regional Transportation Center for JTA (local buses), BRT, the Skyway (a peoplemover) and a pedestrian bridge to the new intercity station (Greyhound, etc.).

https://www.thejaxsonmag.com/article/jacksonville-regional-transportation-center-now-open/

From The Jaxson

I do wish we had Greyhound adjoining Lynx Central like that.

I wonder what usage numbers look like vs LCS. I would imagine that our fully covered outdoor area and indoor waiting area makes LCS much more friendly in the Florida weather.  Is the parcel just north of LCS going to be retention pond once I-4 is complete, or is there a possibility of intercity there? 

[spenser1058]

Because We Love Trains!

https://youtu.be/q-jP4vh3z_A

Amtrak’s long-distance runs are not it’s future, but darn they’re what the romance of trails is all about.

From the Wall St. Journal (‘cuz Rupert and I are best buds, ahem)

[Dale]

On 4/27/2020 at 10:17 AM, spenser1058 said:

American cities may start to look a lot different after the pandemic:

https://www.theatlantic.com/ideas/archive/2020/04/how-pandemic-will-change-face-retail/610738/

From The Atlantic 

We nuked our cities for a bug problem.

[spenser1058]

The trains are coming back June 1!

https://twitter.com/senhorraposa/status/1259127274709934080?s=21

All Aboard America... All Aboard Amtrak 

[spenser1058]

53 minutes ago, Dale said:

We nuked our cities for a bug problem.

Quite apart from COVID-19, there was a huge imbalance in the cities (especially the largest ones, which have been losing population for a while) that would have faced a reckoning sooner or later.

Problems of inequality and lack of families come immediately to mind in the largest cities, which has been exacerbated by the whole developer/real estate/retail/PEF-REIT mismatch (and also overbuilt malls in the suburbs several times worse than in other developed countries).

Whether we’ll correct the systemic problems this time around is an open question. If we don’t, we’ll just keep repeating the cycle.

Edited May 9, 2020 by spenser1058

[spenser1058]

While this list is wildly subjective, here’s one list of the “30 Most Beautiful College Campuses”:

And, what do you know, a local favorite made the cut. Charge On!

[spenser1058]

Some of Manhattan’s largest employers are pondering whether all their employees will need to come back to the office after the pandemic passes.

Of course, we heard this after other events such as 9/11 as well. In fact, many back office functions didn’t come back then.

That has happened in Orlando, too. Look how much office space SunTrust has shed in the move from its iconic tower on Orange Avenue to Church Street Plaza.

Decisions like these will drive the need for tower space as the economy recovers.

https://www.nytimes.com/2020/05/12/nyregion/coronavirus-work-from-home.html?referringSource=articleShare

From The New York Times 

[Dale]

On 5/9/2020 at 3:08 PM, spenser1058 said:

Quite apart from COVID-19, there was a huge imbalance in the cities (especially the largest ones, which have been losing population for a while) that would have faced a reckoning sooner or later.

Problems of inequality and lack of families come immediately to mind in the largest cities, which has been exacerbated by the whole developer/real estate/retail/PEF-REIT mismatch (and also overbuilt malls in the suburbs several times worse than in other developed countries).

Whether we’ll correct the systemic problems this time around is an open question. If we don’t, we’ll just keep repeating the cycle.

Well, we already know the lockdowns are exacerbating said inequalities.

[Dale]

While on the subject, to accentuate: Federal Reserve says that 40% of households earning less than $40,000 lost their jobs in March.

[spenser1058]

The New York Times looks at the collapsing business of movie theaters. One big problem, is that even after the pandemic passes, the “exclusive window” where new films played in theaters before a release to Netflix or other options, has gone away. As Disney+ shows with its decision to take the movie release of “Hamilton “ direct to streaming, it may not come back.

Given this will likely cause a shakeout in the theater business, can a small chain like the one that owns the downtown Plaza Cinema Cafe survive (its parenthood already filed for bankruptcy)? If not, what becomes of the space?

https://www.nytimes.com/2020/05/15/business/movie-theaters-coronavirus.html?referringSource=articleShare