Statement of Judith Seraphin on “Lift Up Lincolnville” & M&M Market

I’m Judith Seraphin and I live at 102 South Street with my husband, Tony. Our family business, Global Wrap® LLC, is located at 218 Riberia Street.
We were all ecstatic that the City of St. Augustine, under John Regan’s new leadership as City Manager, has started treating our Lincolnville neighborhood with dignity, respect and consideration. We are pleased with the City’s civil forfeiture lawsuit and taking over the M&M Market. We are pleased with the new spirit exemplified in the “Lift Up Lincolnville” program.
We have a few constructive suggestions on how to improve the “Lift Up Lincolnville” program:
1. M&M Market – We need to establish a Lincolnville general store, encompassing Chill Grill and a small grocery store for the convenience of neighbors. The store needs to sell craft items, art and photography made by local residents. I have spoken with Lynn Straughan with the Cyprian Center for Expressive Arts and she is enthused and sees the vision that we can create by having a building that not only allows us to feed our stomachs but feed our souls. This building is an anchor point for Lincolnville. We are poised on the edge of change in Lincolnville and this is an opportunity we will never have again. The former M&M Market can be a friendly place for tourists to stop, get off the tour trains, and take walking tours of our neighborhood and its African-American and Civil Rights History. We need to plan carefully to
(over) 
make it a success. Interested Lincolnville residents need to meet
with the City to plan what is best for our neighborhood. When this building succeeds, it will be not only a success for Lincolnville but for all of St. Augustine, something to make us all proud.

2. Zoning overlay districts to allow small stores and cafes without mandatory parking requirements. Lincolnville once had 41 African-American small businesses in 1964. None survived. We need to stimulate small business by removing illogical zoning regulations, which were copied from other Florida jurisdictions and make no sense in a walkable, livable community.

3. Recreation. Rusting playground equipment is said to have been removed some 20 years ago as a safety hazard and never replaced. Why? Davis Shores got a half million dollar skate park. Our children in Lincolnville deserve equal recreational opportunities.

4. History and Parks. The National Park Service will play a big part in reviving Lincolnville under the proposed St. Augustine National Park and Seashore, taking tourists to see the churches where Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., Andrew Young and other civil rights leaders empowered the people of this City to change history.