JACKSONVILLE, Fla. — What could Downtown Jacksonville look like in a few years?
The list of development projects in the works is long, but as for which ones will actually get past the renderings and become reality, one of the people working to build up downtown says this time "the momentum is unstoppable."
On Wednesday you can go to an event to learn about downtown development projects and give your feedback on some of them. The event is called Riverfront 2025: A Look Ahead and is from 5:00 p.m. to 8:00 p.m. at the Jacksonville Main Public Library downtown.
As you can probably guess from the name, the focus of the event is on planned public and private developments on the riverfront. There will be presentations on updates with Riverfront Plaza, Shipyards West, Friendship Fountain and Music Heritage Park, according to Laura Phillips Edgecombe, the director of development at Build Up Downtown.
Riverfront Plaza is the area that used to be the Landing. The latest reported development in the works is for a 44-story luxury high rise with apartments and retail. The large modern art design spelling "Jax" (or "lerp") is said to not completely be off the table, but the focus is on the high rise.
A recent report from the Downtown Investment Authority indicates the number of residents living downtown has nearly doubled in the last five years and that demand is growing.
As for the latest on the Shipyards, last month Jacksonville City Council signed off on changes to Shad Khan's Shipyards development, including more taxpayer dollars going to it. A Four Seasons hotel is a big part of that. Build Up Downtown reports a new park there will connect Riverfront Plaza and Metro Park and that the design is still in its early stages.
Across the river on the south bank, fencing and construction signs may not be up for too much longer at Friendship Fountain. The latest plans reported last fall call for the renovations to be done by Memorial Day. When it's complete there will be a 15-minute light show set to music every night.
At the same time as the light show, across the river there will be a light show projected on the walls of the Performing Arts Center. That's going to be a new park about Jacksonville's music history; designs for it are still in the works.
Phillips Edgecombe says there will be 21 tables of projects set up at the event Wednesday and some of the developments still need your feedback.
"We don't talk about projects that are just a thought," Phillips Edgecombe said. "We're talking about projects that have already gone through the approval process with the Downtown Investment Authority and [Downtown Development Review Board]. We talk about projects that are truly financed."
Phillips Edgecombe is excited about downtown Jacksonville's future.
"The intentionality behind what's happening right now, it's just so different. I'm third generation, I'm raising the fourth. I have stories from my grandparents, I have stories from my parents. Bringing back a revitalized downtown will do so much for the city as a whole."
Here's a fun fact: Jacksonville has the largest urban park system in the country with more than 80,000 acres, according to Visit Jacksonville.
Go to the DIA's website here.