For years the mantra for Farish Street has been, “It will be Jackson’s Beale Street!” or “It will be Jackson’s Bourbon Street!”
I’ve been right there, saying the same thing for a long time.
And I think it may be time to admit we were wrong, and see how we can move on.
First of all—and maybe it’s just that I’m getting older—but it occurs to me that when I go to New Orleans and Memphis, I don’t actually spend time on Bourbon and Beale streets anymore.
I did when I was more of a tourist, but I know those cities better now. These days my happiest moments in New Orleans are on Magazine, Royal, Poydras or in the Bywater.
In Memphis, we had a fabulous time a few months back in the Cooper-Young neighborhood, walking a few miles worth of local booths: food, artists, craft beers and craftspeople. During our Thanksgiving trip, we went bar hopping and ball-game-watching with family and friends in Overton Square, checking out the new spots and mourning the loss of our old-school karaoke joint.
If there’s a pattern here, it’s one I’ve been harping on since we started the JFP—even if I ignored that pattern myself when I was championing the “received” Farish vision.
The rule is this: Design your neighborhood for locals … and you’ll entice the tourists as well.
One way I know that is by looking at Best of Jackson voting this year. One of the top finalists in the category of “Best Tourist Attraction” in Jackson was … Fondren. Fondren is also one of the top reasons people give as their Best Reason to Live in Jackson.
I know. Fondren this, Fondren that.
But we weren’t talking about Fondren 10 years ago (at least, not as much), and we are now. In fact, we’ve been talking about Fondren for less time than we’ve been talking about Farish.
But which one has flourished?
Fondren, one could argue, is Jackson’s Cooper-Young or our Faubourg Marigny—and it didn’t really set out to be either of those. It kind of (with affection, attention and leadership) set out to just be Fondren, a neighborhood that doesn’t need chains to be awesome.
Second—and, in this case, I’m just on the outside looking in so maybe someone can prove me wrong—it really doesn’t look like the “Beale Street vision” for Farish Street is going to happen. Some of this is probably nobody’s fault—it was a huge project with bigger infrastructure issues than we first realized. Go Zone funding has come and gone; the window for some “big project” development after Hurricane Katrina was closing a few years ago, and then it was slammed shut by the Great Recession.
David Watkins took over what looked to be an anemic effort by Performa, and did what he could. Some of those efforts are documented in Tyler Cleveland’s story on page 14 and in his past coverage.
I’m sure Watkins has done some things right and some wrong. I’m sure the city has done some things right and some wrong. I’m sure outside forces have conspired against us, the banks look at nothing but the bottom line, and we haven’t had a handy Act of God in the last little while to right Farish’s course.
Got it. So, what’s plan B?
I’ll repeat this part: I thought “Jackson’s Beale” was a good idea. But considering where we are today, I think we need to hit “reset” and decide what Farish Street should really stand for.
Fondren has added two high-concept bars in the past six months, with the promise of a “Pig and Pint” somewhere in our near future and the announcement that Duling Hall is now 100 percent run by one of Jackson’s most prolific music promoters.
Some of us oldsters have visited these places and come away wondering: “Who are all these kids? Is it even legal for them to drink?!”
So where is this demand coming from? Was the great “Mall of Fondren” planned and built and executed in order to entice all these young professionals with money to burn to come in and play shuffleboard and taste prohibition-style drinks?
Of course not. These are individual entrepreneurs noticing a trend, doing some research, crafting a business plan, and tossing their startup capital in a new bank account with fresh checks and barely dry architectural renderings.
The problem, of course, is that Farish Street has already gone down a certain path, and pulling it back is problematic. Somehow, we need to get stakeholders around the table—contractors to the back of the room, please—and get a new vision for Farish.
Instead of running it like a mall development, maybe it needs to be run more like a neighborhood; instead of telling tenants already on the street what the rent will be once all the improvement is done, maybe somebody focused on Farish needs to be beating the drum to get current Farish tenants more business so we can prove the concept.
