Jackson Jambalaya

I think we can solve all of this by having Farish Street transplanted onto Harborwalk.

So. $21 million paid for a power point presentation. Man, I’m impressed. The only thing missing is the quiet voiceover…Look at the pictures and the drawings…..stop asking for results…..stop asking where the money went…..concentrate on the presentation…

$21 million. Auditor, we want an independent audit. WLBT, WAPT, WJTV—would yall mind breaking away from Facebook, twitter, and YouTube videos for a day or two and go to Pickering and find out if he will do an audit of these funds? Where the hell are the reporters asking WHAT THE HELL IS GOING ON!

August? Really? I'm certainly not holding my breath on this one.

"The Cluster Effect"

I can see that

I can't see the slideshow

They better hurry up if they are going to start construction of the BB King club in August.

Why do people have this silly "if you build it, they will come mentality"? It's ridiculous.

You cannot create something that the CULTURE of the area will now allow for or support.

Planned developments like these totally ignore the people around them.

There is NO way you can put a bunch of clubs and bars in the middle of the Jackson hood and have it be a safe and successful economic development. Doesn't matter how much lipstick you put on the pig.

You must stop the "white flight" first then invest in plans that pertain to them.

I know for a fact that the deal with one of the tenants showing on the drawings blew up weeks ago and both sides agree that it's "off". Wonder if there are others they're not telling folks about?

I am sorry, I was have trouble viewing the pictures in the slide show because my eyes were full of water from all the laughter (or crying over the loss of $21,000,000.00).

The only thing that seemed plausible was the claim by Lumpkins BBQ to be the best in town. I've tasted it and its really good.
Everything else in the presentation lloks like a sham.

I don't care how awesome the restaurants & bars look, there's no way in he** I'm going to Farish street. I agree - execute this at Harbor Walk and it would be a huge success. What a waste of money. Doesn't matter how great the tenants are, if people are worried about the area, there's too many other places with great restaurants people can go.

8:52 here - That was sarcasm.

Farbourwalk

wd bet all any 'tenants' have an escape hatch in the contracts big as the grand canyon. nice, though, to know as per pic 4 in watkins cartoon that all patrons will be white yuppies. and per pic 9 they are going to import some 100 year old townhomes from london.

If you look at before and after, $21 million is cheap and if you think that area didn't have to be cleaned up for Jackson to have a chance to stop " white flight", then I have to question your reasoning power.

We are so many poeple saying "they wouldn't go to Farish St?" Maybe YOU wouldn't go, but the number of (white) people at F. Jones Corner every weekend seem to disagree with you.

By the way, this does NOT mean that I agree with the "just build it" mentality. But I am saying that Farish St even today can draw white people to a club.

Honestly, Farish st. is one of the safest places downtown at night on the weekend. It's quite amusing sitting there and hearing gunshots on CAPITOL st. A while back it was just the opposite, but nowadays you're much better off on Farish than Capitol.

3:34
That would be because Capitol Street has actual people on it at night. Not just the few that venture to Jones Corner. When real people start to come to Farish Street, so will the thugs and guns.

Farish street is gonna save the "white flight" about the same way Jackson will have another white mayor

If we're doing PowerPoint wish lists, put me down for an indoor ski slope. Just stick it between Oprah Winfrey's House of Ribs and the Steve McNair Memorial Puppet Theater.

I never understand why people will devote so much time to tearing down the ambitions of others to make something great. If you,don't like it, dont go. But downtown housing is 100% leased or sold and downtown is perfectly safe at night.

I have worked downtown for almost 20 years., but am usually gone by 6:00pm. A couple of weeks ago we had a work related dinner at the Polar Market, I was shocked at the number of young people downtown on a week night. The place was full of the hip crowd, in spite of it being overpriced and providing poor service (and so so food). I was told many of the people live downtown. Prior to that, I thought downtown was dead at night. Downtown at least in my 20 years of experience is not overly dangerous and my opinion has changed on the viability of the Farish St project.

"It's quite amusing sitting there and hearing gunshots on CAPITOL st. A while back it was just the opposite, but nowadays you're much better off on Farish than Capitol. "

You seem to find that reassuring. I'm sorry, but my kids and I only eat in restaurants in Madison, Ridgeland, or Dogwood.

What do gunshots sound like?

Slide 21 tells the story. "Garrett Enterprises" means Socrates Garrett, sleazebag extraordinaire. Parlayed his influence as publisher of the Missing Link (or some such)into instant wealth during the first Johnson administration, then somehow survived the Melton interval only to rise again, stronger and more virulent, in Johnson's second administration. Garrett has a piece of virtually every major City of Jackson contract, sometimes as the general contractor (Farish Street), usually as a protected sub-contractator (e.g., water-sewer). He's also neck-deep in the revised "One Lake" project. Watkins was smart enough partner up with Garrett early on. Scratch any corrupt Jackson boondoggle and find Garrett's smarmy itch.

Start digging on that one, JJ>

Based on the slides, it appears Watkins Development only received about $4 million in funds from the state and city. I can see where the $4 million was spent by Watkins Development. Maybe the real question is where did the other $17 million go?

My, my, my. WAPT now broadcast a story on WAPT last night. All I did was list the public money poured into Farish Street for 20 years and give the readers a video tour of the street. Suddenly here comes a powerpoint presentation on DJP's website and now a WAPT story in the same week. Meow.

Correct @7:11. Garrett has learned to play the game. It's easy really. Get connected with the local political crooks, start a company that is amorphous enough to to claim utility in every project while having expertise in none, and most importantly, be black. I've been affiliated in one way or another with projects that included Garrett Enterprises, and they brought no operational value to the table. They were there for optics and everyone knew it, and their presence only increased the price of the project because we had to add their "giveaway" money into the cost. But that's the way things are done these days in the City with Soul. Having said that, I will add that I found him inoffensive personally and it would be interesting to sit and have a drink with him.

Thanks for the heads up KF as to what WAPT is up to..I really don't know anyone that even watches the local "crime report" anymore!!!

@6:00,

I agree with the first part of your statement, but think it is irresponsible to say downtown is "100% safe" at night. It clearly is not.

@7:11, How do you know all of this?

@10:16 -- I been around, I been around.

@8:42 -- You're absolutely right about Garrett personally. He's a smooth operator. Problem is, as you correctly note, he really brings nothing to the table operationally on anything he does. He's the undisputed king of minority set-asides, where there's no serious bidding competition. He survived during the Melton administration by taking Too-Sweet Henderson under his wing and letting Melton's boys mow grass around the water and sewer pumping stations. When the City re-bid the water contract they carved out the function performed by Garrett (hauling sludge)so Garrett would be protected no matter who won. Easy money, baby, and it all gets paid out of your water/sewer fees so Garrett's name never actually shows up on any city vendor work orders.

I can see the slide show just fine. It's the sideshow that's not visable.

The job creation numbers are total bullshit. The same garbage was spread about the Convention Center and it hasn't delievered jack shit.

Get a life 1012. You continue to obsess and nobody is listening or gives a shit.

5:34 Can you stop your ad hominem attack long enough to provide a reference or two to refute 10:12's claim? As far as I can tell he's right on the money.

Get a life 11:56. You continue to obsess and nobody is listening or gives a shit.

You are talking to yourself, 1012.

Ad hom attacks are all the downtown crowd has to offer because they can't defend the numbers.

Get a life 9:32. You continue to obsess and nobody is listening or gives a shit.

You continue talking to yourself, 10:12.