Murray Hill Town Center

The Murray Hill Community Newsletter reveals that the Murray Hill Town Center Initiative will be breaking ground this fall.  MHPA deserves a majority of the credit for this project.  They have pushed and been an intricate part of the process since its inception.  This is why we should all belong to MHPA and do what we can for our neighborhood.  I have read the Town Center Vision Plan Phase I Initiative published by the City of Jacksonville Planning and Development Department in March of 2004.  That is my only reference for this article.  I have put in request for information to see if the initiative has been revised since then and have not received a response so I am writing this under the assumption that the Phase III construction about to commence is relatively unaltered from this Phase I report. The Murray Hill Town Center Initiative is part of the larger Town Center Program backed by the City of Jacksonville and City Council Member Suzanne Jenkins.  It provides support to local organizations in helping to revitalize community areas that have some historic or aesthetic character.  For the main corridor through Murray Hill, Edgewood Avenue, the Murray Hill Preservation Association has sought the assistance of the Town Center Program to redevelop and improve that stretch of Murray Hill.  In late 2002 the MHPA received a grant from the City of Jacksonville for Phase I of the Town Center Program which designated funds to the association for research, analysis, and planning of improvements to the Murray Hill area.  

Phase I is just the first of three phases to the process.  Phase I grants money to gather important planning information from the city, state, and the community to create a vision of the most efficient way to improve the neighborhood.  After site visits and community meetings and workshops to get input from the residents, a perspective plan was created that visually summarizes the Town Center Vision.  The project team then took the plan and created a cost estimate for all of the work involved, thus creating a budget for the project and Performa to take to the City of Jacksonville for funding.  With the help of the professional planners and members of the Planning Department the information gathered during Phase I, the plan and the budget were used to create a comprehensive report utilized when MHPA applied for Phase II funding.  Approval of Phase II and Phase III applications are never guaranteed, each one is evaluated separately from the others but are necessary to the process.  Upon approval of Phase II the City grants funds to create the construction plans for the project.  This involves hiring civil engineers, surveyors, contractors, and keeping the City and the State government agencies that control the roads involved.  After the construction plans are complete, assuming everything in the plan is feasible, the local and state agencies are on board with the project, and the work to be performed is within the approved budget the team can apply for Phase III funding which will grant money to implement the work described in the Phase I report, thus constructing the Town Center Vision.   

That takes me to the vision.  To those familiar with the Murray Hill area, you’ll find that the plan is impressive.  It is solely focused on Edgewood Avenue from Mayflower Street at The First Block to Hamilton Street near Lenox Avenue.  One goal of the Town Center Team was to prioritize the improvements in order to get the most done for the money granted to Murray Hill.  The following is the list of improvements contained in the Phase I Town Center Initiative.

•  Right of way improvements:  Edgewood Avenue from Falmouth Street to Mayflower Street would become two lanes opposed to the current four lane configuration.  This would create room for turning lanes going each way to improve traffic patterns through the main corridor.  This also creates room for a central median that would be landscaped with trees, shrubs, and sod.  This is going to generate a much more inviting atmosphere while driving down Edgewood.  There are plans to continue this two lane configuration all the way to Lenox Avenue, but again the team had to prioritize and there are other items that they felt were more important to focus on towards the Southeastern portion of Edgewood.  The block between Mayflower Street and Plymouth Street has been previously enhanced as part of a separate project also put together by MHPA.            
• Pedestrian lighting:  This is an important part of creating that unique Town Center aura.  We currently have the street lighting that is used for practical purposes, but it not aesthetically pleasing.  Instead of using funding to replace those lights that have to conform to minimum City and Sate standards the team decided to add Pedestrian Lighting to supplement and take the focus off of the Street Lighting.  The budget calls for an estimated 56 new twelve foot posts with globe fixtures to be installed along Edgewood to illuminate the night and create a more pedestrian friendly environment to promote activity in the area.                      
• Sidewalk Improvements:  In addition to new lighting the plan calls for a new four foot sidewalk on the Southwest side of Edgewood Avenue from Hamilton Street leading to the Murray Hill Methodist Church.  I have jogged through that area and it becomes tenuous as you proceed towards Lenox Avenue.  As well as adding the section of sidewalk the condition of all the existing sidewalks will be assessed and repaired as needed. 
• Reduction of Curb Cuts:  As Murray Hill has developed over the years and the codes and ordinances for road construction evolve the curbs and gutters around Murray Hill have become quite inconsistent.   Time has created one long exit off of Edgewood into any one of the merchants along the corridor.  The town Center Initiative will work to reduce the number of unnecessary curb cuts.  It will be evaluated on a case by case basis, but areas with the extra curb cuts such as the Chevron at Post Street and Edgewood Avenue will have those replaced with curbs, sidewalks and landscaping. 

