4 Older Neighborhoods in Jax with Big Potential

In recent years, Jacksonville has seen several of its older, less glamorous neighborhoods experience something of a renaissance.

Once-struggling communities like Springfield, Murray Hill, and Oceanway have been reignited by renewed interest from businesses, developers, and their own residents. Springfield in particular has made quite the comeback, going from relatively derelict to a close-knit, local business-oriented neighborhood that is among the most desirable areas for investors within the city’s urban core.

But once those communities max out their potential, who’s next?

We’ve highlighted four other older local neighborhoods that could be next in line for revitalization, with details on what makes these areas ideal candidates for a renaissance.

Mixon Town

Located just east of downtown Jax and Brooklyn, Mixon Town is an industrial area that also has a strong residential history.

Like Brooklyn, Mixon Town began as a predominantly Black neighborhood during the days of racial segregation in Jacksonville. In fact, early maps show two separate but similar neighborhoods, West Lewisville and Campbell Hill, that sprung up in what is now considered Mixon Town.

When segregation came to an end, many Black families opted to move into suburbs that were previously considered “off-limits.” Parts of the old neighborhoods were demolished and largely replaced by industrial facilities.

Today, Mixon Town remains largely industrial by use – but the potential is there for more, and some have already noticed. Recent newcomers to the neighborhood include breweries Lemonstreet and Tabula Rasa, as well as Jacksonville Classical Academy.

And Dennis + Ives, a mixed-use development set to include a restaurant, café, office space, an outdoor stage, and another brewery, is proposed off of Dennis Street.

The area is bisected by McCoy’s Creek, which is set to become a centerpiece of the proposed Emerald Trail network. When combined with the potential addition of a Brooklyn Skyway station and the promising Dennis + Ives project, the Mixon Town area could have a future as a creek-side entertainment destination.

St. Nicholas

St. Nicholas is a perfect candidate for revitalization thanks in large part to its geography.

Located right outside of the urban core and nestled in between two of the city’s most prestigious private schools, the St. Nicholas neighborhood has a residential history dating back to the 19^th century. It was among the first areas to receive its own train station as the city’s streetcar service expanded beyond the core; its station house still stands today.

The neighborhood is a nice blend of residential and commercial land use, featuring multiple subdivisions, apartment complexes, and a stretch of commercial buildings lining Beach Boulevard. And thanks to its streetcar-based roots, many of those buildings are located directly along the street, making for an easily-walkable span.

The recent reconfiguration of the Overland Bridge made the area even more accessible from both downtown Jax and eastern San Marco – further paving the way for revitalization focused on continuing the strengths of those areas into St. Nicholas. And it’s quite easy to see an expanded Skyway system one day coming its way.

Right now, many of its transit-oriented commercial buildings are either vacant, in disrepair, or both. But it’s easy to see how a few well-placed tenants could spark a larger revival along Beach Boulevard.

Two key projects may help catalyze the neighborhood’s potential: a proposed redevelopment of Southgate Plaza, its largest shopping center, and the pending redevelopment of a former Kmart just outside of the neighborhood into the mixed-use Boulevard Crossing. If either – or both – of these projects prove successful, it could be the start of something special in St. Nicholas.

Phoenix

Located just to the east of Springfield, Phoenix has for many years essentially operated as the neighborhood’s industrial annex.

Though the area’s origins can be traced to a neighborhood called Campbelton, which itself was more of an extension of Oakland to its south, it became almost solely industrial once Springfield’s growth exploded in the early 1900s.

Many of those industrial buildings have now been vacant for decades, giving the area a somewhat eerie lack of activity. But plans have been in works for the past few years to reimagine the warehouse wasteland as a revitalized arts district, complementing Springfield’s increasingly younger and more progressive demographic.

Led by local entrepreneur Christy Frazier, Phoenix Arts District seeks to convert multiple former warehouse buildings into an “artistic hub” featuring studio spaces, an art school, apartment units, and more.

Progress has been slow on the project, but once completed, it’s easy to see how such a development could catalyze the surrounding area and inspire other investors to get their hands on similar vacant buildings for complementary projects.

Lake Shore

Just south of Murray Hill lies the heavily residential Lake Shore neighborhood – or Lakeshore, depending on personal preference.

Much like St. Nicholas, Lake Shore features a stretch of transit-oriented commercial development concentrated around Blanding Boulevard and San Juan Avenue. Unlike St. Nicholas, though, the area is well outside of the urban core.

However, the Blanding-San Juan intersection is just a 5-minute bike ride away from the Cedar River, along which a riverfront entertainment district could soon emerge.

King Street District, the group responsible for many of Riverside’s top venues as well as the development of The Phoenix Bar & Bowling, purchased a former boat shop next to The Phoenix in 2019 and indicated plans to open a riverfront bar and restaurant within the building. If successful, the pair of adaptive reuse projects could inspire other investors to do the same, filling in the currently derelict corridor from the river to that critical Blanding-San Juan intersection.

And in nearby Lakeside, the Roosevelt Square shopping center is being adapted into Ortega Park, a mixed-use lifestyle center and another project with the potential to act as a catalyst for its surrounding area.

Given how densely developed the area is already, adaptive reuse is the way forward in Lake Shore.