Downtown Jacksonville

[vladittude0583]

Just thought I'd put up a post regarding the future of downtown jacksonville and your thoughts on the given subjects.

1) Given that Jacksonville's economy relies mainly on the business aspect compared to Orlando & Tampa which depend a lot on tourism, do you think Jacksonville will attract more Fortune 500 company relocations (hopefully) in the near future?

2) Do you think Jacksonville will become more of an important financial powerhouse in the state of florida even though our "competitor cities" Orlando, Tampa (excludes Miami b/c it's probably progressing faster than Jacksonville overall), are growing just as fast as Jacksonville? After all, Jacksonville is currently the financial & insurance capital of Florida.

3) Do you think after the redevelopment of the Landing, will Jacksonville you think be a favorite vacation spot or perhaps tourist area? In addition to having the largest urban park system, yada yada, you know what Jax has to offer.

4) If Peterbrooke gets the deal for Haydon Burns, what impact do you think this will have exactly on the city? (Future long-term?)

5) Do you think our downtown will surpass 150+ towers in maybe 10years time? Given that we're now listed I think around 85+ towers including the ones currently under construction. Such numbers I think are good possibilities and definitely feasible. If I'm not mistaken, Orlando & Tampa have about the same amount of towers in their downtowns too, with Miami being the only other major city in Florida to have more towers than any of the three.

6) Possibility of a convention center? (I'm talking about a large scale one)

7) Possibility of Jax being a major cruise terminal?

8) Jax's median income is growing exponentially too. It trails only West Palm Beach now last time I read.

9) List your thoughts and ideas you'd like to add...

[bobliocatt]

Just thought I'd put up a post regarding the future of downtown jacksonville and your thoughts on the given subjects.

1) Given that Jacksonville's economy relies mainly on the business aspect compared to Orlando & Tampa which depend a lot on tourism, do you think Jacksonville will attract more Fortune 500 company relocations (hopefully) in the near future?

You never know. However, I do think there's a good chance that in the upcoming years, a couple of local companies like Stein Mart or St. Joe will grow to make the Fortune 500 list. Also keep your eyes on the Fidelity spin-offs.

2) Do you think Jacksonville will become more of an important financial powerhouse in the state of florida even though our "competitor cities" Orlando, Tampa (excludes Miami b/c it's probably progressing faster than Jacksonville overall), are growing just as fast as Jacksonville? After all, Jacksonville is currently the financial & insurance capital of Florida.

Its already considered an important financial powerhouse in the state. I don't see Tampa and Orlando catching up anytime soon in this segment, so I'd expect things to remain the same.

3) Do you think after the redevelopment of the Landing, will Jacksonville you think be a favorite vacation spot or perhaps tourist area? In addition to having the largest urban park system, yada yada, you know what Jax has to offer.

No, almost every major city in Florida already has an entertainment complex or two, similar to the Landing. Imo, Jax shouldn't even worry about becoming a tourism magnet. The city should continue to focus on being a great place to live.

4) If Peterbrooke gets the deal for Haydon Burns, what impact do you think this will have exactly on the city? (Future long-term?)

Not much or about the same impact as Budweiser and Sally Corporation's (which is downtown btw) plant tours. For example, before the article I didn't even know the was a similar thing in St. Augustine. What's its impact on that city......little to none.

5) Do you think our downtown will surpass 150+ towers in maybe 10years time? Given that we're now listed I think around 85+ towers including the ones currently under construction. Such numbers I think are good possibilities and definitely feasible. If I'm not mistaken, Orlando & Tampa have about the same amount of towers in their downtowns too, with Miami being the only other major city in Florida to have more towers than any of the three.

I don't know and really don't care. There's several downtowns across the country with tons of highrises that still aren't anything more than vertical office parks. Our focus should be on what happens at street level and attracting projects that complement each other to create a vibrant urban atmosphere.

6) Possibility of a convention center? (I'm talking about a large scale one)

ZERO chance. We can't even get the courthouse started. Futhermore, the convention industry isn't booming these days either. For the time being, I think we should expand and renovate the Prime Osborn.

7) Possibility of Jax being a major cruise terminal?

NONE! We're not a tourism based city. I'd like to see more focus on creating a niche cruise market with a possible cruise ship terminal as a part of the Shipyards or the old Ford plant. When and if the big ships ever come, we can always add a smaller terminal accomodating them, east of the Dames Point.

8) Jax's median income is growing exponentially too. It trails only West Palm Beach now last time I read.

I haven't heard anything about this. Can you provide a link to your source?

[Viper]

Just thought I'd put up a post regarding the future of downtown jacksonville and your thoughts on the given subjects.

1) Given that Jacksonville's economy relies mainly on the business aspect compared to Orlando & Tampa which depend a lot on tourism, do you think Jacksonville will attract more Fortune 500 company relocations (hopefully) in the near future?

On a 10 year timeline, I believe we'll get 2-3 more from either relocating or a current company reaches the milestone or combination.

2) Do you think Jacksonville will become more of an important financial powerhouse in the state of florida even though our "competitor cities" Orlando, Tampa (excludes Miami b/c it's probably progressing faster than Jacksonville overall), are growing just as fast as Jacksonville? After all, Jacksonville is currently the financial & insurance capital of Florida.

More important? No, it will probably stay as is.

3) Do you think after the redevelopment of the Landing, will Jacksonville you think be a favorite vacation spot or perhaps tourist area? In addition to having the largest urban park system, yada yada, you know what Jax has to offer.

Landing = locals. Jax isn't and doesn't need to be a tourist trap. the Landing expansion is just a great thing for the local people which is why I like the fact a local guy has his heart in it.

4) If Peterbrooke gets the deal for Haydon Burns, what impact do you think this will have exactly on the city? (Future long-term?)

Impact? Like that of a fly hitting your windshield at 75. You notice it happpen and then you've forgotten it a minute later.

5) Do you think our downtown will surpass 150+ towers in maybe 10years time? Given that we're now listed I think around 85+ towers including the ones currently under construction. Such numbers I think are good possibilities and definitely feasible. If I'm not mistaken, Orlando & Tampa have about the same amount of towers in their downtowns too, with Miami being the only other major city in Florida to have more towers than any of the three.

Doubful in 10 years. We may pass 100-110 at the absolute most and that's being optimistic.

6) Possibility of a convention center? (I'm talking about a large scale one)

10 year timeline and a more efficient mayor, yes. OK, large scale as in less than 500,000 sf but more than 200,000. Sure conventions are as big of a deal as they used to be but considering we battle for only 5% of the nations conventions at the moment, we could at least stick our noses out there a little further. Bringing big wigs into town can truly go a long way.

7) Possibility of Jax being a major cruise terminal?

Not a major terminal. There are enough in Florida as it is. I do see it getting bigger though.

8) Jax's median income is growing exponentially too. It trails only West Palm Beach now last time I read.

Really? That's news to me if it's true. I can't comment on that one for now.