Lately I’ve been wondering what’s going on with the Springfield Community Garden. Here’s an update:

We’re just now getting things replanted. There are currently about six folks tending plots in the garden. A number of the other folks who signed up for the class dropped out without telling me, so we actually have a few plots still open, although it’s late in the season at this point.

There was supposed to be a workday on Saturday, but I’m not sure if it happened or now. Does anyone know? They are also in the process of getting nonprofit status similar to the Beaches Local Food Network. I don’t want anyone to get too excited, but there are also talks to get another Farmers Market going. It would most likely be in the lot between The Pearl and the Garden.

Also, I received an email from a woman named Michelle G to tell me she started her own blog to chronicle the garden and talk about other green things in Jacksonville: http://greenjax.blogspot.com

The troubles of Craig Van Horn have been many and varied. Most recently JaxScene documented that Craig hasn’t paid JEA $15,000 he owes on an electric bill. This non-payment may force the residents of the building out, including a local salon.

The tenants in 121 E. 8th Street including myself are currently all running around, meeting people and making phone calls. JEA was here last week trying to find our water valve so they can cut it off. Why? Our landlord, Craig Van Horn, has not been paying his bill.

There may be a silver lining to the Craig Van Horn legacy with the proposed purchasing of the Halsema building by Mack Bissette (SRG) and Jack Meeks (Meeks, Ross, Selander, CPAs). It is “under contract to be purchased”. SRG/Meeks still have to do due diligence including inspections and environmental. Provided due diligence doesn’t turn up anything unexpected, contract should go through. The Halsema building is located about 30 yards from 121 E. 8th Street so maybe there’s a chance SRG and Meeks will acquire that property too.

This is the first joint venture between SRG and Meek’s into Springfield’s commercial corridor redevelopment. The building is approximately 15,500 square feet on two stories, and currently houses a social service organization and a few renters in the residential units (approx 25% occupied).

The interior spaces are reportedly in poor-to-fair condition, but do feature some interesting urban achitectural features such as brick walls in the end units. SRG/Meeks plan to renovate the building into a Class A historic building, which will then be marketed as workforce and some live-work housing.

“Jack and I remain committed to this Springfield’s residential and commercial corridor efforts, and we look forward to transforming this historic building back into the gem it used to be,” said Mr. Bissette. “We’ll be taking our renovation inspiration from the historic picture of the building that is hanging inside Worman’s deli downtown.”

You can read about the initial discovery and demise of the Van Horn ownership of the Halsema building on Metro Jacksonville.

There seems to be no stopping SRG and their commercial/residential development machine. I know Mack and SRG conjure lots of differing opinions, but there is no doubt in my mind this new commercial development push is going to be good for Springfield. Look for SRG to release plans for several multi-family projects in the coming years.

Update! DJ Joey Pants will be spinning digital tracks to bring this party into the 22nd Century.

One of my very best friends Tony Allegretti will be celebrating his birthday this Friday at the Burrito Gallery. Not only is he a fine supporter of Downtown and all things Springfield, he also only drinks beer from a can, (still, apparently) possesses vinyl records and is a damn fine illustrator.

From 8 till Midnight you can hear the sounds of DJs Biggie Tea and Triclops I, Airport Factory and Tough Junkie. That’s two bands and two DJs for the price of none! $2 orange parks, $2 millerburgs and hourly shot specials.

In addition to the birthday bash, it’s also a fund raiser for the Bikes, Bags, and Beats shop in Springfield, aka The Buyers Market Lodge. Open you wallet and your heart for these hard working Springfield retailers. All proceeds go towards keeping the doors open. It’s insurance renewal time! So support your local bike co-op, messenger bag shop, and record store.

If you want to make a big night of it BikeJax has a listing of events that will take you from Riverside, to Springfield to Downtown.

Springfield residents who cheered the closing of a Main Street pawn shop last month will be sad to learn that pawn shops actually thrive in a economic downturn. I assumed the closing had to do with the economy or the Main Street construction.

What you can’t see in the picture below is that the pawn shop actually relocated to Arlington. It’s possible changing neighborhood demographics in Springfield are making the pawn business less lucrative. Or maybe not as lucrative as the crumbling outer-ring suburb of Arlington.

