JACKSONVILLE EXAMPLE 5: FIRST BAPTIST CHURCH
If you’re looking for a good meal, there is a large cafeteria inside the First Baptist Church (FBC) complex along Laura Street. In fact, it is so large, the space stretches the entire length of a full block of Laura between Ashley and Beaver streets. Unfortunately, from the outside it looks more like a warehouse than a restaurant open to the general public that could also contribute greatly in generating more pedestrian traffic along a major downtown thoroughfare north of Hemming Park.
Behind glass block windows, FBC’s restaurant’s interior can be seen from the upper levels of an adjacent building as night falls.
Along the empty street one would never know they could grab a bite to eat in this section of downtown.
One of downtown Jacksonville’s largest dining facilities exists behind those glass block walls facing Laura Street.
A Simple Solution
A ground level space in the process of being retrofitted into a mini-food hall with a separate building entrance and transparent windows in Houston, TX.
Would an exterior entry to Laura Street with a couple of tables for outdoor dining be too much to ask? Exterior signage, awnings and transparent windows would complement the impressive Children’s Building & Welcome Center across the street and give pedestrians a reason to walk north of Hemming Plaza.
The new entrance to Houston’s Finn Hall food hall.
MOVING FORWARD
A mix of banners, signage, umbrella seating and awnings help increase the visibility of Grand Central Market in downtown Los Angeles.
While it would be great to land a few trendy major retailers it may not be realistic until there is a significant increase in downtown’s population. Also despite the flashy renderings and heavy media coverage, it will be years before anything materializes at mega developments on the edge of downtown. Even then, it’s highly doubtful they would change the current pedestrian environment of downtown because of their distance away from the heart of the central business district.
Ground floor uses and retail activities spilling out into adjacent sidewalks and streets are major characteristics of vibrant street scenes. Due to the high number of restaurants and retailers already operating in downtown buildings that can’t be seen from the street, there may be local policies, zoning practices or regulations at play that limit these types of activities and settings from naturally occurring like they do in peer communities.Thus, applying additional focus on these issues, better utilizing and exposing what we already have is a short term revitalization and placemaking strategy that can provide just as much success in creating a vibrant pedestrian friendly retail and dining downtown scene.
Article by Ennis Davis, AICP. Davis is a certified senior planner and graduate of Florida A&M University. He is the author of the award winning books “Reclaiming Jacksonville,” “Cohen Brothers: The Big Store” and “Images of Modern America: Jacksonville.” Davis has served with various organizations committed to improving urban communities, including the American Planning Association and the Florida Trust for Historic Preservation. A 2013 Next City Vanguard, Davis is the co-founder of Metro Jacksonville.com and ModernCities.com — two websites dedicated to promoting fiscally sustainable communities — and Transform Jax, a tactical urbanist group. Contact Ennis at edavis@moderncities.com