This is legitimately as bad as it gets. Anyone still hanging on to the "Downtown Jax has momentum" line needs to take a look in the mirror. The CBD has hit an all-time low when the only remaining restaurant accommodating the lunchtime business crowd can't even make it.
This one kills me. My first lunch after taking a job downtown was at Bellwether. Have literally had hundreds of meals here since.
There's genuinely nowhere left in the CBD. No Bellwether. No Bread and Board. No Olio. No Zodiak. No Cowford lunch. No Superfood and Brew. No Mags. No Happy Grilled Cheese. No Estrella Cocina.
We need to stop EVERYTHING that we're doing with Southbank hospital hotels and MOSH demolitions and get all hands on deck for the 16-20 blocks in the heart of the city.
There's NO PLAN.
Legitimately, no plan.
Just back-patting because demand for real estate in the CBD is so in the gutter that one entity was able to acquire 40 blocks for pennies on the dollar, and because the area is so blighted that Shad Khan is building a Four Seasons a mile and a half away so his friends don't have to see the true downtown.
We need to be throwing money at Sweet Pete's and Chamblins to keep them from following suit, and we need a plan to pump foot traffic into the CBD 365 days a year.
https://www.jacksonville.com/story/entertainment/dining/2026/03/06/downtown-jacksonville-restaurant-bellwether-closing/89027349007/
I understand what you are saying but I also feel like the response here is very emotional.
Downtown Jax's restaurant scene is not collapsing it's just going through a reset right now.
There are several success stories to point to in the CBD right now ....
A few examples:
1. Insomnia cookies seems to be doing well.
2. Dorothy's is new and picking up momentum.
3. Pour Taproom and Pizza Dynamo have shown they can be successful drawing crowds on weekends on during sporting events.
4. Starving like Marvin maintain a steady crowd and customer base...
5. Indulgence southern bistro keeps a crowd especially for brunch and during events.
6. Toss green is still there
7. Indochine is still around
8. Spliffs gastropub is still there.
9. Take a look at Da Real ting cafe especially on Fridays!!
10. The volstead is still there.
And there's more.
Yes we lost a lot, but we gained some and more are on the way. Several Japanese concepts have been announced with one being in the CBD, Pearl square. A steak house is going in the Greenleaf and Crosby building that JWB just moved their headquarters into.
The reality is that downtown businesses include new concepts, legacy spots, Black-owned establishments, etc. that continue to serve the community. Could we support them better? Absolutely.
Bell Wether could have done better operationally by having more consistent hours. And i heard their food wasn't all that great for the prices.
We have a lot of employers leaving the cbd. Residents are coming in, but not yet. I feel like Gateway, once online will be a hell of a boost. But, I agree without prioritizing areas and a master plan, it will take much longer, if at all.
Yes, I agree that downtown needs a clearer long-term plan for the CBD. But I don't think it's accurate to say it's completely "crashing."
As far as office workers go, the only confirmed employer leaving downtown right now is Citizens Property Insurance. EverBank floated the possibility of leaving, but that appears more like a negotiation tactic with the city than a finalized relocation plan.
At the same time, there are still efforts to bring employers downtown. For example, ICE has been exploring office space in the CBD, and JWB recently relocated its headquarters to the Greenleaf & Crosby Building.
It's also worth mentioning that Jacksonville University recently opened its College of Law downtown in the CBD, which brings hundreds of law students, faculty, and staff into the CBD on a daily basis. While they aren't traditional office workers, they function very similarly in terms of daytime foot traffic... supporting restaurants, coffee shops, and other small businesses.
We also recently saw Ameris Bank open a new branch in the CBD at 200 W. Forsyth with a drive-through concept, which required the city to approve a zoning exception. That's another example of financial institutions/employers continuing to invest in downtown rather than abandoning it.
We're also seeing smaller professional firms invest in the CBD. Kasper Architects purchased and renovated a building at 500 N. Ocean Street to open a downtown studio, which is another example of businesses (although smaller) choosing to reinvest in the CBD rather than leave.
