Gainesville Town Hall

Article By Tony Domenech
Originally Written Circa 2003

Thinking back, I suppose my wife and I began to notice the decline of East Gainesville 25 or so years ago.  At the time we lived in a beautiful home (circa 1938) on the corner of NE 7^th Street and 9th Avenue.  Many of our friends lived nearby; Lynn and I were teaching at Howard Bishop Middle School, and we were raising our first child, Joseph.  While there continues to be “fits and starts” and isolated improvements as time relentlessly advances, the relatively straight-line decline of east Gainesville continues, for the most part, unabated.

Some examples:

• Lowes – Closed
• Winn Dixie - Closed
• Manaro’s - Closed
• Barnett Bank – Closed
• Southeastern Bank - Closed
• Central Builders – Moved West
• Cedar Grove II: Barely passing; heavily subsidized
• Tackle Box – Moved
• Decreasing school enrollment
• Decreasing residency

Gainesville like any healthy organism must have a robust, well-functioning vascular system.  A city’s vascular system is its streets and roads.  How we treat that system determines the long-term survival of Gainesville.

As I ponder my first two years on the City Commission and realize how we have manipulated our system of roads; I grow increasingly concerned we are causing ischemia in some parts of our system by restricting blood supply.  We are witnessing an action medicine defines as, “anti-angiogenesis.”  In other words, cut off or block life-giving blood to an organ or tissue; death predictably results.  This is a great strategy for malignant tumors; it is ruinous for vital organs.

Appreciating this natural process, I was stunned to discover that, while developing Plan East Gainesville, a decision was made to remove the extension of S.E.16^th Ave. from the City’s long-range transportation plan.  A road, which, if connected to S.W. 16^th Ave., clearly offers an improved east/west arterial, thus enhancing the probability of revitalizing a decaying and historical section of our city.  Surely east Gainesville deserves the same attention to rehabilitation other parts of our city enjoy.

Assuming we fancy safer and more efficient travel between east and west Gainesville, and we do not wish to continue to segregate Gainesville; let’s look at some street facts.  What east/west routes are currently available?

• NW 53^rd Ave. is a nice road – badly in need of repair – but it is fairly far north and terminates at the Waldo Road.
• NW 39^th Avenue is clearly a good east/west connector, but it too is far to the north.
• NW 23^rd Avenue and NW 16^th Avenue:  Both “dead end” into Waldo Road, are peppered with school zones and run through neighborhoods.
• 8^th Avenue unquestionably offers connectivity east & west, but it is impossible to enhance capacity east of Main Street.
• University Avenue, is of course, the next great, and historically preeminent, east/west connector.  This road is the primary arterial from east to west but there is a very active movement led by an exceedingly effective, relentless, and uncompromising small group of community activists, who wish to narrow this central artery. They tell you, with a straight face mind you, that narrowing, while “counter-intuitive” will increase traffic flow.  My cardiologist suggests otherwise.
• Moving south, we next encounter 2^nd Avenue.  This, potentially beautiful road, “dead ends” at UF as does SW 4^th Avenue, thus neither are bona fide east-west connectors.
• Depot Avenue?  Forget it. While Depot Avenue will, one day in the near future, LOOK nice, it will not bear much traffic.  Depot’s western terminus dumps conveyances into neighborhoods, into, what must be, the most dysfunctional intersection in the state (north of P.K. Yonge), and when Archer Road is effectively closed to traffic from SW 13^th Street. west past Shands and the VA Hospital, there will be no reason to use Depot Avenue except perhaps, to get to 6^th St. which they want to narrow too!

So what is left?  Ah, 16^th Avenue – the very road the experts decided to remove from the long-range transportation plan.  This stroke of genius reminds me of what G.K. Chesterton once said, “There are two ways of getting home; and one of them is to stay there.” East Gainesville, is someone trying to force you to stay home?  It certainly seems that way because many, past and present, elected officials are making your option to freely travel increasingly difficult.

Let’s talk north and south for a bit.  While it is easier to travel north and south in Gainesville, far too many choose to use I-75 as a “local” street. Because from 11,000 to 15,000 thousand of our citizens risk life and limb daily on that section of I-75, I suggest it is the responsibility of elected officials to find some other way for people to make those trips.

A four-lane NW 62^nd Boulevard from Newberry Road to Williston Road offers such an option. That safer north-south artery coupled with a better east-west arterial would bring all Gainesville folks closer together.

If our dreams for east Gainesville are to come true, two acres of land are indispensable to its fulfillment.  Those two acres on the University of Florida campus – already once approved but now under new debate – are desperately needed so Gainesville residents can more easily travel back and forth between east and west Gainesville.

Whether SW 24^th Avenue is four-lane or two lane, it would be folly to spend $8 million dollars and have it dead-end into Gainesville’s busiest thoroughfare – S.W. 34^th.  Southwest 24^th Avenue can be connected from 62^nd Blvd. to Archer Road IF it crosses 34^th Street through those two acres.  Moreover, such a connection will, as the studies have shown, serve to relieve traffic on Newberry Road and at the ghastly intersection of SW 34^th Street and Archer Road.

Since faculty members at the University of Florida have historically anguished over the plight of East Gainesville, I have no doubt, given this information and the realization of what has been happening in our community over the past two decades, they will jump at the opportunity to strongly recommend to the new UF President that carving out just two acres of UF land is crucial to the future connectivity of east and west Gainesville.

Restoring SE 16^th Avenue to the East Gainesville plan, and connecting it to SW 16^th Avenue we will have restored sufficient blood supply to East Gainesville and removed the barriers that have isolated east from west for far too long.

What does the future hold for East Gainesville?  Not much if all we do is talk.  But if we “walk the talk” great things are possible.  Like bridges, sidewalks and bike lanes; roads connect people and their worlds together.  Awaken East Gainesville and help determine your future.  Demand that your elected officials take action to remove the blockages and open your arteries before it is too late.

Tony Domenech
Former Gainesville City Commissioner
Gainesville Resident

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