• Street Trees:  In addition to the landscaping in the new medians the plan calls for street trees to be planted along Edgewood Avenue on both sides of the street.  The recommended street trees are Live Oaks, Palatka Holly, and Cabbage Palms to create shade and further promote pedestrian activity.   

• Intersection Improvements:  The intersections of Edgewood Avenue and Falmouth Street, Edgewood Avenue and Post Street, Edgewood Avenue and Trask Street will all get new single mast arm traffic signals, similar to those going up along Post Street and College Street in Riverside.  These intersections along with Edgewood Avenue and College Street, Edgewood Avenue and Antisdale Street, Edgewood Avenue and Corby Street, and Edgewood Avenue and Mayflower Street will get a new eight foot pedestrian crosswalk of red brick pavers enclosed with a concrete header curb.   
• Additional Parking:  New angle parking will be installed on each side of Edgewood between Antisdale Street and Corby Street.  This new parking is mainly provided to facilitate the Florida Christian Home and the businesses across the street. 
• Bus Stop Improvements:  Many of you around Murray Hill recognize the extensive use of City Buses around the neighborhood.  There is most likely someone at every stop whenever the busses are running.  The bus stops along the Edgewood corridor will receive new benches and shelter where space allows.  The plan calls for new bus stops at the corners of Antisdale Street and College Street, Trask Street and College Street, and Mayflower Street and College Street.  They do not show one at the corners of Post Street and College Street which is surprising.  The Jacksonville Transportation Association has developed guidelines for bus shelters and is currently funded for 40 shelters citywide.  They have committed funds to the Murray Hill Town Center Initiative to match funds to install these new bus shelters.   

• Street Furniture:  In addition to new bus shelters the plan calls for forty five new benches and trash receptacle to be installed along the corridor as space allows.  This new furniture will be iron and help keep the neighborhood quaint and hopefully clean providing receptacles for litter.   

• Finally the plan calls for an Entry Monument similar to the one currently at The First Block to be placed in the median at the intersection of Plymouth Street and Edgewood.  Also a display Kiosk will be installed near the Murray Hill Theater to serve as a central information source for community news or flyers as opposed to telephone poles throughout the neighborhood.

Ultimately the MHPA and partners in this project could not fit everything they wanted into the Town Center Vision due to budget constraints.  The estimated cost for the work described above came to $1,094,000.00 at 2004 estimated costs.  Construction materials and labor have gone up quite a bit in the last two years.  Hopefully some of the items do not get cut out because of costs inflation, we will see by the spring when the work is scheduled to be completed.  Some items that were discussed that did not make the cut are still part of the long term vision:

• Moving utilities underground:  not feasible until major water or sewer work is necessary.
• Overhead string lights:  possibly to be funded directly by MHPA to light up the new trees to be planted to create a festive atmosphere year round.
• Overpass wall improvements:  Possible future project to spruce up the Roosevelt overpass with murals or landscaping.
• Pocket Park:  There was no publicly owned land to create this park off Edgewood but there is a parcel at 1020 Edgewood Avenue that is centrally located that was recommended in the Phase I staff report.
• Community Center: Not financially feasible at this point but The Jones College building has been discussed as a location for such a center.
• Building improvements:  Renovations to existing buildings along the Edgewood corridor can be suggested but not mandatory and takes the investment of the property owners.  Regulations can be put in place though that would require certain guidelines be met if any alteration or renovation were to occur.  This goes back to the discussion about designating Murray Hill as a Historic District.   

I again want to applaud the MHPA, the citizens of Murray Hill who participated in the Phase I design, the city council members who helped push through the red tape, and the Planning and Development Department for offering their administrative and monetary assistance.  This Town Center Initiative is just the next step in the revitalization of Murray Hill.