Ran across this interesting article on Skyscraper Page Forums about Jacksonvilles downtown revitalization efforts. Makes some interesting points, and offers some possible "lessons learned".
http://jacksonville.com/business/2009-12-13/story/lights_dimming_on_jacksonvilles_bold_plans_for_downtown Some bits and pieces that sum up most of the article....
* Just as residential development was picking up steam, the city pulled back from offering critical financial incentives. A flurry of proposals for new high-rise towers never got off the ground.
(hope this doesnt happen in Tulsa)
* While downtown development authorities in other cities grow stronger by the year, Jacksonville eliminated its agency in 2006 in the name of streamlining.
(we got rid of DTU, kept the "street cleaning" part, got rid of the promotional part, what there was of it anyway and so far I dont think there are plans to have one. There is however a group of people who will try to make a go of it, hopefully "yours truly" will be on that board representing TN)
* City Hall hasn’t picked any concentrated area of downtown for a fully funded, complete revitalization that would create a walkable area where businesses, venues and residences can feed off each other’s foot traffic.
(sounds painfully familiar)
(good) Role models weren’t hard to find: From San Diego to Pittsburgh, from Charlotte, N.C., to Greenville, S.C., scores of rebounding downtowns are ushering in an urban renaissance in America, drawing an invigorating mix of empty-nesters, young professionals and hipsters.
Those success stories took years to unfold, but they share common ingredients: hard work, a fierce commitment to the inner city and strong public-private partnerships.
The pullback on incentives played out prominently in the fate of four historic buildings that remain vacant in the middle of downtown: The Barnett Bank building and the nearby “Laura Street Trio,” which once housed two other banks and an insurance company.....
Langton said taxpayer assistance is vital because developers cannot charge higher rents to residents until downtown gets more retail and entertainment within walking distance of their apartments.
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Frank Nero, former director of the now-disbanded Downtown Development Authority, used the term “trench warfare” to describe his experience in the 1990s.
“It played better to be for [suburban] drainage and against the Riverwalk,” Nero said. “Downtown became a poster child to get kicked.”
Former City Councilman Matt Carlucci was among the council members who pushed for shifting money to the growing suburbs instead of downtown. He later changed his mind.
“Executives would want to know if they were moving to a city on the go or a city that’s just drifting along aimlessly,” Carlucci said. “That was like a light bulb going off in my head. We can’t just do this [job growth] with tax breaks.”
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Jacksonville used to have a downtown development agency with an appointed board and executive staff beating the drum for the city core. The Downtown Development Authority, formed in the 1970s, became an advisory board within the Jacksonville Economic Development Commission when then-Mayor John Delaney formed the JEDC.
In 2006, Peyton reorganized the JEDC and eliminated the DDA. The JEDC still had the responsibilities of downtown redevelopment, but with a smaller staff — 18 employees for the entire county, down from 40 in 2004. By contrast, Orlando’s downtown-only authority boasts a 15-member staff.
The only organization today with that sole focus is Downtown Vision, a nonprofit “business improvement district” formed in 2000 at the behest of Delaney after he learned how similar districts helped Philadelphia and other cities.
Carlton Jones, a Jacksonville developer who has done projects in Washington, said it was a mistake to disband the DDA.
“The Downtown Development Authority would have its sole focus on downtown,” he said. “Each and every day, its people would wake up in the morning and ask, 'How can I improve downtown?’ ”
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“The key is residential, residential, residential,” said JEDC Executive Director Ron Barton.
This fiscal year, the downtown tax districts will generate nearly $10 million, but most of that is already spent, earmarked for previously approved development deals, including a $4 million subsidy for parking garages built for the arena and future county courthouse. Making matters worse, the city siphoned more than $300,000 from the district’s coffers to bolster the ailing general fund....
(Arent we building a new parking garage while also parsing out meager sums to only a few of the possible, some quite good, residential developments?)
Residential development is doubly important because downtown’s other source of people — its workers — is shrinking...
Last year, Deutsche Bank picked the Butler Boulevard corridor to build offices for up to a thousand employees. In 2006, Fidelity Investments chose the Southside as the site for a 1,200-employee financial services center.
The city has tried at times to stop the migration of offices to the suburbs. In 2003, the city approved a $1.8 million incentive to keep Stein Mart’s corporate headquarters downtown.
Others couldn’t be persuaded. Delaney recalled when American General bought Gulf Life, pulling an icon out of what is now the Riverplace Tower on the Southbank.
“I was sitting there with that CEO begging him. He said, 'John, I can move anywhere there’s a phone jack and an electrical outlet.’ I knew it was over then,” Delaney said...
Even if downtown workers were inclined to stay after work, they have a limited menu of places to go.
Until the 1980s, downtown was home to five department stores. Today, there’s no place for thousands of office workers to even buy a dress or suit, much less do their Christmas shopping.
In 2007, a city report on what’s needed listed a pharmacy, grocery store, higher-end spa, medical center, yoga studio, sports bar, antique and consignment shops, and a large place for artisans to work and sell their wares.
Consultants said other cities have used grants and loans to help local retailers get a foothold in downtown, paving the way for national chain stores to follow.....
“The Landing had the promise and never quite fulfilled it,” said Cesery, who is planning a revival of his own: Converting the old downtown library into a wine bar, restaurant and grocery.
Janice Lowe, general manager of the Landing, said Sleiman still wants to redevelop the center, but can’t do it alone.
“The successful projects are public-private ventures,” she said....
“As downtown goes, so goes your city,” he said. “It doesn’t matter if someone is looking at J. Turner Butler or anywhere else. They judge a city on downtown and it can’t be a ghost town.”