(Posted by Mary Anns older half Steve) The Evolution of the Arlington Expressway. Arlington Expressways Expressway Mall, the site of the first Publix in Jacksonville, During the efforts to advance the expressway system from paper to reality, Arlington land owners opposed the concept without the inclusion of a new high level bridge connecting their area with downtown Jacksonville. In 1946, an agreement was reached and in 1950, whats now known as the Mathews Bridge, became to first project to break ground. After its completion in 1953, the fortunes of Arlington immediately changed. First, taking advantage of the roadway infrastructure coming his way, William R. Cesery, Sr. helped kick off post World War II growth in Arlington with the 1951 development of the Lake Lucina subdivision and Cesery Road. In addition to Ceserys development, the Alderman Realty Company, whos Arlington roots dated back to 1914, would soon move forward with the development of additional neighborhoods such as Alderman Park. By 1955, two years after its completion, 19,000 cars were crossing the bridge daily. That same year, Town & Country Shopping Center and Arlington Plaza opened adjacent to the expressway, fueling commercial development to serve Arlingtons mushrooming population. Town & Country Shopping Center at Chaseville Highway (now University Boulevard) was developed by Benjamin Setzer and anchored by Setzers first Pic N Save store. Anchored by W.T. Grant, Arlington Plaza at Arlington Road was developed by Sam Morris Spevak. Spevak would go on to develop Jacksonvilles Gateway Shopping Center a few years later. By 1961, over 50,000 new residents had made Arlington their new home. With 26,500 cars crossing the Mathews daily, additional plans were underway by the Expressway Authority to feed traffic into its toll bridge. This work came in the form of a $25 million feeder road program during the 1960s. Under this program, Cesery Boulevard, Rogero Road, and Arlington Road were widened to four lanes. The feeder roadway infrastructure projects helped fuel additional growth and development along the Arlington Expressway, paving the way for the construction of Martin Steins Regency Square Mall. Opening its doors in 1967 to 25,000 shoppers, the $12 million shopping center replaced Gateway as Jacksonvilles largest regional mall. Anchoring the expressways intersection with Atlantic Boulevard, the mall stimulated major infill commercial and multifamily development between it and the Mathews Bridge during the 1970s. Soon, signs like the Thunderbird Motor Hotel, Holiday Inn East, Publix, Expressway Mall, Les Chateau Apartments and The Oaks office park lined the congested highway. Mobility problems we deal with today also came from decisions made during this era. Many of the expressways intersections were converted to grade separated interchanges to reduce traffic collisions. However, two proposed overpasses, at Townsend Boulevard and Arlingwood Avenue were not constructed due to opposition from nearby residents. Their thought process was that an overpass connecting these roadways would ultimately lead to the four laning of them through their neighborhoods. Instead, access to Townsend Boulevard and Arlingwood Avenue was eliminated, meaning traffic was forced to travel a mile in either direction to cross the expressway. As a result, this section of the expressway has become known for its high rate of pedestrian/vehicular conflicts. The 1980s became a decade of change for the expressways commercial corridor. By this time, Cesery had developed more than 2,000 homes and hundreds of apartments throughout the neighborhood, including Jacksonvilles first garden apartments since the 1951 Lake Lucina project. However, what was once new became aged as new suburban development spread east of Regency Square Mall and competing suburban areas such as Baymeadows spring to life. One by one, over the next decade, many long time businesses, like Steak n Ale, Chi Chis, Arlington Toyota, Calico Jacks and Red Lobster, either shut down or relocated their expressway locations to trendier areas of new suburban growth. Virtually empty, the Arlington Expressways Expressway Mall, the site of the first Publix in Jacksonville, was completely demolished in 2006. For many years, it had been anchored by Publix, Burlington Coat Factory, and Cinema I & II Theaters. Today, the Arlington Expressway corridor is in need of an economic makeover. Article by Ennis Davis.
Posted on: Sun, 11 Jan 2015 21:10:37 +0000
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