Why isn't Jacksonville the most sought after city in Florida? (Tampa: new home, restaurant)

[remirosie123]

Originally Posted by sftong

Thank you Remirosie. Could you elaborate a little more on where to Kayak, and UNF hiking trails? Anything special on Amelia Island?

Thanks again

There is a place on Beach Blvd that rents kayaks, also if you google kayak rental, there are several more. At UNF, there is a kayak rental place too, but I think only for the students, but the trails are for anyone and they just redid them last year. Amelia Island downtown is really nice with lots of shops and restaurants and we were just there last Friday. There is also another area close to the beach on the island that is nice as well. I recommend the Amelia Tavern for lunch or dinner, it is amazing!

[JBtwinz]

Originally Posted by sftong

Thank you Remirosie. Could you elaborate a little more on where to Kayak, and UNF hiking trails? Anything special on Amelia Island?

Thanks again

As mentioned there are hiking trails on Amelia at Egans Creek Greenway and Fort Clinch State Park. Each of these has really nice bike trails also. Before you get on the island coming in from the north end there lots of people who launch at Lofton Creek and on island at Egans Creek which is before Main Beach on Atlantic.

Leaving the island on the south end about three miles south there is another launch spot that is extremely popular and there is a kayak shop there.

Lots of shops and little restaurants on Amelia for whatever your tastes maybe.

[brickpatio2018]

Jacksonville has gotten lucky. A single insurance company after decades of mergers and acquisitions (including being acquired) by happenstance made Jacksonville the center of FINTECH (the software programs used by banks and financial services companies in their backroom operations), which is now one of the hottest, fastest-growing business sectors in the world. Other than that, not much is happening in Jacksonville, ha.

Today I was looking around San Marco, Five Points/Riverside, Avondale, Murray Hill, and St. Johns Town Center mall. There is most definitely a Jacksonville "look". A cute street with quaint, colorful storefronts, live oaks and palm trees, a boulevard, decorative brickwork, a cute roundabout, and adjacent historic homes. What's not to love.

When I looked at bestneighborhoods.org, their maps based on income as well as home prices show clearly that the money in Jacksonville is spread out along the various waterfronts (river, canals, oceanfront), which has made Jacksonville different from the Charlottes and Atlantas which on a map have this one big, contiguous slice of the pie (so to speak) where the rich people live, that extends all the way from downtown to the outer suburbs.

Jacksonville has no contiguous monied slice of the pie on the map. The money tiptoes down the St. Johns River in a narrow band until it final spreads out in the Mandarin area (roughly). The money also clearly has clustered along the beaches all the way down to Ponte Vedra. In either case, the money relatively is well away from downtown compared to say Buckhead and Myers Park or Belle Meade in Nashville.

For all the commenters on reddit who say Jacksonville is a crime-infested shxxhole, all I can say is have they been to San Marco? Mouth-watering historic homes, lush landscaped boulevards, grassy lots along one enormous, gigantically wide river, and a very yuppie shopping and restaurant district that no mother in Lululemon pants with baby in stroller could ever resist...

I would say that, at least from what I can see on google maps, Jacksonville beats Tampa by itself, but Tampa plus St Pete probably still beats Jacksonville. thanks to the incredible rise of Central Avenue in St. Pete.

I'd love to see a smack down between San Marco/Five Points/Avondale/and Murray Hill combo in Jacksonville... versus... Howard Ave (Hyde Park Village)/ Ybor City/and Central Avenue (downtown St Pete) combo in Tampa/ St Pete.

[JBtwinz]

Originally Posted by brickpatio2018

Jacksonville has gotten lucky. A single insurance company after decades of mergers and acquisitions (including being acquired) by happenstance made Jacksonville the center of FINTECH (the software programs used by banks and financial services companies in their backroom operations), which is now one of the hottest, fastest-growing business sectors in the world. Other than that, not much is happening in Jacksonville, ha.

Today I was looking around San Marco, Five Points/Riverside, Avondale, Murray Hill, and St. Johns Town Center mall. There is most definitely a Jacksonville "look". A cute street with quaint, colorful storefronts, live oaks and palm trees, a boulevard, decorative brickwork, a cute roundabout, and adjacent historic homes. What's not to love.

