by Bradley Parsons
Staff Writer
The Jacksonville Transportation Authority is asking the City to pin its hopes for a LaVilla revitalization to planes, trains and automobiles, but a City planning board wants to ensure people can still get around on foot.
The Downtown Development Authority deferred last week a JTA request to change the City’s master plan for the area to include a $127 million transportation center. The multi-modal transportation center would provide access to the Skyway, JTA and Greyhound buses, even an airport shuttle. However, several board members worried the project could clash with the walkable, residential and retail environment the current City plan envisions.
The project is still in its conceptual stages, but inclusion in the master plan is a necessary initial step if the City hopes to get federal money for the center, said JTA director of strategic planning Steve Arrington. Federal grants could pay as much as 80 percent of the bill, Arrington said. But until the City commits, it will be difficult for JTA and its partners to even grab a place in a long line of projects waiting for federal dollars.
“Without this, it’s very difficult to move ahead,” said Arrington.
The plan requires coordination from public and private partners, he said. Amtrak and Greyhound have signaled their willingness to move ahead with JTA said Arrington. But all parties are waiting for the City’s commitment.
“We have a lot of parties putting a lot of effort into this and a lot of money into this,” he said. “Conceptual though this plan may be, this would be a signal that its firm enough that all parties can feel comfortable moving forward.”
Several board members had reservations about setting the vague plan in stone by making it part of the master plan, which spells out the City’s goals for developing each section of downtown. Board member Gerry Nichols said he wanted to hear that Amtrak and Greyhound were on board before committing the City.
“What I worry about, is if we go in this direction, and Amtrak or Greyhound doesn’t go along, have we focused a lot of money and time on something half-baked?”
Arrington said representatives from Amtrak and Greyhound would answer questions for the board and could present at next month’s meeting.
The board members were also concerned about the center’s effect on the area’s housing and retail. The area has lagged behind development in the urban core and along the river, but the promise of the new County Courthouse’s arrival in 2007 has lately spurred commercial development.
Any design approved by the DDA should fit into the City’s other plans for the area, said Rhodes.
“It seems to be a whole mass, and I wonder if we’re proposing something not interactive with the residential and pedestrian environment we hope to create,” said Rhodes. “I don’t want this to be the overriding icon for LaVilla. It should be one aspect of the area consistent with the master plan.”
JTA will be back at next month’s board meeting with a more detailed presentation that answers the board’s concerns, said Arrington. But he warned the DDA not to move too deliberately. The line for federal transportation dollars s getting longer by the day, he said.
“We’ve got a program that the feds are excited about,” said Arrington. “The longer it takes, the longer the queue gets (for money), the more difficult it’s going to be.”