I’m not blaming the people who’ve tried—and, for now, I’m putting aside the role that a group of insider contractors and quasi-government groups like the Jackson Redevelopment Authority seem to be playing by moving the goal posts and playing favorites.
All I’m just saying is that it looks—from here—like the door has closed on the “build-it-and-B.B.-will-come” concept for Farish. Now, we need to look more into a “local-centric” plan for Farish and other satellite neighborhoods of downtown.
Could the Farish business district be our new restaurant incubator? Could we build a “Jackson Market Hall” like the Little Rock’s location I’ve written about before where kiosk-sized businesses get their start, and singles and families gather for evening music and beer-garden festivities?
What about a development of small shops, restaurants, and bars that all have Mississippi roots and flavors? How about some artist spaces and lofts? Live-work offices? Frequent street festivals? Food trucks? Artwalks? Craft fairs?
Maybe my ideas are pie-in-the-sky, but so was, it turns out, Six Flags With Daiquiris.
From where I sit, I think it’s time to think “big” again about Farish—by thinking smaller than we did last time.
Previous Comments
Worth mentioning Midtown too, along the same lines as Fondren, but with its own particular initiatives. Drive around the first few blocks (coming up from the railroad) of McTyere, Millsaps, Wesley, and Keener avenues to gauge the activity level. Midtown Partners, Pearl River Glass Studio, NUTS/Good Samaritan, Soul Wired Cafe, and a number of others are making progress there.
#5206 | Author: David_Reynolds | Date: Jan 15 2014
You’re absolutely correct. I even had “mention Midtown” on the brain when I was writing this and should have made the same point. Lessons learned in Midtown would definitely apply in and around Farish and downtown.
#5207 | Author: Todd Stauffer | Date: Jan 15 2014
Todd, I totally agree! For almost twenty years I have been saying that efforts to revitalize Farish Street must include the indigenous population. And, I realize that to many, there isn’t much to cling to there however, there are folks who have lived there 30 years, and regardless of what it looks like to outsiders, they call it home. Now that downtown residential is a reality, what is needed to support that community? Can we bring back the cleaners, and upholsterers, and small grocer and pharmacy? Can we re-create the up-scale restaurants and single screen movie theater and high-end boutique that were there when I moved to Jackson in 1973? And can we attract club owners who are committed to providing entertainment in a safe environment, appropriate to grown people? Forget Beale and Bourbon Streets. This is Jackson. We have our own culture and proud history, worthy of investment for the future. http://jacksonfreepress.com/users/photos/2014/jan/15/15424/
#5208 | Author: empressjudykay | Date: Jan 15 2014
Very well written and very well said. This is a much needed reality check for Jacksonians like myself who have remained hopeful for so many years. Its a sad thought, but it definitely may be time to move past the Beale and Bourbon visions that we’ve all held on to for so long, and just let it go. The suggestion to take a different approach is a good one; and the “neighborhood” or “community” approach you mentioned would be ideal. Furthermore, if a specific vision is given up on, I hope a new more realistic one shows up in its place.
#5209 | Author: johannahwilliams | Date: Jan 15 2014
It seems like we’ve always looked for the hail mary project. Throw $100 million at it, and it’s sure to happen. In bigger cities like Memphis and Birmingham, that can work. In a tiny metropolis like Jackson, it doesn’t. We know that now. What Jackson needs are systems in place to help those small business owners who are interested in trying something new…Sneaky Beans, Fondren Public, Apothecary, Beanfruit Coffee…the list goes on and on. What would Farrish Street be if all of the money that has gone into pursuing the big dream had been invested in a lot of smaller ones? We’re talking hundreds of millions of dollars. How many small storefronts could be open on that street had some entrepreneurs been given a little bit of money to get started. It’s certainly a model to consider for future development in the city, and I hope we’ve learned from our mistakes.