After looking into this more I’ve determined pawn shops in Springfield will thrive during this economic downtown and will serve a vital purpose. What many people fail to realize is pawn shops serve as financial institutions for many in the neighborhood who can’t get bank account or who don’t trust banks to lend them money. So I don’t see these businesses leaving anytime soon.

“We’re a community bank. There’s no question in my mind that we are important. We are a small community bank,” says Mark Lax, president and owner of Pawn 1 Inc., a Spokane-based chain of a dozen pawn stores. Lax says Pawn 1’s business is growing, and he plans to open six more stores in Idaho over the next three to five years. - Soft economy gives pawnshops bump

While they do provide a needed service, unfortunately Pawnshops prey on neighbors down on their luck with excessive interest rates and high fees. So here’s how a pawn shop works:

A person brings a something to a pawn shop, say a TV, and receives a load in exchange for cash and the promise to repay the money borrowed plus fees and interest. Example:

on a $100 loan, for example, there is a $16 loan origination fee, and $3 in interest accrues every 30 days, so at the end of 90 days, which is the minimum time a pawnshop must give a borrower to repay a loan, the total cost to the borrower for the loan would be $25. If the loan isn’t paid off, the item becomes the property of the pawn shop, which puts the item up for sale.

So you were able to borrow 100 dollars for $25 dollars, basically a 25% interest rate, without a credit check. Not a very good interest rate, but at just $25 it’s still a pretty cheap loan.

Opinions on pawn shop are pretty strong around the neighborhood so it was an interesting exercise to take a look at the interesting relationship between them, the current economy and the residents of Springfield. I’m happy there is one down, four to go. To me it’s a sign of progress to see a pawn shop pack up. Hopefully it won’t be replaced by a check cashing store…

Portland’s Saturday Market Draws 70K people a year.

I was looking though my news for the last couple of weeks and I found the biggest story of the month, but one of the least talked about: The Riverside Artist Market.

I’ve been hearing about this market for a while now, but it was never clear whether it would happen. As of last night, it’s a reality, the City Council approved it 14-0. I’m happy to see this overwhelming sign of approval. Having the City throw support behind a potentially transformative event isn’t just good for local artists, it’s good for the perception of Jacksonville.

Resolution expressing the city’s support for the creation of the Riverside Artists’ Market under the Fuller Warren Bridge. The resolution also encourages the city, and state departments of transportation and environmental protection, to collaborate on this effort. Bill No. 2008-914 Action: Approved, 14-0. tip: Jacksonville.com

So we might see weekend trolley/buss service to the market. Not sure why the EPA would need to be involved, maybe because the market will be so close to the St. John’s River.

The Artist Market will be modeled after Portland’s Saturday Market (pictured) which was modeled after the Saturday Market in Eugene, Oregon. In structure it will resemble Portland’s market very closely with all items required to be hand made:

All of the arts and crafts must be hand-made, and the artist who produced the work will be present at the artists’ market. All art will reviewed by a jury, and only the finest quality of work will be exhibited at the artists’ market.

Portland’s Market was founded as a mutual benefit corporation, where the members share the cost and governance of the market, and keep all profits they receive from selling their items. It seems like the City will be handling cost and governance, so Jacksonville’s vendors may come out ahead.

More blog posts on the Riverside Artists Market
Riverside Arts Market Logo Contest (via JaxConfidential)
Riverside Arts Market Logo Contest (via Art Isnt Rocket Science)
Coming soon: Northbank Riverwalk Square’s Artists’ Market

Maybe that’s a good thing.

To me it’s starting to feel boring and not real. I’m losing a bit of enthusiasm for the whole thing. It sucks because I just won the Folio Weekly’s Best of Jax: Best Blog, which says I’m doing something right. So I want to know what you think.

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Part of what I’m feeling has to do with the amount of free time I have to blog, which has been steadily decreasing. I started working on a new theorem last week, here it is: The frequency and quality of posts is inversely related to the amount of free time. This was never more evident than last week when I wrote a whopping two blog posts.

So, over the next couple of months I’m making an effort to change the formula a little bit. I’m also working on a pretty cool idea which I hope will revive my love for the game. So please answer the poll question and leave a comment if you have any thoughts. I’d like to hear them.

