Letters: Nate Monroe misses the point on downtown development in Jacksonville

Regarding Nate Monroe’s Aug. 4 column, while I empathize with his impatience in wanting to see more development and activity occur in Downtown Jacksonville, his commentary shows that he lacks an understanding about development.

My concern isn’t his lack of understanding; rather that his comments can encourage the new mayor, City Council, the DIA and the community to pursue ill-advised actions — push through half-baked ideas or announce new projects when they are simply not ready to be announced.

First, a downtown organization has two roles when it comes to development. These are to incentivize what cannot be developed on its own (affordable housing, residential, office conversions, etc.) and to preserve or enhance the built environment (parks, public spaces, trees, sidewalks, etc.).

Monroe’s comment about Lori Boyer spending so much time on public spaces and upsetting the development community made me laugh. I would argue that this should be one of the DIA’s top priorities.

Second, Jacksonville has been talking and meeting about developing its downtown since the 1970s. We are probably approaching 50 years of having these discussions. Yes, it has taken this city longer; yes, a lot of people did some dumb things; and yes, some people did some really remarkable things.

The good news is that the city still owns a ton of public land downtown and on the riverfront. Think about a few of your favorite downtowns — Chicago, Louisville, Greenville or Cincinnati — and what they have been able to do, as well as how they utilize and enhance their public spaces.

I tell everyone I meet that Downtown Jacksonville is on the right track. The projects, Emerald Trail and riverfront open spaces will have a meaningful impact on downtown and Jacksonville in general. It is still going to take a lot of time — but it is happening.

Terry Lorince, Jacksonville

We need Jacksonville Journey 2.0

Kudos to Mayor Donna Deegan for reviving the Jacksonville Journey. Its success at the beginning of this century owes much to former Mayor John Peyton and Linda Lanier, who led the Children's Commission. I hope that Mayor Deegan and W.C. Gentry look to both leaders for their perspectives on the creation and implementation of a revived Jacksonville Journey.

I played a small role in one of its programs: the New Town Success Zone, located near what is now Edward Waters University. New Town was chosen because of its crime, poverty and overall deterioration.

Under the leadership of Pam Paul and Nat Glover (then president of Edward Waters) the city created a coalition of organizations to oversee New Town. They included the Jacksonville Sheriff’s Office, Baptist Health, Mayo Clinic, Family and Children's Services, Duval County Public Schools, HabiJax and others. These groups partnered with residents to make New Town a safer, healthier and more attractive neighborhood.

The community became engaged. HabiJax built homes. Mayo held health screenings with follow-ups. City agencies trimmed trees, repaved sidewalks and replaced missing streetlights. Police officers spent time getting to know residents. One result was that officers became seen as friendly and trustworthy — a new phenomenon for this inner-city neighborhood.

I don't know all the outcomes of these efforts, but one stands out. The crime rate went down substantially. Residents began to share information about drug trades with officers. In one year, there actually were zero homicides in this once dangerous neighborhood. New Town received praise both regionally and nationally.

The New Town Success Zone was but one of the Jacksonville Journey programs. Reviving and supporting the Journey today will contribute to making Jacksonville a safer, more caring and attractive city tomorrow.

Jim Crooks, Westminster Woods

Don’t reboot Jacksonville Journey

Mayor John Peyton proudly announced the Jacksonville Journey program 13 years ago as a solution to the city's rising crime rate. After costing the taxpayers millions of dollars to initiate and carry on for several years, it was abandoned as a total failure and huge waste of money.

Unfortunately for the long-suffering taxpayers, most politicians love new programs. I’m guessing it’s because they afford opportunities for friends and colleagues to be installed in new well-paying positions while giving the office supply people some new business. The Journey apparently impressed the new mayor and she is going to bring it back for a second round.

What's that old saying about repeating the same old things and expecting different results?

Jean Alexander, Cedar Hills

‘Moms’ don’t understand mental health

Mark Woods did a great job in his Aug. 6 column pointing out concern about the proclamation from Moms for Liberty that mental health has "NO place in public schools." These moms obviously have no knowledge of how the brain works and why mental health is important. Public schools need to teach using the whole brain, which is a natural way to learn.

The limbic system (or middle) of the brain corresponds to memory, emotion and stress response. These structures are also involved in learning and motivation. If a student has emotional issues or problems, they are unable to go from the limbic part of the brain to the cerebrum (the front), which enables us to think.

Public education is in the "brain business" — helping students think and act in a positive civil way to become a functioning citizen. As a retired elementary school teacher and principal of 34 years, I have witnessed the benefits of teaching children to use emotional tools that can help them manage their emotions, collaborate and make good choices.

To have a democracy we need public education that addresses students and their whole brain. I suggest these Moms for Liberty learn more about the brain and how children learn before they continue their journey of campaigning against yet another aspect of what it means to be a human being.

Maggie Barker, Jacksonville Beach

Sheriff Glover’s story

On the front and inside pages of the Aug. 6 edition was a story announcing former Sheriff Nat Glover’s autobiography, “Striving for Justice.” All politics aside, I will read Glover’s book, as I am especially interested in his earlier accounts of how he came to be the man who would lead the JSO on the most desperate victim search in the history of Jacksonville.

For the first 10 days of November 1998, our city turned itself inside out looking for our sweet, brown-eyed girl named Maddie [Clifton], only to learn she was horribly murdered and entombed. I observed our sheriff up close as he navigated the muddy waters of those terrible dark days. He was forthright and formidable, and it pained my heart to see him break at the outcome; but break he did.

My eyes well up even now, as I remember the tears in his own eyes when he made the announcement that our brutalized Maddie had been found. He was a broken man, under the weight of all our grief, who graciously mourned our loss.

