Play Live Radio
Next Up:
0:00
0:00
0:00 0:00
Available On Air Stations
First Coast Connect

New Survey Finds Changing Perception Of Downtown Jacksonville

Visit Jacksonville
/
Facebook

A new survey finds that public perception of parking, safety and activities in the urban core has improved since a similar survey in 2012.

The Downtown Marketing Collaborative, group of organizations dedicated to raising awareness of downtown, reports that more people are recommending downtown as a destination to their friends and family.

The results of their recent Downtown Awareness Survey showed that 43.7 percent of those polled would recommend downtown (a 4 percent increase over 2012); 38.5 percent feel safe in the urban core (a 16 perecent increase); and 33.9 percent think parking in the area is easy (a 21 percent increase).

A majority of respondents who would recommend downtown were between 22 and 30 years of age.

These results come as a new shopping development opens in Brooklyn Station on the western edge of the core, and the nonprofit Cathedral Arts Project moves its headquarters from the southside to downtown.

Downtown Marketing Collaborative co-founder Bill Prescott, Cathedral Arts Project CEO Kimberly Hyatt andRegency Centers CEO Hap Stein joined Melissa Ross to discuss the survey.

You can follow Melissa Ross on Twitter @MelissainJax

Melissa Ross joined WJCT in 2009 with 20 years of experience in broadcasting, including stints in Cincinnati, Chicago, Orlando and Jacksonville. During her career as a television and radio news anchor and reporter, Melissa has won four regional Emmys for news and feature reporting.
Sean Birch joined the WJCT team in late 2011 and was with the company until 2016.