RAP, residents express concern about plans to narrow Willow Branch Creek
Construction of a bulkhead along the banks of Willow Branch Creek between St. John’s Avenue and Riverside Avenue is underway and neighborhood observers and members of Riverside Avondale Preservation have been startled to see the creek was to be made narrower than they envisioned. As it is currently being installed, the city’s project to restore […]
DIA considers plans to build apartments on Southbank restaurant location
Redevelopment along Downtown’s riverfront could be shifting to the Southbank. Related Group of Miami is in talks with Maritime Concepts, owner of the River City Brewing Co., to build a $92.34 million apartment building on the Southbank location where the iconic restaurant now stands. Maritime has entered into a contract with Related Group to sell […]
Cultural Council installs fifth sculpture in urban core
It was with great excitement that downtown arts benefactor Preston Haskell of Ortega joined sculptor David Engdahl of San Marco, artist Cecilia Lueza, and Glenn Weiss, director of public art for the Cultural Council of Greater Jacksonville to watch the fifth sculptural masterpiece within the city’s Art in Public Places program take its place on […]
Ortega Park subcontractors fined for stormwater violations
After six repeated violations of best management practices that would prevent sediment from flowing into the Ortega River, two subcontractors for Dewberry Group, the owner and developer of Ortega Park Mall on Roosevelt Boulevard, entered into a “Consent Order” with the Florida Department of Environmental Protection Aug. 3. Marietta Sand Corporation and RLH Construction LLC, […]
COVID sparks dramatic uptick in residential market
The residential real estate market in Jacksonville’s historic neighborhoods is sizzling hot, and believe it or not, much of this is due to COVID-19. Although there is no question that the Coronavirus pandemic has negatively impacted many businesses on the First Coast, the opposite has been true of the housing market, according to many local […]
Brooklyn renaissance transforms historic neighborhood
Architect Joe Cronk said nobody had to sell him on Brooklyn. “We’re ex-Haskell guys. We grew up on Riverside. Brooklyn is a vital link between 5 Points and LaVilla and Downtown,” he explained. And Cronk isn’t the only one who is “sold” on Brooklyn. In the last five years, the historic black neighborhood has undergone […]
Lakewood and Ortega stores to close as Stein Mart files for bankruptcy
After several years of struggling to find its financial footing, Stein Mart, a discount department store whose headquarters is a fixture on Jacksonville’s South Bank, fell victim to the COVID-19, as the pandemic caused it to file for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection Aug. 12. Included in the bold move is the company’s plan to permanently […]
A stunning statement of resurrection
Everything is coming up sunflowers now that two local artists have finished the AIDs Memorial mural on the side of the Park Street bridge over Willowbranch canal. Keith Doles and his assistant, Zac Freeman, both artists with workshops in the Cork Studios, painted the bright, cheery mural on the historic bridge in late August. “We’re […]