In my opinion, Downtown is in a clear transition period. The model is shifting from a purely office-based district to a more mixed-use environment with residents, students, hospitality, and entertainment alongside office tenants. That transition takes time, which is why I agree that a clear plan for the CBD will be important moving forward.
I hope DCPS ends up moving to the CBD since their plan to relocate to the southside fell through.
And I also agree we shouldn't be spending money on demolishing the MOSH or Baptist Health's proposed hotel on the south bank, but we should be using those funds to continue improving the pedestrian experience or just the general experience in the CBD.
Don't forget how we recently two-wayed Adam's and Forsyth streets which should have positive long term effects.
Quote from: Jones518 on March 07, 2026, 12:48:30 AMI understand what you are saying but I also feel like the response here is very emotional.
Hard not to be. Have celebrated countless team birthdays, first-day lunches, work anniversaries, Daddy-daughter office days, and personal events at Bellwether. Have grown to know the wonderful staff over the years, who will now be out of jobs.
Quote from: Jones518 on March 07, 2026, 12:48:30 AMDowntown Jax's restaurant scene is not collapsing it's just going through a reset right now.
There are several success stories to point to in the CBD right now ....
A few examples:
1. Insomnia cookies seems to be doing well.
2. Dorothy's is new and picking up momentum.
3. Pour Taproom and Pizza Dynamo have shown they can be successful drawing crowds on weekends on during sporting events.
4. Starving like Marvin maintain a steady crowd and customer base...
5. Indulgence southern bistro keeps a crowd especially for brunch and during events.
6. Toss green is still there
7. Indochine is still around
8. Spliffs gastropub is still there.
9. Take a look at Da Real ting cafe especially on Fridays!!
10. The volstead is still there.
From the perspective of someone on the streets in Downtown Jacksonville five days a week, it's not "collapsing." It has collapsed. The central
business district is Jacksonville's largest job center in the city. We are a major Southeast market. If a business has a client coming in from New York, or Chicago, or Atlanta, you're not going to take them out to Toss Green, or Insomnia Cookies, or Starving Like Marvin.
Just a couple of years ago, there were numerous options for business lunches in the CBD. Nice, sit down restaurants, many with bars. Now, I believe there are zero. In our city's central business district.
Calling this a "reset" or a "transition period" absolves everyone involved in Downtown's success from responsibility as all of these businesses that took advantage of the DIA's Retail Enhancement Grants run for their lives as their obligations sunset.
QuoteYes we lost a lot, but we gained some and more are on the way. Several Japanese concepts have been announced with one being in the CBD, Pearl square.
This may be a minority opinion, but I don't think Pearl Square is going to easily or quickly fix the problems in the true CBD. Jacksonville has long prescribed to this odd "barbell theory" where we stand up two separate things (Pearl Square and Riverfront Plaza, in this case) and expect infill to magically appear in the middle with no planning or unified approach to the pedestrian experience between them.
QuoteAs far as office workers go, the only confirmed employer leaving downtown right now is Citizens Property Insurance. EverBank floated the possibility of leaving, but that appears more like a negotiation tactic with the city than a finalized relocation plan. At the same time, there are still efforts to bring employers downtown. For example, ICE has been exploring office space in the CBD, and JWB recently relocated its headquarters to the Greenleaf & Crosby Building.
Citizens pulled 800 employees out of the CBD. Regency Centers is pulling out nearly 300. Everbank is another 700, that - in a perfect world - we'll get the privilege of paying $10 million in private security fees to keep them. That is not a negotiating tactic. That is Everbank doing the city a favor by agreeing to stay, despite years of safety incidents with their staff.
ICE (no comment) renting cheap office space for 40-80 employees and JWB bringing 120 employees downtown (love this one, building looks great) replaces less than 20% of jobs that have left downtown in the last two years.
QuoteA steak house is going in the Greenleaf and Crosby building that JWB just moved their headquarters into.
