by Richard Prior
Staff Writer
There are worse ways to go through life than being helpful and pleasant . . . and mining a few yuks along the road.
Welcome to Mr. Johnson’s Neighborhood.
“We want to empower people in the Good Neighbor Program,” said Jimmy Johnson, manager of Downtown Vision, Inc.’s ambassadors. “I’ll cover you; you cover me. We take care of each other. That makes it better for everybody.”
Johnson was named program manager in early December, making him responsible for 15 ambassadors who walk the downtown streets, dispensing information and good will.
“One of our goals is to help promote the businesses of downtown,” he said. “We want people to know it’s an exciting place to come and visit and live and work.
“The key is being friendly. Even if we don’t know what we’re talking about, we’re friendly. And I do have a radio, so I can find you a source that can give you the answer.”
The ambassadors work from 7 a.m. to 11 p.m., covering the expansive business district: Broad Street on the west, Market Street on the east, Church Street to the north and Prudential Drive in the south.
Johnson has been in Jacksonville “on and off” since 1978. He was stationed at NAS Jacksonville, where he was discharged.
“I left Ohio back in 1971 because it was snowing,” he said. “They still haven’t fixed the problem.”
He has driven an 18-wheeler and was one of the first dispatchers for Gator City Taxi. He also worked for Pop-A-Lock and was the company’s regional manager for two years.
Part of the training was learning not to laugh, even when the circumstances clearly called for it.
“I’ve had some scenarios where there was somebody who locked himself out of the car,” said Johnson. “They’re pointing at their keys, and the back window is open.”
For 11 years, he traveled the country, doing standup comedy in 47 states and two foreign countries.
It takes a special brand of courage to do standup, Johnson agreed.
“There’s times when time stands still,” he said. “I’ve heard my watch ‘tick’ and never heard the ‘tock.’ You say, ‘Oh, this is going to be a long day.’
“But I’ve always been able to stand up in front of a crowd. If I end up making a fool of myself, oh, well, so be it.”
Johnson, admittedly the class clown in high school, no longer does standup. Though it’s part of “a wonderful lifestyle,” he said, “it’s not real conducive to good relationships. Not when you’re on the road 48 weeks out of the year.”
“I only do standup for the (ambassador) troops,” he said. “And on a one-to-one basis.”
Johnson expects that he and the other ambassadors, distinctive in their orange sports shirts and pith helmets, will be plenty busy this week.
“With the Toyota Gator Bowl coming up, we’ll be out in full force,” he said. “But we’re not going to be where the event is.
“Most of the party will be at the Jacksonville Landing. We’re going to be three or four blocks away from that, assisting people who can’t find the Landing or can’t find parking. Actually, we’re here to help anybody with any kind of question. We are the experts on downtown.”
While they’re out on their rounds, ambassadors try to make sure the people they meet have “a pleasant experience” in the neighborhood. That occasionally means picking up litter.
“That’s not our primary objective, of course,” said Johnson. “But this is our neighborhood. We’re the host, and we want to be the host of the party.”
Another goal of the ambassadors is to increase awareness of the “real” downtown, “to dispel the myth that downtown is a dangerous place to work and be,” Johnson said. “That’s not true. It’s one of the safest places in town.”
Friendliness and safety can be just as contagious on the streets as they are in a comedy club, he insisted.
“If I worked a small crowd in a big room, I would go out into the audience and bring them up front, closer together, where the laughter’s contagious,” he said. “That’s what can happen downtown.
“It’s already taking hold. I used to drive a cab in Jacksonville 20 years ago, and downtown wasn’t the place to be. Now it is.”