Downtown Vision, Inc. will unveil its new website, www.downtownjacksonville.org, and a downtown guide at tonight’s inaugural annual meeting at Riverplace Tower. City Council president Matt Carlucci is the scheduled speaker.
“President Carlucci has shown his interest in downtown, particularly in the issue of revitalizing older buildings,” said DVI executive director Terry Lorince. “The preservation of older buildings is what makes downtown strong, their unique character and design. We’re pretty fortunate we’re not in Los Angeles, which has this issue, but they have to design their buildings to earthquake standards too.”
Other items on the agenda include the status of hospitality ambassadors, activities geared toward the lunch crowd, a planned holiday event, dining and parking promotions and expanded advertising programs.
“We will be addressing issues related to safety,” said Lorince. “I see us involved in beautification and I see us involved in creating a sense of community down here.There are people that will never be downtown people. They pride themselves in avoidance. We’ll never get those people necessarily into downtown.”
And why won’t those people come downtown?
“It’s a lack of familiarity,” said Lorince. “We want people to know what we have down here and we’ve got a lot to offer and that message needs to be out there.”
DVI’s vision for downtown is a hub of art, entertainment, dining, urban living and retail.
During her short tenure, Lorince, who moved here from Pittsburgh in January, has succeeded in building partnerships with CSX and JEA.
“We can’t do it alone. We need to partner with other businesses and organizations,” she said.
DVI’s pet project is Downtown Live, Thursday-at-the Plaza, a festival featuring food and music in Hemming Plaza.
“At the concert I had people come up to me and tell me how much they loved the event and I said, ‘You need to bring your friends here.’ We’re facing the challenge of trying to keep people downtown after work and giving them something to do.”
DVI conducted a survey and found that most people would rather kick off their shoes at home with their families on a Thursday night instead of frolicking in the park.
“We had bad luck with the weather,” said Lorince. “We had a bigger crowd last Thursday. It was still tough with the Sept. 11 events. People just don’t seem to be going out as much. People aren’t even going to the movies. Dining, tourism is hurting. We’re finding that’s had an impact coupled with the weather. We’re doing our best to figure out what people want and how to provide that.”
Lorince says the influx of downtown residential housing is the key to changing the after-five landscape.
“The available of riverfront property—what an untapped market,” said Lorince. “We already have 1,000 residents living down here. It’s easy to get around, they like being near people, they like the ability to walk to places. You already have a community that’s been down here 25 years. From what I’ve heard from Berkman Plaza as well as The Shipyards, the demand for these housing options is high and is exceeding expectations.”