Commercial Construction Projects in Jacksonville, FL

In terms of development, demolition and construction, the city of Jacksonville had already experienced a rather busy decade in the 2010s. Major construction activities involved several urban core revitalization, restoration, and redevelopment projects as well as new constructions in and around the Town Center that has considerably altered the appearance of downtown Jacksonville. In addition, several new projects have already been completed in LaVilla and Brooklyn.

And as Mayor Lenny Curry had declared in no uncertain terms, after his reelection in March last year, that he intends to completely change the face of downtown Jacksonville in as little as four years’ time, the trend is only to ramp up in the new decade. A good number of multi-million dollar construction and expansion projects had met with approval last year and several of them are already underway.

Here, we list some of the biggest of these local development projects, both that have only recently been completed and others that are underway.

Biggest Construction Projects in Jacksonville

Barnett National Bank Building and Laura Street Trio

The renovation work on this project is all but finished. Undertaken by the Southeast Group, the project has cost $53 million, significantly more than the initial estimate of $38 million. The mixed-use building includes a residential section and is also home to several Jacksonville businesses including the Coggin College of Business, University of North Florida’s entrepreneurship center.

Next on the pipeline is another iconic downtown structure, the Laura Street Trio. The plan is to convert the buildings which will then house, in addition to office space, a Marriott Hotel, and an upscale restaurant. The work was scheduled to begin this year but the plans have been somewhat jeopardized due to the recent pandemic.

VyStar Credit Union Multi-Building Campus

VyStar had acquired the adjacent towers at Laura St and W Bay St (an investment of $100 million) with a view to this construction. Among other uses, the building will now be the site of VyStar Headquarters. The construction work, managed by the Dana B Kenyon Co, had already begun last year and is expected to finish sometime this year. Again, the pandemic may unsettle the plans.

As of now, the cost of the project is pegged at $79 million. But this will rise since VyStar has already agreed to the construction of a nearby parking lot, which it will finance and own. The parking garage was initially to be built as part of the Barnett and Laura Street Trio projects, but the plan has been scrapped as VyStar has taken over the responsibility, and since the garage site will be big enough to accommodate the needs of Trio and Barnett.

JRTC HQ at LaVilla

This new building, already near completion, is planned as the future headquarters of Jacksonville Transportation Authority and is another of those structures that are set to change the appearance of downtown Jacksonville. Built at a cost of $58 million, the building will house a sizable retail and office space but more importantly, JRTC envisions it as a major hub for many different transportation modes at Jacksonville. The multi-use facility is also expected to spur development in the adjacent areas.

Vista Brooklyn

The complex at 200 Riverside Ave, spanning 10 floors and about 330,000 sq. ft. is expected to house a huge ground-floor retail place of about 13,000 sq. ft. and 308 apartment units and there will be a clubhouse, a rooftop pool, and a dog park to boot. The project with a $55 million tag is being handled by Hallmark Partners and Bristol Development Group and the work is already underway.

Ambassador Hotel

The project matches the $53 million tag of the Barnett restoration and has been planned as a two-part development. The renovation of the erstwhile structure will be carried out by Augustine Development Group and the altered version will house a LA Quinta Inn & Suites (100 rooms) complete with a rooftop bar. And next to this, a 200-unit modern apartment complex will be built by the Vestcor Companies.

Lot J and Shipyards Renovation

Moving away from downtown, here’s a project that many believe to be a long-pending one. Reportedly, Shad Khan has been interested in developing the parking lot Lot J at TIIA BANK Field since 2013. However, it was only earlier last year that the city gave a go-ahead for the estimated $450 million projects (that will, significantly enough, receive a $233 million in incentives from the city).
The multi-facility structure is planned as featuring a 300-unit apartment complex, a 200-room hotel, a live entertainment complex as well as a new parking space to replace the existing one. We may as well mention here that Khan has more ambitious plans in connection with this project. His interest stretches to adjacent riverfront property and he has already proposed development schemes that would connect the sports and entertainment complex to the urban core. However, obstacles remain, not the least among them the whopping $2.5 billion price tag of the proposed development!

To cap it up, although projects mentioned above are among some of the biggest ones in the city, they still make up a small fraction of the overall development scheme the city council has envisioned for Jacksonville. Other big projects in and around downtown, for example, include maternity suites renovations at Baptist Medical Center, the Soba Apartments, Brooklyn Residence Inn, and Lofts at Jefferson Station. Elsewhere, other major projects on the pipeline include Exchange near Butler Blvd and I-295, East San Marco with its Publix and again in downtown, the repurposing of The Jacksonville Landing.

This article is brought to you by ASAP Demolition company, a Jacksonville demolition company centrally located in Downtown Jacksonville.