HeatherLovejoy's blog

The monthly deadpaper.org reading downtown at Chamblin Uptown looks to be one of the first interesting things to do in town in 2009.

It's at 7 p.m. Friday (and the first Friday of the every month.) Hopefully by then everyone's hangovers will have worn off.

The city has sent out a notice about a detour off Starratt Road from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. Saturday. The only area affected will be the stretch from New Berlin to Duval Station roads and the detour will lead to Main Street.

It's part of the ongoing Better Jacksonville Plan project on Starratt, which is expected to be complete in late 2009. They're putting in a storm drain.

Here's something else going on this week. I got the flier from a Blacksonville.com e-mail blast Dec. 3 ... too late to make the Dec. 6 edition of the Northside Sun. Our sections are preprinted, so just a reminder that to get something in print it's best to have it in my inbox two weeks in advance.

For the life of me I cannot get a video to embed on this blog, so here's a link to the trailer: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4zlW8bPvojU

I just got this by e-mail, too late to make it into Saturday's print edition of the Northside Sun.

A side note: Gene Hollomon plays one of the Three Wise Men in Stage Aurora's production of Black Nativity.

I watched rehearsals Tuesday night for Stage Aurora's production of Black Nativity - look for the story and interview with the director in print or on this Web site on Saturday, Dec. 6.

If you've never seen the gospel song play before, you're in for a treat. They have some impressive voices in the show that will send chills down your spine. And perhaps the best part: The players are all local. They've worked really hard, spending their nights and Saturdays for the last month practicing. It should pay off.

Photos by Heather Lovejoy/Staff

It seems as if "For Rent" signs are scattered on every street in Riverside. 

When I was covering the Tangerine Festival in Riverside's Memorial Park in January, I talked to quite a few people. None of them lived in Riverside. Several told me they moved to Springfield because they could no longer afford the rent in Riverside. I'd like to hear from anyone out there who moved recently to Springfield for that reason. With all the new developments, how do you think the landscape in Riverside has changed? Are artists, musicians and singles being priced out of the neighborhood, long known as a haven for them? Is Springfield on its way to becoming the "new Riverside?"

This is just a quick note to let everyone know I am the Northside-area community news reporter. The communities covered in My Northside Sun and on this site include downtown, Springfield, Northside, Oceanway, Eastside, Riverview, Brooklyn, North Jacksonville and surrounding neighborhoods.

I took over this beat a little more than a month ago, and am looking forward to working with you all! Look for a lot more to come on this site, and be sure to check out the print editions on Wednesdays and Saturdays in The Florida Times-Union.

Until next time,

Heather Lovejoy, reporter

heather.lovejoy@jacksonville.com