RiversideGator

So much for the argument that Florida doesnt support rail transit.

Gehry may cause more architectural damage than the hurricane.

jeafl: Riverside now has a Publix, two drug stores (Carter's Park and King Pharmacy and Walgreens), multiple retail shops and many restaurants (Pizza Palace, Mossfire Grill, Qdoba, Al's Pizza, Starlight Cafe, The Row, Subway, Wendy's, Papa Johns Pizza, etc, etc). If you include Avondale we have even more restaurants and upscale shopping. And, downtown is really within walking distance. You must not have driven around Riverside lately. I am a Jacksonville native too and my family has been here over 100 years and I can tell you things are much better in Jacksonville and getting better every day. You must be optimistic and look at all that is available now.

Well, I think that any community in the city where you need to have a car would be the suburbs. Technically Riverside is one of the first suburban communities, but it is more urban than most neighborhoods and is really like a small town in itself in that you can do just about everything here without leaving. I would say that around NAS is the westside and suburbia though. By the way, I also think jeafl should not be banned. Just because I dont always agree with him doesnt mean he should be banned. That is ridiculous.

You cant expect urban conveniences if you live in a suburban neighborhood. From my house in Riverside, I can walk to the Publix and even walk to the Willow Branch Library if I was ambitious. I could easily ride a bike downtown to work. Move to a more convenient area.

There's our light rail line to the Beaches then. Run a rail line along the north side of Beach Blvd and end it at the rail station in Jax Beach. If additional lanes of Beach are needed, create them on the south side of the street.

This will be like going back to the future since there was a rail link to the beaches from downtown Jax before there was a Beach or Atlantic Blvd. I think the little old train station is still in Jax Beach somewhere.

This would be an awesome first line for our rail transit system. Imagine leaving your apartment downtown or in Riverside and taking the train down to St Augustine for lunch. You then see a few sights there and later head up to Fernandina for dinner and drinks. I think this would also boost tourism to these places and you wouldnt have to worry about drunk driving.

Thanks for the pic on Cabana. Now I know why I dont remember the mast - it was covered up. This should definitely be restored, in my opinion, and perhaps the sign at the top of the building could be toned down. It looks like an ego thing - is this the developer's last name? And, can anyone cite an article on the proposed Westin Grand Bohemian downtown? Or is this a rumor?

Can anyone post a current photo of the Cabana with mooring device? I dont recall this from my years in Bham.

Great work Chapman. Savannah is a nice city.

Birmingham is my second favorite city in the South (after only Jacksonville). Good work Jaylon.

London is, in my opinion, the greatest city in the world. Its historic architecture is first class. I do worry with all the new skyscrapers that London is losing part of its character and soul. I prefer the idea of the Canary Wharf development - far enough away to not alter the city, but close enough for an easy commute. I hate to see the City and East London transformed into a Manhattan On Thames. Also, it seems that, to compensate for all of the beautiful, neoclassical architecture in London and Europe in general, they try to build more and more outlandish buildings as if in reaction. Still, I love London. "To be tired of London is to be tired of life."

Well, I hope that goes forward soon. My grandparents stayed there about 45 years ago and I would like to stay there in the future.

What is the status of the old Cadillac Hotel?

Taurean: College football is NOT petty.

Bolles has no religious affiliation. San Jose Episcopal is of course an Episcopalian school, but you did not have to be an Episcopalian to attend. There were weekly (on Weds) services which everyone attended, but you could refuse communion if you chose to. Riverside Presbyterian Day School is also open to any faith, but you get a discount if you are a member of Riverside Presbyterian Church. There are many religious schools in Jacksonville from K-12 which have similar policies. And, they dont have the same permissive outlook that the public schools now do. By the way, public schools in Jax used to paddle kids who were bad until the 80s. A return to this would greatly improve public schools, in my opinion.

I have "a stigma/issue that you need to confront" because I would not send my kids to public schools?? That is bizarre pseudo-psychiatric nonsense. As to what others have said, I agree with Cuban in that there is more pressure to perform and learn in private schools. You dont just get socially promoted and people do generally get into better colleges after graduating from Bolles (of course you can succeed anywhere, I am not denying this). I graduated from Bolles (seems to be popular on here - I probably know some of y'all) and there are failings there too. I think the kids at Bolles, b/c of their fortunate backgrounds, were certainly out of touch with financial reality. There were some kids who were dropped off in limos (2 I can think of) and many had expensive cars, clothing, watches, jewelry, etc. A lot of kids were little snots too b/c of this. So, Lake is right about public schools imparting more street smarts on kids. Still, I think I would prefer if my kids not be exposed to deviant behavior (which exists in every school to some extent) for as long as possible. So, I recommend a religious school for K-6 (like RPDS or San Jose Episcopal) and Bolles/Episcopal for 7-12. This is my take.

As for public schools, I would avoid them at all cost no matter where you live. When we have kids (soon hopefully), they will go to private schools. I realize these are expensive, but it is worth it. If I absolutely could not afford private schools, I would seriously consider homeschooling to avoid the obnoxious socialist, PC environment of government schools.

I am married, but no kids yet. Why do you ask?

It looks to me like the paper is trying to get some people to interview for an upcoming article. By the way, I live in Riverside, 0-5 miles away and get to work downtown in less than 10 minutes almost every day.

Is that the old train station in downtown Detroit?

Orlando would have to get an NFL team before it could get the Super Bowl since the NFL policy is to only put the Super Bowl in NFL cities.

Those are some great pics. I wish we had a skyscraper with a spire like the RSA Bldg. and a downtown cruise ship terminal. Mobile is really coming along. I love L.A. (That is Lower Alabama for you Yankees).

I'm with you, Lake. I think your plan is clearly the way to go. I believe that rail would be more heavily used than bus because of the continuing stigma in America (and certainly in Jax) to riding the bus. I also think that future developments could be built (as they have been in other cities) around rail to utilize the rail network. Why aren't we in charge?