The reality is that downtown businesses include new concepts, legacy spots, Black-owned establishments, etc. that continue to serve the community. Could we support them better? Absolutely.
Bell Wether could have done better operationally by having more consistent hours. And i heard their food wasn't all that great for the prices.
Agreed on all fronts. All new, and remaining, restaurants in the CBD deserve better support. Looking forward to checking out a couple of the spots you noted!
I think I have a fundamentally different opinion of what "support" looks like than most though, and what the most immediate short-term fix to stop the bleeding is, short of an actual plan on the municipal side.
I think we routinely throw every dollar we have into creating more supply - residences, riverfront parks, two-way streets, whatever - and invest almost nothing in creating more demand for the downtown experience.
The VERY best thing that we could subsidize in the short term for all of these businesses is foot traffic. Looking down Laura Street, Mags Cafe, and Wolf & Cub, and Bellwether, and Bread & Board, and Peterbrooke, and Burger & Board, and Estrella Cocina, and Jumping Jax, and Happy Grilled Cheese, and Back to the Grind, and Candy Apple, and all of the others didn't die because they lacked subsidies. They died because they lacked consistent foot traffic.
If I'm the Committee for the Future of Downtown Jacksonville, I'm pausing completion grants on the Southbank and Brooklyn and putting as much money as possible into:
1. A redesigned James Weldon Johnson Park, programmed 300+ days a year with small to mid-sized events
2. Aggressively programming larger monthly events at Riverfront Plaza
Stimulating foot traffic helps almost every problem we have. Retail widens its customer base. Safety improves with more natural surveillance. Increased activity makes residential and office more attractive.
It's not rocket science. We've managed to turn a random highway overpass in Riverside into one of the most active spots in the city.
No universe where JWJP, given its central location, historic significance, and configuration shouldn't be a daily epicenter of life in Downtown Jacksonville.
I just performed a marriage for two friends at Bellwether. Definitely a sad one for me personally, but even worse for losing such a resilient and much loved business. Unfortunately the bad decisions and steps backward of the last years mean that recovery is long and hard even with the progress we've been making. We definitely need to do what we can to keep and build up what we have already have especially with the ongoing transition from office to residential in much of the central Northbank core. And I definitely agree that having a more comprehensive master plan will do wonders for that. It's something I personally am working on, in addition to everything else.
There were over 20,000 people running through Downtown Jacksonville this morning for the Gate River Run. That's a huge amount of foot traffic in the urban core for a few hours.
My question is: how many downtown businesses opened early or marketed specifically to runners and spectators to bring them in?
In my opinion, many downtown businesses struggle to capitalize on major events, high-traffic days, and temporary surges in activity like this. The same thing happens during Jaguars games, concerts, festivals, and other big events downtown.
The demand is clearly there — but for some reason, many businesses fail to translate that demand into actual revenue.
If businesses can survive the slower periods downtown, they should absolutely be maximizing opportunities like the Gate River Run, Jaguars games, and other major events when tens of thousands of potential customers are literally passing by their doors.
I believe if we can get to a point where there is consistent traffic to justify small businesses being open on a regular, every day schedule, we won't have to worry about coordination with special events. I still say ridding ourselves of the Landing's consistent business hours, programming and foot traffic was a generational blunder. One that has impacted the ability of other businesses to survive in the core of the Northbank. We'll overcome, but it will be painful and take time.
Anyway, we'll need a coordinated master plan to ultimately address and resolve. No single development, placemaking, tactical urbanism project will fix the situation because everyone continues to swim in different directions, so our resources aren't being used effectively.
Quote from: Tacachale on March 07, 2026, 10:57:24 AMI just performed a marriage for two friends at Bellwether. Definitely a sad one for me personally, but even worse for losing such a resilient and much loved business. Unfortunately the bad decisions and steps backward of the last years mean that recovery is long and hard even with the progress we've been making. We definitely need to do what we can to keep and build up what we have already have especially with the ongoing transition from office to residential in much of the central Northbank core. And I definitely agree that having a more comprehensive master plan will do wonders for that. It's something I personally am working on, in addition to everything else.