There is always a story behind every story, and I want to learn about former Sheriff Glover’s story as he tells it. Thank you for the announcement.

Lee Clifton, Jacksonville

Lessons on good citizenship

During the Spring Arts Festival at Alimacani Elementary School, messages of kindness, inclusion and good citizenship adorned the walls throughout the school, along with the artwork of every student. The lessons of civility and a sense of inclusiveness are what we should expect from public education to sustain a diverse, truly free society.

In his book “The Bill of Obligations: The Ten Habits of Good Citizens,” Richard Haass — veteran U.S. diplomat and now head of the Council on Foreign Relations — offers a guideline of our obligations to citizenship if American democracy is to survive.

Haass suggests 10 obligations for American citizenship (along with the Bill of Rights) that we should always consider for our political system and government to function better, remain peaceful and get results that work for a diversified democracy.

• Be informed

• Get involved

• Stay open to compromise

• Remain civil

• Reject violence

• Value norms

• Promote the common good

• Respect government service

• Support the teaching of civics

• Put country first

As Haass stated, “These obligations represent responsibilities to fellow citizens and to our country as a way of upholding democracy and countering the growing apathy, anger, selfishness, division, disinformation and violence that threaten us all.”

Karen Adler, Jacksonville

Racist real estate laws

Gov. Ron DeSantis and his team keep saying the new laws restricting real estate sales to Chinese nationals aren't racist, as they only apply to those domiciled in China, whatever their nationality. I think that's a flimsy argument, but it really hit home recently.

My parents recently sold their condo to some snowbirds who live in New York but wanted a Florida home for winter. Sounds straightforward, right? Well, the people in question just happened to be Chinese immigrants.

While they've lived in the U.S. for some time now and have valid visas, they still had to jump through extra hoops and the Realtor continued to express reservations about selling to them. Just because they're Chinese, but don't live in China. I feel like this will be seen more and more, with Realtors dissuading homeowners from selling to anyone Asian.

If there's really a concern about properties near military installations being bought by agents of other countries, surely we could have a blanket requirement that any properties within a certain radius of those bases have extra checks done, instead of targeting one specific group in this way.

Susan Miller, Arlington

Scary headlines

Two headlines in the Aug. 7 edition of the Times-Union were scary, and both related to Gov. Ron DeSantis. The first indicated that he would gut the state workforce (in addition to cutting professional national government workers as well).

His actual words were "we are going to start slitting throats on Day One."

The second headline dealt with books that tiny groups of people — many times just one single person ― have been able to get banned from school libraries. This banning of books in Florida has caused teachers to fear what books they can have on their own classroom shelves.

Slitting throats? Banning books and having teachers fired who have those books in their classroom? What kind of person is this, running to be president of the United States? Is this someone who really cares about the well-being of American citizens? Is this the kind of person who seeks that children enrich themselves by reading?

It is quite frightening to think that this person is, in fact, running for president, the most powerful role in the world — a really frightening thought.

Terri Quint, Ponte Vedra

Mayor Deegan cares

On Thursday, Aug. 3, the citizens of Mandarin were honored to host the first of 14 Town Halls to be held by our new mayor, the Honorable Donna Deegan, who was joined by City Council member Michael Boylan. When Mayor Deegan strolled into the Mandarin Senior Center, she was greeted by a standing ovation from a standing-room-only crowd.

After a brief message, Mayor Deegan moved into the crowd, sharing the microphone with multiple speakers. She engaged with each person and listened intently, calling on her staff to give each matter specific attention and the means to follow up with city agencies. Topics included homelessness, infrastructure problems, zoning mistakes, the Jaguars and preventing clear-cutting of our beloved Mandarin trees.

I do not think I am alone in feeling exhilarated and very hopeful for our city’s future as I left the Town Hall because it was abundantly clear — our magnificent Mayor Deegan truly cares for this city.

Pat Wojciechowski, Jacksonville

The die is cast on Trump

The latest indictment against former President Donald Trump, for attempting to the results of the 2020 election thrown out and stay in power, had to happen. Trump must be held accountable to preserve our democracy.

Now the question is, when will he be tried? If tried and convicted before the election, and he somehow gets elected anyway, he'll either pardon himself (if that's even possible) or find a way to get off the hook. If not tried before the election and he wins, he will end the whole thing.

Either way, it's up to the American people now to decide whether Trump will face the consequences and — by extension — whether our democracy survives. Do voters want "government by the people" badly enough or do they want autocracy? It reminds one of Julius Caesar and the end of the Roman republic.

Greg McClelland, Ponte Vedra

Let's repurpose Regency Square

Much has been written about the empty spaces in the Regency Square mall and it's about time that someone started thinking outside the box. How about an entertainment center with rides, arcades etc., as has been done in other cities, such as Columbus, Ohio? Indoor rollercoasters are now routine, along with many other amusement attractions, such as 3D rides, which don't need much space. It would offer much-needed entertainment for all ages and would probably fill up on rainy days.

It's obvious that the time of successful brick-and-mortar stores is ending and something needs to be done with all the empty malls across America. This is just one idea.

Maureen Duddy, Jacksonville

Ron’s violent rhetoric

Gov. Ron DeSantis recently stated that as president, he would start “slitting throats” of federal workers on the first day of his administration. He also said he would have his secretary of defense do the same thing to military personnel.

This violent rhetoric is awful and should disqualify him to be president of our United States — or even governor, for that matter.

Bonnie Dudley, Jacksonville

This article originally appeared on Florida Times-Union: New mayor and others must proceed cautiously on new development in Jax