People who come Downtown for nightlife along and near East Bay Street have a lot of ideas on how to make the experience better.
Friendly staff, quality drinks and information from venues about specials and entertainment make the list. So do food trucks, a trolley connecting nearby neighborhoods and a more open environment for pedestrians who’d like to imbibe.
That’s according to a survey of nearly 700 people, conducted April 4-20 by Downtown Vision. The data is being used to develop a program to increase business at nightlife venues.
The results of the survey are being shared with club owners in “The Elbow,” an entertainment district from East Bay and Liberty Street west to Ocean Street, then north to East Forsyth Street. Along the way are lounges, live music clubs and restaurants, plus the Florida Theatre.
A key element of a campaign to stimulate nightlife in the area is to build a Thursday night bar crowd to add to the existing business on Friday and Saturday nights.
That could be a good plan, said Mark Hemphill. He opened Mark’s Downtown Club & Lounge at 315 E. Bay Street in February 2006. He also owns Dive Bar, a few doors east along Bay Street.
Mark’s is open 4-10 p.m. Monday, 4 p.m.-2 a.m. Tuesday-Friday, 8 p.m.-2 a.m. Saturday and is closed on Sunday. Dive Bar is open 8 p.m.-2 a.m. every day.
“Thursdays are a tough day to get people out,” he said. “We rely on Friday and Saturday night and happy hour.”
Among those surveyed, 91 percent said food trucks would make The Elbow more enjoyable.
Lining the trucks along the street and setting up tables and chairs on the lawn in front of the vacant former City Hall could be a way to add another night to the Downtown nightlife culture, Hemphill said.
Greg DeSanto is executive chef and owner at olio, the restaurant on the ground floor of Churchwell Lofts. If food trucks were to park in front of the former City Hall, he could see them when he looked out of his front windows.
But, DeSanto said he would not view them as a detractor for his business.
“Competition is healthy,” he said. “As long as the food trucks were managed, it would be an asset.”
Jason Albertelli opened his Dos Gatos cocktail lounge across Forsyth Street from the Florida Theatre in 2009. It’s open 4 p.m.-2 a.m. Monday-Friday and 6 p.m.-2 a.m. Saturday and Sunday.
He said Thursday would be a good night to promote because so many young people work service industry jobs and that’s a night off for many.
Albertelli said adding food trucks to the nightlife mix would be an asset, as long as the mobile vendors didn’t conflict with the brick-and-mortar businesses in the district.
“We don’t need tacos. We’ve got Burrito Gallery,” he said.
Another aspect to be considered is a “gap” in the district created by the Blackstone Building, said Downtown Vision Director of Marketing Katherine Hardwick, who presented the results of the survey to the organization’s board of directors.
The block offers no entertainment venues and essentially splits the district into two zones. Food trucks and seating across the street, with the addition of improved street-level lighting, could create connectivity, she said.
Albertelli said changing city regulations that prohibit open containers and allowing bars Downtown to stay open past 2 a.m. would be a “game changer.”
“Make it a 3 a.m. closing time. The extra hour would draw attention to Downtown,” he said.
Ten years ago, former Downtown City Council member Suzanne Jenkins introduced legislation to make it legal for bars along East Bay Street and the Southbank to remain open until 4 a.m.
It was an uphill battle that ended in defeat.
Jenkins said she talked about the proposal to her colleagues and other elected officials, pitching the proposal as an economic development opportunity for businesses as well as the city.
“It’s not always about providing tax incentives,” she said. “Sometimes, you just have to get out of their way and let people compete.”
But almost everyone she talked to said the faith-based community would never support the idea.
“It was a good discussion, but nobody wanted to touch it,” Jenkins said.
Allowing open containers in the district would allow patrons to carry a drink from one venue to another. Among those surveyed, 83 percent said changing the rule on public consumption of alcohol would be important in improving the nightlife experience.
Albertelli “fully supports” letting people stroll from one place to another with a drink in their hand. It would create an atmosphere like that found at Art Walk, the Jacksonville Jazz Festival and Florida-Georgia weekend.
“It would increase walkability. People want to see who’s at the other clubs and they want to carry their drinks with them,” he said.
The results from the survey are being studied by DVI’s Marketing Committee. John Ream, its chair, said much of the data collected came as no surprise.
Nearly 75 percent of the respondents were 25-44 years of age, with 51 percent in the 25-34 age group.
They are well educated — 64 percent hold a bachelor’s or graduate degree — and they have disposable income. Only 7 percent said they earn less than $20,000 annually.
Eighty-eight percent spend at least $26 on a night out Downtown and 29 percent spend $51-$100.
Ream said another finding from the study that will guide a future campaign is how the people who might patronize Downtown venues prefer to learn about events and promotions. Social media is used weekly by 93 percent of those surveyed who want to know what’s happening in the Downtown club scene.
“It’s the lowest cost medium and it’s embraced by our target demographic,” he said.
The committee is crafting a programming plan that likely will launch in early summer and last about three months in its first phase, said Ream.
Initial indications are it will involve food trucks, increased presence of Downtown Ambassadors and more street-level information about parking and the variety of venues.
While the regular club crowd tends to begin showing up later in the evening, the promotion is planned begin at 6 p.m. Thursdays to encourage those who work Downtown to visit the venues before they go home.
Ream said the concept is almost finished and the next step is to involve the Downtown Investment Authority, public parking officials and the city Office of Special Events.
“We want to be sure we’re all on the same page,” he said. “It can be done effectively at low cost. And we can do it now.”
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