You can call and leave your election night thoughts too. Call (646) 495-9201 ext. 54216

• Founder of Globatron.org, a local arts blog, Byron King talks about why the 2008 elections are important to him. Listen
• Founder of The UrbanCore.com and co-owner of The Burrito Gallery, Tony Allegretti talks about why the 2008 elections are important to him. Listen
• Joey Marchy, founder of UrbanJacksonville.info , talks about his thoughts on the 2008 election. Listen

It won’t come as a surprise to anyone who reads this blog regularly that I’m officially endorsing Barack Obama for President of the United States. I thought this endorsement would be fitting on a day where Obama is in Jacksonville in a final push for Florida voters before the election.

I often look back and wish I could have experienced certain times in the history of our country. The 60’s hippie revolution on San Francisco, New York City in the 80’s when hip hop and graffiti were being born and the moon landing. I think to myself how cool it would have been being there to experience those events. I wonder if the people who were there realized they were taking part in something culture and nation-changing.

In my own lifetime I’ve experienced two events others will surely look back on and say “Wow, those were historic times”. I’m talking about the events of September 11th and the Bush Presidency, possibly some of the darkest times for our country. I’m about to experience a third.

It’s the day before one of the biggest elections in the history of our nation and I feel like this is another one of those culture and nation-changing events and I’m very excited to be taking part. I am casting my vote for Barack Obama because I this country needs to be shaken up. To me it’s more than economic or foreign policy. Those things are important, but we need someone leading our country who thinks different.

I feel like Jacksonville and it’s current administration is a microcosm of our national political scene with good ol’ boys and special interests pulling the string of our legislators. They are looking out for themselves and big business when they should be working to improve the city. So my vote tomorrow is not only for Barack Obama but for the principle of casting out the old way of thinking and governing in favor of making things better for the people of this country and this city.

Looks like Obama may be talking around 10:30:

@Joey and all who want to know when Obama will speak: My guess is about 10:30 which means soon, maybe one or two speakers away. But that is just a guess. Stay tuned…

Follow the live coverage

Download Urban Jacksonville Mixtape #7

Best. Costume. Ever. The boy in the picture is supposed to be R2-D2, but they wrote R2TII on the costume. Classic. So now that you are done laughing, you are probably asking yourself “Joey, do I really need two Thriller Remixes on my new Urban Jacksonville Halloween Mixtape?”

The answer to that question would be absolutely! Are you crazy? I could make a whole mixtape with just Thriller and it would still be awesome. So, have a happy Halloween and don’t forget to have your candy X-rayed.

Download Urban Jacksonville Mixtape #7

• Hunting For Witches (Ruckus Roboticus Remix) - Bloc Party
• Thriller (DiscoTech Remix) - Michael Jackson
• Ghost Ride It - Mistah F.A.B.
• Ghostbusters - Run DMC
• Don’t Scream Halloween’s Paid In Full - Apollo Zero
• Hip Hop Halloween Monster Mash-up - Car Stereo (Wars)
• 1-800-Living-Dead (Gravediggaz vs. Sufjan Stevens) - Cheekyboy
• Nightmare on My Street - DJ Jazzy Jeff & the Fresh Prince
• Freddy’s Coming For You - KRUEGER
• Graveyard Girl (Yuksek Rmx) - M83
• Frankenstein - The Subsonics
• Monsters Dare (Night of the Living Monster Mashup) - Cheekyboy
• Still A Thriller (Jody Watley vs. Michael Jackson) (Night of the Living Monster Mashup) - DJ ShyBoy

Past Mixtapes
Urban Jacksonville Mixtape #6 (download)
Urban Jacksonville Mixtape #5 (download)
Urban Jacksonville Mixtape #4 (download)
Urban Jacksonville Mixtape #3 (download)
Urban Jacksonville Mixtape #2 Halloween Edition (download)
Urban Jacksonville Mixtape #1 (download)

I didn’t mix or create any of these tracks myself, they haveall been downloaded from various MP3 blogs. Thanks to all the MP3 blogs and artists who mixed these tracks*.

MP3 Blogs
The Hood Internet
Hype Machine
Palms Out Sounds
Fluo Kids
Discobelle
IHEARTCOMIX
Gorilla vs. Bear
Mad Decent blog
Ruckus Roboticus
White Folks Get Crunk
versus-3.blogspot.com and more….

*If you want me to take down a track, just let me know. In case you missed it: Download Urban Jacksonville Mixtape #7