JACKSONVILLE, Fla. — In Jacksonville, a picture-perfect place is about to look much different.
Plans are finalized that will bring hundreds of people to the city's Southbank. High-rise luxury apartments and a riverfront restaurant are planned to be built between Friendship Fountain and the Acosta Bridge.
Friendship Fountain is a picture-perfect spot where tourists, prom dates and a new Jacksonville soccer team, First Coast Athletics, can be found.
"The reason we came to this spot, we’re actually having a photoshoot,” said Juan Gonzalez, sporting the team's new jersey.
“We chose this spot on even our uniforms,” added Joseph Koss, showing the part of his jersey with the Main Street Bridge.
But part of Jacksonville's skyline is about to change. A new high-rise with nearly 400 luxury rental units plus a parking garage and restaurant is officially planned to be built. First Coast News spoke with CEO of the Downtown Investment Authority Lori Boyer about it after it was discussed during a meeting Wednesday.
"The same area where the city is building the bulkhead and where I mentioned that we’re going to be complete with the city project rebuilding the bulkhead by April, that has to happen before they can actually break ground,” Boyer said.
The developer, Related Group out of Miami, has until the end of May to have final designs on the high-rise ready to go, according to DIA documents. Those documents state construction must be complete on the high-rise luxury apartments no later than April 2029.