April 8, 2011 Friendship Fountain Park Renovation Update

When I arrived at Friendship Park on Friday most of the crew had already left for the day and I wasn't able to get up on the top of the Pump House to continue the panoramic shots, probably just as well since the panoramic shots I took from ground level seemed to miss the mark as well...

The new Pumps have had the plumbing connected and wiring has started...



Two sections of the new hand/guard rail are in place, looks like a much more robust rail system to me...



More concrete has been poured and workers are still working on laying the highlight pavers in the poured sections of the walkways...

I spoke with Larry, the site Project Manager, by phone and he indicated that starting this week work would commence on placing the new lights in the Fountain pool (all of those round concrete forms are for lighting mounting)...



Oh and the Former Modis building is now nameless...

That is about it for this report, however I am considering trying to slip some additional updates in place possibly as early as this Friday...

Until next time,
Bob

#FriendshipFountain March 25 Renovation Update

Friday was just another beautiful day once the smoke started clearing and on the River I just doesn't get much better then this... That was the backdrop for this weeks trip to the Fountain which brought some real excitement in terms of progress with the renovations.

Immediately upon entering the Park area you can see the new Park benches wrapping the palm trees as well as the picnic tables dotting the west side of the Park. But what really grabs your attention is the Fountain Pool itself which was just freshly painted a beautiful blue (paint fumes still in the air)...



As I walked into the park excitedly mentioning the Fountain pool Larry, the Site Project Manager, saw me and asked if I had been in the pump house yet this trip, with a wide grin on his face... I hadn't so he said you have to see this...



The new Custom made pumps for the Fountain Water features are in place and ready for the final connections. I also got the opportunity to go down into the Sump room and saw the brand new water pickups and water return from the Fountain pool, a sight that is only available when the pool is completely empty...



Also the new Park benches and picnic tables are in place...



As I said in the outset lots of exciting steps having taken place since my last visit and I honestly believe the Men working on the project are getting a bit excited about the project as well, as everytime I speak with one of them they are sure to point out "have you seen this yet, or that"...

Gonna be wonderful to see the Fountain back in operation surrounded with a new beautiful and more visitor friendly park...

One last parting mention, I have started a new Image Folder with "Comparison" shots, some from before and now and some with intermediate steps picured, I hope that some of you find this of interest...


Oh and hey folks don't be shy, feel free to post your thoughts or comments regarding the renovations :)

Until next time,
Bob

Belated March 11, 2011 Update...

I did get to visit the Friendship Fountain site this past Friday, sorry for the delay in updating this post...

More progress was evident with additional concrete in place extending from the new main palm tree walkway and forms for additional concrete in place, Larry the on site Project manager told me he is pushing to get all the remaining concrete pours done so they can concentrate on the remainder of the work.



Paver laying continues on the sections of poured concrete and you can see that the plates that allow access to the piping of the Fountain itself have been replaced from my last visit.

The water main feeding the Fountain has been repaired and the concrete cylinders for mounting the in Fountain lighting have been placed in their approximate final locations in the base of the Fountain.



The new railing for the section of the Southbank Riverwalk adjacent to the Fountain has been put into place, and the Riverwalk is open to traffic again.



Oh did I mention the "odis" building...


Also got some nice shots of the piping in the pumphouse, the lighting was much better then previous shots and another panoramic however the sun glare was so bad that I had to guess on the images and it ended up being ghosted...



Progress continues and by all accounts on schedule for a May/Jun completion, Larry says May however I don't want to paint a picture that is too optimistic however I have already had visions of visiting the completed Friendship Fountain park and seeing families and couples strolling along the new walkways, under the palms while others are having picnics at the new picnic areas...

Not to mention the view of Friendship Fountain with all water features fully operational again :)

Till next time,
Bob

View of Northbank changing...

The view from Friendship Fountain across the river to the Northbank will be changing...

"Modis Building's Name Coming Down"
http://www.news4jax.com/news/27068751/detail.html

The Modis company is leaving the building and their name is being removed from what was originally the Independent Life Building.

The fans of the Fountain have long looked at the name across the river and now we will have to see what comes next...

Till next time,
Bob

Belated Feb 25, 2011 Update...

Here is my belated Feb 25, 2011 update, sorry for the lateness...

The first thing anyone will notice is a new sidewalk has been poured and standing above it are Seven 25 - 30 foot tall palm trees...



Next are two new Lamp posts at the entry way to the Park...



Here is a shot of pavers being arranged and laid, tedious looking work...



Also in the News on Monday Feb 28 was the following article "Southbank Riverwalk shut near Friendship Fountain for repairs through Friday "

I used a new Android app for my Dell Streak, "The Beast", and took this Panoramic shot of the site from the roof of the Pump House...



Lots of visible progress and work going on now and hopefully they will be able to continue on schedule :)

Until next time,
Bob

Outside looking in...

I decided to take a quick trip down to Friendship Fountain on Saturday to get some shots from the perspective of those passing by the construction site...

You can view all the pictures here:
http://jaxfountain.com/Gallery/Outside

But here are some quick views...

From the Main Street Bridge.


Peaking in from the Southbank Riverwalk.


From a small rise next to River City


Finally through the fence from the main entrance to the Fountain...


If you look at earlier pictures you can see progress even when looking from the outside and this Friday I should be able to get inside pictures with more details on the recent progress...

Till then...
Bob

Feb 11, 2011 Update

Took my bi-weekly trip to Friendship Fountin, hoping to see more progress but concerned that the recent rains may have delayed work...

I was pleasantly surprised when I arrived to see a dozen or more workers all over the Park and in the Fountain itself working not to mention progress since my last visit 2 weeks ago.

A group was working inside the Fountain itself pressure washing the deck and walls preparing for painting and very noticeable by their absence, the railings around the Fountain have been removed, to be replaced with new railings...



Immediately walking into the Park area you cannot help but notice additional landscaping being done, along with additional concrete pad picnic areas...



The area where circles were being laid last visit for highlights in a walkway has been formed out awaiting concrete pouring (originally scheduled for Sat Feb 12 however due to the rains postponed until Mon Feb 14).





One thing very obvious was the stacks of bricks all over the place, arranged in color order preparing to lay them, which has started...

The tower tops that were laying on the ground after being refurbished just two weeks ago have been reattached to the top of the towers again.

Larry the site foreman took a few moments to bring me up to date with upcoming schedules including talking about the rain which has caused some delays but he says they are keeping up with the schedule and May 2011 is still the targeted completion date.

With all the work being accomplished, being more visible results, I may try and get down to the Fountain next Saturday and see if they are working and if so get another update as well as some shots from the Main Street Bridge...

As I was leaving a Gentleman standing at the gate area saw me and introduced himself as Doug, guessing I was the "web site guy". Doug has been stopping by to visit the Fountain as the work progresses routinely and was as pleased as I am that it is being renovated so thoroughly as well as the recent visible progress...

Till next time...
Bob

Ps... For the first time since i started the bi-weekly trips i got caught by a train on San Marco, not just heading into the Fountain but another on the way out, gave me a chance to add some notes to my Dell Streak...

Pss... After i took about 10 pictures with the Olympus camera I always use the batteries died and the remainder of the pictures were taken with my Dell Streak, while you can see the quality difference between the cameras, overall not to shabby...