the full Jackson`s Fondren Neighborhood vignette

Fashionably Fondren!
A Jackson Neighborhood Takes Off
Fondren Place, Fondren, Jackson, MS
Photo courtesy of Frank Ezelle
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mississippi’s creative economy
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Red Hots & Deep Blues
He feels the district has a “richness that is not seen in other
parts of Jackson. What makes the community really unique is
the concentration of artists. The artists provide an energy foundation that is not felt in any other community in the city.”
A Break from the Past
Fondren Art Gallery, Fondren, Jackson, MS
Photo courtesy of Frank Ezelle
“Fondren is a brand,” says Alison Hopton Davis,“Fashionably
Fondren!”
When Davis took over as executive director of the Fondren Renaissance Foundation, the community had become something
completely different from the town she lived in years before.
The neighborhoods of Fondren now exhibit art deco architecture, specialty boutiques and a medley of restaurants. The community is now an experience rather than just a place to live and
work. Even real estate in the Fondren area has become easier
to sell. Davis, also a real estate agent and architectural historian,
remembers when you couldn’t put the word Fondren in a house
listing. “The neighborhood used to have a stigma,” says Davis. “Now I can put Fondren on any listing and it is snapped up!”
What makes the Fondren district stand out from other areas of
Jackson is not only the architecture and unique shops, but the
people. Fondren has become home to a large number of artists,
painters, musicians and a host of other creative individuals. Local artists’ works are exhibited at the art galleries and many of
the restaurants double as venues that showcase area musicians.
Some residents believe the demographic and economic diversity in Fondren is a reason for the community’s vibrancy. Ron Mills, better known to those in the Fondren District as Captain
Ron of the Fondren Express Trolley, feels the community is very
diverse even in terms of the types of occupations people hold in
the area. “You have artists, lawyers, glass blowers, and doctors all
living in the same neighborhoods in Fondren,” says Mills.
One of the oldest communities in Jackson, Fondren started as
a large plantation owned by the Garland Family. Sometime
during Reconstruction the land transferred ownership, and in
the mid-1800s the 5,000 acres of land became home to a state
hospital. By the end of the century the area was a fully functioning, self-sufficient community with a general store—namesake
David Fondren’s General Merchandise and Fancy Grocery and a
post office.
Over the years, the community developed into a regional medical
mecca. The community is anchored by large economic drivers
the University of Mississippi Medical Center, a VA hospital and St.
Dominic Hospital and is home to a host of medical practices and
rehabilitation centers. Unfortunately, the community began to
suffer as newer homes were built in neighboring communities. Over time, Fondren was left with a much older population and
deteriorated housing stock. Crime became more of a problem
and much of the commercial space was left vacant and abandoned. According to Barry Plunkett, president of the Fondren
Renaissance Foundation, “the area was hemorrhaging businesses and suffering from decreasing property taxes.”
There was also the belief that the local businesses were suffering from the ills of the local community because of the lack
of foot traffic and deteriorated infrastructure. People were no
longer coming to the community for their entertainment and
shopping needs. “Fondren was not a place where people walked on the street
after 5 or 6 pm, ” says Davis.
Mike Peters of Peters Real Estate feels that the Fondren of yesteryear was not serving the needs of the medical community, a
dominant force in the Fondren District. Healthcare workers and
patients had to find other places to eat. The loss of businesses
began to affect the surrounding infrastructure. 28
mississippi’s creative economy
According to Mike Peters, the leadership at St. Dominic Hospital was a driving force behind Fondren’s revitalization when
the hospital decided to invest in the community. About eight
years ago St. Dominic made a $1 million dollar commitment
to the Fondren area by funding one of the predecessors of the
Fondren Renaissance Foundation, a community organization
charged with preserving and revitalizing the Fondren community. Then the community started with baby steps. Residents
of Fondren began starting neighborhood clean-ups. Businesses
started to reopen. Traffic calming was installed and attention
was paid to neighborhood lighting. Abandoned buildings were
purchased and converted into mixed-use property.
mCe
Red Hots & Deep Blues
Fondren Corner was one of the first mixed-use properties
in the area, combining retail, office and residential housing. When the abandoned Fish Commission State Office building
fell into foreclosure several years ago, Peters and his partner
decided to bid on the property. Once their bid was accepted,
the partners scoured the southeastern region of the United
States to look for inspiration for how to renovate the historic
building in ways that could ultimately help to reshape the
entire community. Fondren Corner now houses retail shops,
offices, studio space and 16 apartments leased to an eclectic
group of individuals.