Why are you working on this? I'm sure you would make a great one, but shouldn't DIA create this? This is what they do or should do. Right? Do they assume the master plan Lite made under Boyer is enough? It seems like the DIA presents funding asks to council with priority levels. What are they basing this off?
Quote from: jcjohnpaint on March 07, 2026, 04:25:29 PMQuote from: Tacachale on March 07, 2026, 10:57:24 AMI just performed a marriage for two friends at Bellwether. Definitely a sad one for me personally, but even worse for losing such a resilient and much loved business. Unfortunately the bad decisions and steps backward of the last years mean that recovery is long and hard even with the progress we've been making. We definitely need to do what we can to keep and build up what we have already have especially with the ongoing transition from office to residential in much of the central Northbank core. And I definitely agree that having a more comprehensive master plan will do wonders for that. It's something I personally am working on, in addition to everything else.
Why are you working on this? I'm sure you would make a great one, but shouldn't DIA create this? This is what they do or should do. Right? Do they assume the master plan Lite made under Boyer is enough? It seems like the DIA presents funding asks to council with priority levels. What are they basing this off?
I'm not writing it, lol, just advocating for it. We have an issue of siloing where different authorities have different spheres and do their own planning. That's been a big obstacle to overcome, not only on this.
Quote from: Ken_FSU on March 06, 2026, 11:04:34 PM.
There's genuinely nowhere left in the CBD. No Bellwether. No Bread and Board. No Olio. No Zodiak. No Cowford lunch. No Superfood and Brew. No Mags. No Happy Grilled Cheese. No Estrella Cocina.
We need to stop EVERYTHING that we're doing with Southbank hospital hotels and MOSH demolitions and get all hands on deck for the 16-20 blocks in the heart of the city.
There's NO PLAN.
Legitimately, no plan.
Estrella Cocina had some of the worst Mexican food in all of Jacksonville....what a waste of such a beautiful rooftop view. I don't see why that space couldn't be reimagined as another rooftop concept. Decca Live's SIP on the Rooftop has been a hit on Bay Street, which shows there's clearly demand for those kinds of experiences downtown.
Cowford Chophouse has also adapted well by leaning into dinner service. Overall, the demand for downtown dining seems to be picking up in the evenings, even if the lunch crowd still hasn't fully returned.
We're also starting to see some new activity, like Dapper D's Restaurant, Lounge, & Bar opening in the former Island Girl Cigar Bar space on Ocean Street. That kind of reinvestment is encouraging and shows there's still interest in activating downtown storefronts. This also reflects the restaurant scene shifting to dinner and evening service.
Breezy Jazz House returning to the north bank along Bay Street is another example of that shift toward Dinner and evening experiences. The owner cited relocating to Bay Street due to the increased foot traffic along Bay Street 🤷- (https://youtu.be/bqJrpTvWnmc?si=0LPeo57IkZhWGmxK )
But yes...coming back to the larger point, we absolutely need a comprehensive master plan for the CBD, along with continued efforts to improve the pedestrian experience and overall vibrancy of downtown.
One of the biggest missed opportunities for finer downtown dining is packaging it with the shows at the Performing Arts Center and Arena. These are the kind of audiences that would patronize finer dining but I see almost no cross marketing.
The River Club runs a package with shuttle for their members for the FSCJ Broadway series and BB's in San Marco is open to midnight capturing both pre-show and post-shown diners based on my experiences (a full house usually so reservations recommended). These are indications of a market not being fully tapped.
I once tried to get eats at Juliette's back in the Omni days after a show and they closed at 8 or 9 PM. Lot's of people went there like me but only the bar was serving. Crazy when only a 1 minute walk from 3,000 patrons at a Broadway show, many parking in the Omni garage.
