Focal Point art guide | Wells Watch
Special: 2001 Designer's Showhouse

Jacksonville misses out on popular New Urbanist nightlife revival

By Nick Marino
Times-Union staff writer

In the 1960s and '70s, here and everywhere, city dwellers fled to the suburbs in search of subdivisions and shopping centers. Call it white flight, call it the Levittown effect, call it what you want -- people scrammed.

Buildings emptied, storefronts closed. Suburbs overflowed as downtown-- the place on the postcards, the source of collective identity -- hollowed out.

West Palm Beach had even worse problems until 1991, when the city embraced New Urbanism, a national movement bringing housing, retail and entertainment back to downtowns. Now, West Palm boasts a 20-block downtown entertainment district with cafes, boutiques, restaurants, dance clubs and apartments. Tax revenues and property values skyrocketed as West Palm joined Orlando, Miami and cities nationwide in a New Urbanist revolution.

ENTERTAINING AN IDEA Destination created from 'demilitarized zone' West Palm: Mayor's vision revitalizes downtown Reversing the flow of negative perceptions Plenty to do, all within walking distance

But Jacksonville missed the revolution.

Niche-oriented entertainment pockets exist in individual neighborhoods -- most notably San Marco, Jacksonville Beach and Five Points -- but none approaches the scope of a full-blown, centralized district.

Which brings us back to downtown.

Developers are planning residential communities downtown along the St. Johns River. The 966-room Adam's Mark hoteld nearby earlier this year. Another hotel is in the works.

Jacksonville's developers and city officials are creating a critical mass downtown without giving people much to do once they get there.

Most other cities built entertainment districts first, attracting people to live and stay nearby. Their New Urbanist theory borrows from the film Field of Dreams -- if you build it, they will come. As we contemplate throngs of downtown dwellers and convention-goers (not to mention Super Bowl visitors) all demanding nearby entertainment, the question in Jacksonville becomes -- If they come, will you build it?