SMPS presents beautification awards during virtual annual meeting
The San Marco Preservation Society (SMPS) successfully passed the torch to a new slate of officers and congratulated nine beautification winners as it held its first virtual annual meeting June 11, which was livestreamed over Facebook Live.
Former SMPS President Linzee Ott oversaw a virtual vote, which subsequently elected four San Marco residents – Chris Woolston, president, Erin Weinberg, vice president, Karen Carlucci, secretary, and Mack Volk, treasurer – with 100% of the votes in their favor. Everyone viewing the public meeting online was able to cast a ballot during the election. Volk had already been serving as treasurer as the position became vacant in 2019.
Heather Stine, administrator for the Society, was also introduced and shown appreciation for her work.
Honored with beautification awards in the residential category were Larry and Wendy Berger for the tasteful renovation they made to their home at 1003 Sorrento Road, which was built in 1936. Their house has made several appearances on social media and was featured in the preservation society’s own #Doors of San Marco series as well as on Better Homes & Gardens Instagram. Also receiving beautification laurels in the residential category were Bill and Kara Gist, for changes they have made to their home at 1972 Largo Road, which was built in 1927, and Pat Andrews and Fred Lambrou for 1983 River Road, a historic resident built in 1926.
The society also presented awards to the owners of the Grape and Grain Exchange for its mural in San Marco Square as well as to the owners of Stubbees Honey Purveyors for the design of its shop, the San Marco Garden Circle for its butterfly garden in Landon Park, and to District 5 Councilwoman LeAnna Cumber and the City of Jacksonville for their work in bringing new playground equipment to Landon Park.
During the meeting, Ott reviewed various activities the Society had been involved with during the past year. She encouraged San Marco and Southbank residents to support the Beach Buggy initiative that was started by the San Marco Merchants Association to provide free rides to businesses and homes within the neighborhood’s boundaries. She also informed the group about the $17 million federal grant the City of Jacksonville was awarded in June to fund improvements that will assist in traffic delays caused by trains slowly moving through San Marco on their way to the railyard on the Northbank. She credited District 5 Councilwoman LeAnna Cumber for beginning the initiative while she was still president of the preservation society.
Cumber also said the neighborhood was proud to display Rough’s mural on the side of the Grape and Grain pub in San Marco Square. Commissioned by Jonathan Davis and his partners, who own the San Marco watering hole, with assistance from Art Republic, the mural was painted early in the year by Remi Rough, an internationally known artist from London. San Marco Preservation helped select colors for the mural, she said.
San Marco was also in the spotlight during a Downtown Development event sponsored by the Jacksonville Business Journal in December 2019, when a panel discussed several largescale developments planned for San Marco including the pedestrian walkway over the Fuller Warren Bridge.
Ott also discussed Dennis Campay’s painting, “The Land We Stand On,” which was donated by the artist to the society and now resides in the lobby of the San Marco movie theatre for perpetuity. A reception to celebrate the work was held at the theatre in October 2019. Prints of the painting are available for purchase at Steller’s Gallery and the proceeds are put toward a public and children’s art fund, she said.
SMPS’s annual fundraiser, Wine Down in the Parks, which was originally scheduled for April 18 has been rescheduled for October 17 due to the Coronavirus pandemic, she said. The preservation society also enjoyed a happy hour event at Rue Saint Marc in July 2019, and a similar March get-together to be held at Taverna was postponed due to COVID-19.
SMPS hosted a special talk with Cumber in October 2019 as well as two October 2019 town hall events covering the issues of East San Marco, the Water Taxi and proposed fishing dock in Riverside Park. Two very well-attended events featuring Park Place at San Marco, the apartment complex proposed to be built on land currently owned by South Jacksonville Presbyterian Church, were also sponsored by SMPS in November 2019 and February.
The preservation society has been collaborating with several different organizations over the past year, Ott said. It joined the Nonprofit Center of Northeast Florida to benefit from the center’s wealth of resources, including best practice materials, coaching and skills-building for nonprofit organizations. It also created a board liaison with Theatre Jacksonville, the oldest theatre in continuous operation, which is celebrating its 100th anniversary this year. It increased its partnership opportunities with the San Marco Merchants Association by holding joint mixers, including the most recent Open Air in the Square, an opportunity to support San Marco restaurants by offering outdoor seating for take-out food, and executing a monthly landscaping payment arrangement to help maintain San Marco Square.
SMPS also signed a formal agreement with the merchants association and the City of Jacksonville to formalize the collaborative work the three organizations have been doing in an effort to maintain landscaping in San Marco Square and other public right of ways.
By Marcia Hodgson
Resident Community News
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