The lack of cross-marketing dining with our cultural events and institutions (e.g. museums) and making visitor packages with discount admissions is a missed Marketing-101 exercise for Downtown. Imagine, a package with a sunset water taxi ride, dinner, and a show, and maybe earlier, admission to MOCA to make it almost a full day. The lack of imaginative marketing is striking and joins the lack of vision and planning for Downtown, generally.
Once again, it is not about millions in incentives... it's about being thoughtful.
When the Landing was open, you could have went any day or generally anytime, event or not, and you'd have some options to dine, due to a cluster of activity/programming to at least provide F&B operators with some level of consistent foot traffic.
This is the basic stuff that traditionally has been downplayed or overlooked in all the downtown revitalization talk. Operating a restaurant is already a general high risk investment. Having to dance around with hours dependent on 3,000 people showing up for a random one day or night event makes the operation a higher risk investment. I'm sad to see Bellwether go, but I get it. Business owners still have to pay bills and if the investment is losing money, pulling the plug is understandable.
All the same opportunities mentioned 10-20 years ago still exist. We'll need to be coordinated in our revitalization approach to ensure the existing businesses are around when all the dream projects discussed actually come to fruition 5 to 10 years from now.
QuoteHaving to dance around with hours dependent on 3,000 people showing up for a random one day or night event makes the operation a higher risk investment.
Ennis, you are missing my point. These opportunities are added bonuses to existing business. Add them up, and they can be a significant boost to building a steady andn/or increased clientele. Not expecting this to be a lone source of support. And, there is 1 + 1 = 3+. Packaging activities can increase participation in all of them.
Going Downtown for suburbanites just to eat dinner may not be enough of a draw, especially as Jax grows, traffic gets worse, and more options spring up in the suburbs.
^I'm not missing your point. I'm giving some space to struggling business owners because there's a strong possibility, some of these special events have led to them losing money in the past. So there's a possibility that many do know and select not to open odd hours outside of their normal business hours.
Ultimately, we have a downtown void of consistent foot traffic and the opposite of that is the real solution. Its going to take a while to recover from the bad mistakes of the past and the office market changes since the pandemic. Yet, consistent programming along with clustering of complementing uses within a compact setting will get us there if we embrace this over the local politics of the past.
I don't think the CBD can—or should—depend primarily on office workers to survive. They're a bonus, but they shouldn't be the foundation.
I'm not sure what buildings most of you work in, but mine is on the far edge of the downtown overlay. We actually have a café with chefs at different stations serving food daily, yet most people still bring their own lunch. The menu changes every day as well.
From my personal experience, when we host a client we usually cater in. After meetings, a few of us might go to a local restaurant if colleagues from my org are traveling in, but that's about it. I imagine many companies downtown will operate similarly going forward, which means the weekday lunch crowd for restaurants will likely decline.
What downtown really needs is to rely more on visitors, Jacksonville residents doing business downtown, and—partially—CBD workers who want to step out of the office. Even then, restaurants alone can't carry the CBD. There needs to be a strong retail component that works hand in hand with dining.
In many ways, the playbook already exists in places like SJTC, San Marco, Avondale, Neptune Bch/Atlantic Bch, Ponte Vedra TC, Fruit Cove, Jacksonville Bch, and even the future Gateway Pearl Street initiative. Each area succeeds because it has a mix of retail and restaurants that complement each other. The combinations are different everywhere, but they create destinations people visit throughout the week.
Downtown just needs to determine what type of retail best complements the restaurants that are already there, along with any future additions. Why are those other areas able to stay active during the week without failing? Businesses always come and go for many reasons, but each place has anchors that bring people in—and it's not solely dependent on the food scene.
^Downtown had retail, so that answer isn't hard to replicate. You'll need some density (residential, hotels and destinations/events that draw people in) all clustered together. When it comes to retail, you'll also need to take advantage of streets with higher traffic counts. Better visibility and the ability to not totally rely on downtown itself will be a big plus. Thats why Brooklyn has been a success. Riverside Avenue draws a market much larger than DT itself. Again, coordination is needed (i.e. a plan) so that all of our ideas and resources swim in the same direction, align with the market and build upon each other.
