Lesson for Jacksonville Planners: Urban living is the future (Orange Park: loan, neighborhoods)

[fsu813]

The sooner Jacksonville leaders realize where the future lays, the better.

Young, educated, & successful people prefer urban living and neighborhoods. And these are the people every city desperately wants and needs to attract to ensure a healthy future.

There are 1000 articles and study showing this, and here's one more new one, from USA Today:


"Educated 20- and 30-somethings are flocking to live downtown in the USA's largest cities — even urban centers that are losing population.

In more than two-thirds of the nation's 51 largest cities, the young, college-educated population in the past decade grew twice as fast within 3 miles of the urban center as in the rest of the metropolitan area — up an average 26% compared with 13% in other parts.

Even in Detroit, where the population shrank by 25% since 2000, downtown added 2,000 young and educated residents during that time, up 59% , according to analysis of Census data by Impresa Inc., an economic consulting firm."

&

"Clearly, the next generation of Americans is looking for different kinds of lifestyles — walkable, art, culture, entertainment."

&

Preference for urban living among young adults — especially the well-educated — has increased sharply, data show:

•In 2000, young adults with a four-year degree were about 61% more likely to live in close-in urban neighborhoods than their less-educated counterparts. Now, they are about 94% more likely.

•In five metropolitan areas — Boston, Chicago, New York, San Francisco, Washington — about two-thirds of young adults who live in the city center have at least a four-year college degree. Less than a third of the nation's 25- to 34-year-olds do.

"This is no longer anecdotal," Coletta says. "Every metro area has good suburbs, but if you don't have a strong downtown and close-in neighborhoods, then you're not offering a choice that many of them are seeking. Offering that choice is a real competitive advantage for cities."

From:

Urban centers draw more young, educated adults - USATODAY.com


Since Downtown Jax is lacking in this department, you've seen it's urban surronding neighborhoods (Riverside & Avondale, San marco, Springfield) become very popular...especially in the last 5 years. This isn't a coincidense.

There's a pretty large organic movement to correct this, but ground-up/grassroots can only do so much.

If you want to know how the city can increase tax revenue big time, without raising taxes...it's simple: Support Downtown revitalization. It's worth millions and millions of untapped tax revenue per year.

Not to mention attracting young successful people, which is the key to every cities future.

[fsquid]

I like the $25k forgivable loan that Detroit is giving people.

[jaded_seconds]

I love your post, OP. I agree Jacksonville has to spark more efforts to bring in walkable areas and attract more young adults to the urban core. Truth is that is what many of the new generation coming out of colleges prefer. They (We) want walkable urbam areas with work, art, culture, entertainment, dining... all in walking distance within an urban core. I have my theories, but perhaps our generation spent to much time in the suburbs and are ready to flock away and spread our roots in these types of communities.

Signed,
Young and Educated 20 something =)

[abvavgjoe]

Agreed, downtown is pathetic and needs to change pronto.

[jaded_seconds]

Attracting young people will do nothing but help local businesses move into the future

[jsimms3]

Here is a column I wrote not too long ago that the paper ran today.

Election observation: Consolidation no longer makes sense | jacksonville.com

[jaded_seconds]

Originally Posted by jsimms3

Here is a column I wrote not too long ago that the paper ran today.

Election observation: Consolidation no longer makes sense | jacksonville.com

You make very excellent points, jsimms, many I've been piping for a while now. The idea of splitting up city/town lines is something I've believed in for a while. These are some rough examples of the town lines, I've thought up:

Jacksonville - Urban core, riverside, san marco, springfield

Town of Southpoint - all of the southpoint business district, town center area/UNF, tinsletown area, all the way to avenues area, and east to hodges

Town of Westfall - Large stretch of land from where riverside ends to the county border, South until reaching Orange Park

Town of Northridge - everything north of springfield, arlington, westside, stretching to county border

Town of Regent - everything north of atlantic/arlington expressway stopping at St Johns River

Town of Neptune - Everything east of intracoastal waterway to all of the beaches.

Town of Mandarin - Everything East of St Johns that's not a part of Town of Southpoint. Included areas are Bartram Park, Julington Creek, etc... reaching South until border of St Johns.

[fsquid]

I'm guess Deconsolidation would have to be voted upon by the populace. Not sure how that works. I would agree that it would probably be best, but I think the boundaries of Jacksonville as stated above would have to be expanded a bit to still appear on America's radar.

[Robyn55]

Originally Posted by jsimms3

Here is a column I wrote not too long ago that the paper ran today.

Election observation: Consolidation no longer makes sense | jacksonville.com

"The new city limits should encompass the Audrey Moran voting territory along the riverfront and around downtown and some of Alvin Brown's voting territory."

Nah - if you want to deconsolidate - let's go back to the old City of JAX city limits:

http://fulltext10.fcla.edu/DLData/NF/NF00000087/18.jpg

Alvin Brown would be a shoo-in.

FWIW - anyone who is serious about this forgets what a total dump the City of JAX was before consolidation (the City needed the suburbs more than the suburbs needed the city - and - were we to go back to the old city limits - that would be even more true today):

Florida Heritage Collection

Robyn

[fsquid]

by the way, nice letter Simms.