When I looked at bestneighborhoods.org, their maps based on income as well as home prices show clearly that the money in Jacksonville is spread out along the various waterfronts (river, canals, oceanfront), which has made Jacksonville different from the Charlottes and Atlantas which on a map have this one big, contiguous slice of the pie (so to speak) where the rich people live, that extends all the way from downtown to the outer suburbs.

Jacksonville has no contiguous monied slice of the pie on the map. The money tiptoes down the St. Johns River in a narrow band until it final spreads out in the Mandarin area (roughly). The money also clearly has clustered along the beaches all the way down to Ponte Vedra. In either case, the money relatively is well away from downtown compared to say Buckhead and Myers Park or Belle Meade in Nashville.

For all the commenters on reddit who say Jacksonville is a crime-infested shxxhole, all I can say is have they been to San Marco? Mouth-watering historic homes, lush landscaped boulevards, grassy lots along one enormous, gigantically wide river, and a very yuppie shopping and restaurant district that no mother in Lululemon pants with baby in stroller could ever resist...

I would say that, at least from what I can see on google maps, Jacksonville beats Tampa by itself, but Tampa plus St Pete probably still beats Jacksonville. thanks to the incredible rise of Central Avenue in St. Pete.

I'd love to see a smack down between San Marco/Five Points/Avondale/and Murray Hill combo in Jacksonville... versus... Howard Ave (Hyde Park Village)/ Ybor City/and Central Avenue (downtown St Pete) combo in Tampa/ St Pete.

In the 34 years we have lived here the fringe areas outside the urban core to the south have made tremendous improvements in reshaping themselves. We are still waiting for the urban core itself to blossom.

I am not a big supporter of the city letting Kahn takeover downtown but at this stage of the game it might be the only way to rejuvenate the core. I would have rather the city give small business seed money to stimulate downtown development than handing the Jaguars millions of dollars.

[desifam]

I'd like to remind all of you that JAX continues to grow leaps and bounds. I mean it is literally one of the fastest growing cities in America, because it is MUCH MORE economically diverse than ANY other Florida city (except Miami).

[JBtwinz]

Bottom line Jacksonville needs to works on its urban core and while I love having the Jaguars here they have not been the answer to helping downtown revitalize.

I see where they are are testing an urban autonomous transportation vehicle this week to replace the under used Skyway.

[Florida2014]

Originally Posted by desifam

I'd like to remind all of you that JAX continues to grow leaps and bounds. I mean it is literally one of the fastest growing cities in America, because it is MUCH MORE economically diverse than ANY other Florida city (except Miami).

Fastest growing does not equate to desirable. In fact, many locals feel that has the opposite effect.

[Arcenal813]

Originally Posted by desifam

I'd like to remind all of you that JAX continues to grow leaps and bounds. I mean it is literally one of the fastest growing cities in America, because it is MUCH MORE economically diverse than ANY other Florida city (except Miami).

Fast growing, yet still has no life whatsoever. I recently stayed at the Doubletree Hilton downtown, and looking out my window at the Main St Bridge at night was just sad... Literally no cars at all crossing into and out of downtown after 9pm.
The people I know who live there don't even like it there... It needs A LOT of work.

[Florida2014]

Originally Posted by Arcenal813

Fast growing, yet still has no life whatsoever. I recently stayed at the Doubletree Hilton downtown, and looking out my window at the Main St Bridge at night was just sad... Literally no cars at all crossing into and out of downtown after 9pm.
The people I know who live there don't even like it there... It needs A LOT of work.

Jax might be the only major metropolitan city I've ever seen or been to that has so few destinations in its downtown area. A museum, a few antiquated/dying restaurants and some half empty buildings and that's about it. As has been said here repeatedly, it has so much potential being next to the river as it is yet nothing really ever seems to make it over the long-term there.

If I only had a few hundred million dollars lying around............

[JBtwinz]

Originally Posted by Florida2014

Jax might be the only major metropolitan city I've ever seen or been to that has so few destinations in its downtown area. A museum, a few antiquated/dying restaurants and some half empty buildings and that's about it. As has been said here repeatedly, it has so much potential being next to the river as it is yet nothing really ever seems to make it over the long-term there.

If I only had a few hundred million dollars lying around............

We have so many entertainment venues and still no bar and restaurant scene nearby.

Burrito Gallery just closed for lack of customers downtown.