@thelakelander You nailed it—that's the formula for any successful downtown, regardless of size. Whether it's a smaller town like DeLand or a global city like New York City, the fundamentals are the same - make it walkable. It's absolutely doable; it just requires a clear plan and consistent execution.
If you listen to developers speak whether it's an interview or podcast or simply watch how successful districts evolve, the sequence is usually the same: residential comes first, followed by retail, restaurants, and commercial space. Hotels tend to arrive later once the area has proven demand. For the core of downtown, we shouldn't stray too far from that playbook—those fundamentals work everywhere for a reason.
It's no surprise that downtown Jacksonville has an unprecedented amount of vacant office space compared to other major Florida cities. But this can also be an opportunity. There's no need to reinvent the wheel—many cities have followed a proven playbook for revitalizing their downtowns.
With initiatives tied to UF and the Florida Semiconductor Institute, we'll likely see more tech companies entering Florida markets, and Orlando is already starting to benefit from that momentum. Jacksonville should position itself to capture some of that growth.
That said, we can't put all our eggs in one basket. Diversification is key, but there still needs to be a clear vision for the industries we're courting. Tech, startups, AI, banking, defense and aerospace Tech and FinTech make sense given Jacksonville's existing anchors.
At the same time, when companies relocate, there needs to be an environment that supports their workforce—places to live, retail, restaurants, and things to do. Cities like Austin are thriving because they built both the tech ecosystem and the lifestyle to support it. Jacksonville has the pieces—it just needs a focused vision to bring them together.
On a side note, I've always disliked coming over the Main Street Bridge and being greeted by a parking garage on the left across from Cowford Chophouse. That corner should be one of the most important gateway sites in downtown. Ideally, it would be redeveloped into the city's next tallest tower—something iconic—with a well-known hotel and residential component from a major hospitality brand that people instantly recognize and that offers strong loyalty perks.
It's the kind of project that would immediately elevate the skyline and make a much stronger first impression when entering downtown.
Being strategic with gateways is a must. This was one of the old gateways (Main Street), which was aligned with traffic:
(https://photos.moderncities.com/Cities/Jacksonville/History/National-Archives-Catalog-Jacksonville/i-4Kh64XV/0/FXPKXZ4GkwnjfK4X2qjRLcbpk4mpQfQsKdZnjWrLL/X2/Slide7-X2.jpg)
(https://photos.moderncities.com/Cities/Jacksonville/History/National-Archives-Catalog-Jacksonville/i-cwgD6t7/0/DVHmqSq44wnLsVQD3SmLfG44Lzk4bZ8rzszXSdLVK/X2/Slide6-X2.jpg)
(https://photos.moderncities.com/Cities/Jacksonville/History/National-Archives-Catalog-Jacksonville/i-Sr7zG5W/0/FHRb44GzJH8vQGrCL6LL3GJ2xZ4qMg663mJFLFZMw/X2/Slide5-X2.jpg)
(https://photos.moderncities.com/Cities/Jacksonville/History/National-Archives-Catalog-Jacksonville/i-gdgNSNp/0/qhj5Z5FtJVpccmpF82kvpr4C2r52NLn4GDHnFqPC/X2/Slide4-X2.jpg)
This type of energy stretched continuously from the Main Street Bridge through Springfield and right into Brentwood and Panama Park. It was undone with the opening to I-95, which siphoned most of the regional through traffic right out of the Northbank and into the burbs. As the market shifted, we began our decades long practice of bad decision-making that ended up with most of Main Street being surface parking lots, parking garages and blank walls. We can't change the past, but when we know better, we should do better!
Transportation observation - it looks from the shadows in photos on the bridge that it was late afternoon, and the lanes were 3 out / 1 in - reversible lanes for peak traffic!