Peters comments, “There’s no typical tenant. One of my ten-
Lifestyle Development
As a way to draw in new residents and money to the district, the
former executive director of the Fondren Renaissance Foundation focused on the inherent strengths of the Fondren community such as the architecture and the prominence of long-time
business residents, like Brown’s Fine Art Gallery. He believed a
strong emphasis on creative arts and design in Fondren could
help to bring the community back from hardship and improve
the quality of life of the existing residents.
“Lifestyle development,” or economic development that also
strongly focuses on the social and recreational aspects of a community, is about attracting a younger and more diverse population to a community by offering a quality of life that fosters a
more social and creative feel to a locale. This focus on lifestyle
development helped to create the diverse culture that Fondren
is known for today. Lifestyle development projects often involve
mixed-use properties that encourage individuals to live, work,
and play in the same area.
ants is 80 years old and lives next door to a couple of artists.
We also have tenants who work at the hospital.”
Public/Private Partnerships
Part of the success of Fondren’s revitalization has been the
active participation of both public and private groups in the
area. Collaboration between private entities and the public
sector has proven to be fruitful for Fondren while providing
the financial resources necessary to help preserve the history
and culture of the community. In keeping with the community’s focus on the arts, most of these partnerships have revolved around rehabilitating historic places into creative arts
venues that attract a diverse audience and provide a steady
stream of property tax revenue to the district. When an old, deteriorated antebellum home on Old Canton
Road known as The Cedars was in danger of being demolished, the Fondren community, through the leadership of the
Fondren Renaissance Foundation and the Mississippi Arts
Commission (MAC), came to the rescue. The Cedars, now a
events venue and art gallery, was acquired through a grant
from MAC and privately raised funds of $300,000 raised in
less than 10 days.
More recently, the Duling School, an old, abandoned elemen-
Outdoor concert at the Cedars, Fondren, Jackson, MS
tary school in Fondren, was converted to commercial space
that includes shops and a restaurant in the old auditorium. Built in 1927, the Duling School was a large expense to the
school board due to high maintenance costs and did not
benefit the city by being on the tax rolls. The Jackson School
Board donated the property to the developer, thus elimi29
mississippi’s creative economy
nating the high maintenance costs, and became a 20 percent
partner in the project, which entitles the school board to a
percentage of future profits. The Duling School now houses
several shops including a hair salon, an antique shop, and The
Auditorium, a restaurant that also serves as a live music and
film venue.
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Red Hots & Deep Blues
The Future of Fondren
Fondren is also not without its growing pains. Part of the revitalization and preservation of the community involves the need to
maintain the Fondren brand while continuing to provide affordable housing, especially to the artists. Peters says, “the community needs to be very diligent that
[Fondren] doesn’t choke the creative class out and become
more vanilla”.
Peters’ main concern is the increase in property values and
rents could potentially force some of the people who helped
shape the community culture out of Fondren in the next 10
years. Parking has also become scarce with the increase in traffic coming into the community for entertainment and shopping.
Alison Hopton Davis, of the Fondren Renaissance Foundation
worries about running out of the financial resources that have
allowed the foundation to continue to provide support for
the community, as well as the free events. Many of the same
resources have been tapped over and over again and could
potentially dry up.
More importantly, while community participation has been instrumental in reshaping Fondren, maintaining that momentum is
one of the biggest challenges the community faces going forward.
Fondren Corner Building, Fondren, Jackson MS
Photo courtesy of Frank Ezelle
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