Bellwether Closing

[fsu813]

Ownership indicated that he could have pivoted to a different model, but didn't want to compromise his personal standards for service/quality, and didn't want to take on the additional cost to change. Think there's definitely a market for fast casual in Downtown CBD still.

[thelakelander]

Here you go!



The side-by-side is a good visual comparison of how far things have fallen over the decades due to horrific planning and implementation regarding projects themed around the buzzword of "downtown revitalization."

I do believe we've bottomed out and have turned the corner. Yet, there are challenges (primarily our own tendency to make bad decisions and investments) that have to be overcome and patience will be needed. Anything people see a rendering of, may or may not happen years down the road. So it is of great importance to keep, utilize and promote what we already have as much as possible.

[thelakelander]

Ownership indicated that he could have pivoted to a different model, but didn't want to compromise his personal standards for service/quality, and didn't want to take on the additional cost to change. Think there's definitely a market for fast casual in Downtown CBD still.

Yes, the model wasn't sustainable at that particular location. Bellwether had been struggling for years. An isolated mid-block spot on West Forsyth Street, a corridor that does not serve an important role in connecting various neighborhoods outside of the Northbank with each other? Yeah, you're going to largely be dependent on the health and occupancy rates of Northbank office space. Not knowing the lease rates or the amount of investment thrown in to build-out the space, that's risky enough on its own. Throw some extra challenge like rising food costs into the mix, and you're really in trouble. More visibility and traffic would address the problem but it will simply take some time and good fortune for that scenario to play out. Unfortunately, opening and closing around random special events likely won't keep you afloat until the day that scenario comes to fruition.

[Jones518]

Here you go!



The side-by-side is a good visual comparison of how far things have fallen over the decades due to horrific planning and implementation regarding projects themed around the buzzword of "downtown revitalization."

I do believe we've bottomed out and have turned the corner. Yet, there are challenges (primarily our own tendency to make bad decisions and investments) that have to be overcome and patience will be needed. Anything people see a rendering of, may or may not happen years down the road. So it is of great importance to keep, utilize and promote what we already have as much as possible.

I like the greenery in today's photo.

But The historic photo shows how buildings used to line the street continuously, which made the area feel much more urban and pedestrian-friendly. The building density is definitely something we need back.


Today's photo shows a lot of:
• dead open space
• parking
• scattered landscaping
• buildings spaced awkwardly apart


Aside from the landscaping, those are all vibrancy killers...

What amazes me is how significantly the stretch from Main & Orange to Main & Adams has declined. Much of that frontage along Main Street is now dead open space, surface parking, or buildings that sit awkwardly apart from one another rather than forming a continuous street presence... we even have dilapidated structures and old parking platforms (like the old Heart of Jacksonville Motel site) that have sat largely untouched for decades..... Instead we choose to tear down the Landing in the name of revitalizing downtown... sigh!! 🤦...Mayor Curry should NOT have any involvement with downtown Jax...EVER AGAIN! I hate to get political here but there were so many more things Mayor Curry could have addressed in downtown Jax instead of demolishing the Landing as a priority... it's like as a city, we rush the wrong decisions and move slow on the right decisions.


Someone get the new DIA CEO, Colin tapped into this forum please...they might learn something...***cough cough why are we demolishing the MOSH building on the south bank ?



I love these conversations!! Thank you to whoever runs this whole page.

[BridgeTroll]

I love these conversations!! Thank you to whoever runs this whole page.

They are great conversations... unfortunately, they are the exact same conversations for many,many years. Lakelander has been cheerleading this effort for years and his solutions are spot on... the city just seems to not ever be able to get out of its own way. I finally gave up and moved on... sigh.

[jcjohnpaint]

Guess that is what you get when your council spends most of their time trying to weed out all the corruption of the deep state instead of trying to educate themselves on how great cities function.

[Ken_FSU]

Guess that is what you get when your council spends most of their time trying to weed out all the corruption of the deep state instead of trying to educate themselves on how great cities function.

https://www.jaxdailyrecord.com/news/2026/mar/11/council-committee-to-look-into-jea-fee-collection-issues-ceo-allegations/

[Tacachale]

Guess that is what you get when your council spends most of their time trying to weed out all the corruption of the deep state instead of trying to educate themselves on how great cities function.

https://www.jaxdailyrecord.com/news/2026/mar/11/council-committee-to-look-into-jea-fee-collection-issues-ceo-allegations/

Ridiculous. You can see why it's so hard to get things done around here when significant chunks of the government are in the hands of people who do stuff like this.

[simms3]

There's so much emphasis by DIA and administrations on Multifamily and practically none on office, but office tenants will keep a lot of these restaurants open, not apartments.

I'm not saying I think they should have subsidized Everbank's parking to keep them downtown ($9M over 10 years), but relatively speaking that $9M would have had a far greater impact, potentially, on putting/keeping physical bodies downtown than the $30-50M we spend per 250 apartments.

Yes it would have set a bad precedent, I don't disagree. But I wish our leaders expressed at least some desire to have employers downtown and not just apartments.  They say that automatically by chasing apartments first and building the parks the employers will certainly come but I'm not so sure.

A healthy downtown is filled with office workers keeping the hustle and bustle alive, and, restaurants like Bellwether open.

[thelakelander]

^More reason to make sure our major public office employers (i.e. yes I'm calling out DCPS again lol) should stay downtown. We literally can't beg the private sector to stay while being cool with our local tax funded entities abandoning the core, moving hundreds of jobs to the burbs, while also removing the suburban property off the tax rolls.

[jcjohnpaint]

I am guessing both Citizens and Everbank are leaving due to safety concerns and homelessness. Not sure I read anything about Everbank. It really sucks, but not sure what else can be done other than getting more people walking around, other than the homeless. At this time housing might be the only way to do it.

[thelakelander]

There are no one trick pony solutions so housing alone won't result in much. We will have to address and invest in social services though. We can't ignore it, like we have traditionally done with downtown investment.

[Jones518]

I am guessing both Citizens and Everbank are leaving due to safety concerns and homelessness. Not sure I read anything about Everbank. It really sucks, but not sure what else can be done other than getting more people walking around, other than the homeless. At this time housing might be the only way to do it.

EverBank hasn't confirmed they are leaving officially yet... i still think it was a negotiation tactic and not an actually solidified plan. Time will tell