The irony of Bellwether closing
Quote from: Charles Hunter on Yesterday at 08:21:08 PMTransportation observation - it looks from the shadows in photos on the bridge that it was late afternoon, and the lanes were 3 out / 1 in - reversible lanes for peak traffic!
Foreshadowing?
Bellwether closing isn't exactly shocking. For years the restaurant had inconsistent hours and often wasn't open during standard lunch or evening times (weekends and evening times seems to be where downtown is gaining momentum). Any business will struggle if customers can't rely on it being open.
Yes, downtown still has pedestrian traffic challenges, but the restaurant industry is struggling nationwide even places at the Town Center close regularly ( Mimi cafe closed then changed to Ida Claire...that closed then changed to Wiskey cake...). When that happens, nobody blames foot traffic there. M shack closed and turned into shake shack...bread and board didn't just close their downtown location they also closed their town center location.
At the end of the day, great food, good service, business management, and consistent operations still matter.
Overall, all three things can be true at once:
• Downtown still has structural challenges
• The restaurant industry is struggling nationwide
• Bellwether may have had operational issues
Mixed Fillings Pie Shop is another example. They have a great product...arguably some of the best pie in northeast Florida, but inconsistent operations make it difficult for repeat customers to support the business regularly. I can't tell you how many times i drove downtown hoping they would be open to find out they weren't. After so many tries you give up as a customer..
Businesses have to step their game up if they want to survive in this day and age. Hold some of these business accountable too.
Did BellWether have a liquor license? why not lean into an evening cocktail bar concept or winery? Or themed nights for dinner?
Anyone know whether that intersection is Duval and Main (the last photo)? And...it was mentioned that the opening to the then new I-95 had a lot to do with the traffic, being circumvented from Main (and other downtown streets), thus reducing auto, pedestrian, and other traffic from Main (especially?), causing restaurants, retail, etc. to falter and eventually close. When I was a kid in the 1960's (we lived on Duval Street in LaVilla), I used to love when my Mom took me shopping downtown. Jax in those days was bustling, not only during the day but also at night (I would go to the Center Theater at times (at night) to see Movies and you could smell the food of the restaurants, music from the bars and taverns, people in the parks, buses roaring around the central business district downtown going wherever). We moved from Jax in 1967 to Fort Myers. About 3 years later we returned for a visit and the razing and demolition had begun; not in LaVilla (late 1990's?), but in the CBD yes. Awesome pics. I would say those pics were probably taken in the mid-1950's.
Someone correct me if I am wrong, but that last pic is probably around State and Union Street (on Main Street) going into Springfield. If that is where that pic was taken, I am awestruck at how dense that area used to be back in the day (I never ventured into that area as a Child). If I am wrong please correct me.
The last picture is Main and Union, looking north into Springfield. This is where the FBC parking garage is now located on the left and the dirty Shell gas station on the right.
Quote from: heights unknown on Yesterday at 09:43:22 PMI would say those pics were probably taken in the mid-1950's.
Great guess! They were taken in 1952!
These pictures blow me away. Insane about what was and what was lost.
(https://imgur.com/gallery/jax-1952-vs-today-e3McbA2)
I'm not sure how to post an image, but here's a link to a quick side by side comparison of 1952 vs today give or take a block.
https://imgur.com/gallery/jax-1952-vs-today-e3McbA2
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.
Here you go!
(https://photos.smugmug.com/Cities/Jacksonville/Miscellaneous/Miscellaneous/i-PcJBLkv/0/LnHNWGNRkVxhg6m6BPbP9trwQkdtWSTXd3H4gXMLJ/X2/9O5Foqq-X2.jpg)
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.
Quote from: fsu813 on Today at 12:06:54 PMOwnership 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.
Quote from: thelakelander on Today at 12:08:28 PMHere you go!
(https://photos.smugmug.com/Cities/Jacksonville/Miscellaneous/Miscellaneous/i-PcJBLkv/0/LnHNWGNRkVxhg6m6BPbP9trwQkdtWSTXd3H4gXMLJ/X2/9O5Foqq-X2.jpg)
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.