#5211 | Author: CMyers | Date: Jan 15 2014
I must admit that giving up on the entertainment district idea for Jackson makes me quite sad. Honestly, I had several visions of taking my friends to Farish Street to the many clubs, bars, restaurants and even a renovated Alamo Theater. While I’d rather see Farish naturally grow than continue in the sad decay that it is currently in, I do still have some extremely, extremely small hope that we Jacksonians can get a big, splashy development downtown. Not only because it would be great for the city and the tax base, but because I think Jackson needs a big development to really revitalize the soul and mindsets of our community. I think Jackson citizens have developed a pretty pessimistic view of Jackson development as a whole, and while developments in Fondren and Midtown are encouraging, they are not getting the front page cover stories on the Clarion Ledger any time soon. I think Jackson *needs* a big splashy development to bring some hope to the community again and to show people that nice, big developments aren’t exclusive to Rankin and Madison Counties. Farish would have been the perfect development to showcase the “Yes we can!” mentality that Jackson desperately needs a shot of. So while I’ll take a scaled back Farish Street, I still hope a few major names like B.B.King can make its way into whatever new vision Jackson leaders create.
#5212 | Author: PopQuez87 | Date: Jan 15 2014
When I go to New Orleans, I rarely leave the Marigny.
#5214 | Author: js1976 | Date: Jan 15 2014
I’m still very hopeful that something will happen with Farish Street and even Old Capitol Green. These are gold mines that we’re sitting on.
#5284 | Author: goldeneagle97 | Date: Jan 19 2014
I agree **Godeneagle97**. Those projects and The District at Eastover can really transform Jackson, and I hope all three can be completed within a few years.
#5285 | Author: PopQuez87 | Date: Jan 19 2014
Mississippi is a really beautiful state, but like most people here in New Jersey, I find it abhorrent that your state flag still features the Confederate Battle Flag. The fact that, in 2014, this banner of violence, treason and White Supremacy still flies from every flagpole in your state is something that ought to be changed immediately.
#5289 | Author: DanNJ | Date: Jan 21 2014
If you go south 20 miles you’ll find yourself in the birthplace and home of Tommy Johnson. Go another 10 and you’ll find yourself in the birthplace and home of Robert Johnson. Who are they? It’s astounding to me how many people, particularly in Mississippi, ask that question. These two Copiah County men are the reason there was ever a Beatles, a Rolling Stones, Led Zeppelin and pretty much every single British band to invade the United States in the sixties and seventies. Keith Richards and Jimmy Page learned to play guitar because they had records of Robert Johnson brought over by black American servicemen. Eric Clapton’s single biggest influence was Tommy Johnson. Right…. Eric Clapton. Jackson is sitting on it’s on Graceland in these two men alone. Yet they aren’t even the tip of the iceberg. The only people that know the origin of modern music came from Mississippi are the people who created it. But….. in order to take on something like that the city would have to be 100% behind it and willing to open the checkbooks. In addition to possible revenues, creating the ultimate tribute to American blues would go a long way in exposing the world to the accomplishments of a lot of black men from Mississippi we all owe a debt to. And those revenues could come in the form of bars, memorabilia, and a major annual concert. Do you think Eric Clapton would mind being part of that? If someone like the Hard Rock Café could be coaxed into investing then the marketing fallout alone would be worth millions. The idea would be for Jackson to be the destination for established as well as up and coming bluesmen the way Nashville is for country music. Ok, so you have entertainment, revenues, tax dollars, a shiny new image, and a public admission of past racism along with a willingness to make restitution in a way. And a draw attractive to entertainers who are no longer motivated to perform for money and fame, something they already have. But to pay tribute to their hero’s in a House of Blues in Jackson Mississippi would be pretty cool. Now, tell me what’s wrong with this idea?
#5393 | Author: Scott1962 | Date: Feb 8 2014
