The Coastal
  • Development
    Building Up Jax - Jacksonville Construction and Development Updates Each Saturday

    Building Up Jax: South Moon Under coming to SJTC

    Building Up Jax - Jacksonville Construction and Development Updates Each Saturday

    Building Up Jax: Capriotti’s Sandwich Shop coming to Mandarin

    Building Up Jax - Jacksonville Construction and Development Updates Each Saturday

    Building Up Jax: Scramblers coming to Deerwood, Lakewood

    Building Up Jax - Jacksonville Construction and Development Updates Each Saturday

    Building Up Jax: Gucci to SJTC; Taverna debuting new concept

    Building Up Jax - Jacksonville Construction and Development Updates Each Saturday

    Building Up Jax: Dolly Llama to PVB; Lowe’s, Wawa to CR-210

    Building Up Jax - Jacksonville Construction and Development Updates Each Saturday

    Building Up Jax: Vestcor planning Lofts at San Marco East

    Building Up Jax - Jacksonville Construction and Development Updates Each Saturday

    Building Up Jax: Rockler Woodworking coming to SJTC

    Building Up Jax - Jacksonville Construction and Development Updates Each Saturday

    Building Up Jax: Sportsman’s Warehouse coming to River City Marketplace

    Building Up Jax - Jacksonville Construction and Development Updates Each Saturday

    Building Up Jax: Tesla expanding its local presence

  • History
    • All
    • Jax Evolved
    Florida Times-Union building

    Story of a Building: The Florida Times-Union Building

    Edgewood Bakery

    Remembering Edgewood Bakery: Once a Murray Hill Staple, Now an Empty Building

    jacksonville university

    A Brief History of Jacksonville University

    history of Ed wAters College

    A Brief History of Edward Waters College

    Worman's bAKERY AND DELI

    Remembering Worman’s Bakery and Deli

    Before Normandy Mall, There Was the Loew’s Normandy Drive-In Theatre

    Before Normandy Mall, There Was the Loew’s Normandy Drive-In Theatre

    Green Turtle Restaurant in Jacksonville, fl

    Remembering Joe Adeeb’s Green Turtle Restaurant

    San Marco Theater, San Marco, Jacksonville, FL

    Story of a Building: San Marco Theatre

    Sun-Ray Cinema building Five Points Jacksonville FL

    Story of a Building: Sun-Ray Cinema Building

  • Jax Evolved
    VyStar at 100 West Bay Street, Jacksonville, FL

    JAX EVOLVED: VyStar Reinvigorates the Former Life of the South Building

    JAX EVOLVED: San Marco Preservation Society Now Occupies South Jacksonville City Hall

    JAX EVOLVED: San Marco Preservation Society Now Occupies South Jacksonville City Hall

    Old St. Luke's Hospital jacksonville fl

    JAX EVOLVED: Old St. Luke’s Hospital Building Now Houses Jacksonville Historical Society

    Paul Davis Restoration, formerly Chevrolet Parts Depot, Springfield, Jacksonville, FL

    JAX EVOLVED: Paul Davis Restoration Gives Life to Old Chevrolet Parts Depot

    Old St. Andrew's Church building, Jacksonville, FL

    JAX EVOLVED: Old St. Andrew’s Church Building

    Novel Coworking / Groover-Stewart Drug Company Building, 25 N. Market Street, Jacksonville, FL - Image copyright 2020 Google

    JAX EVOLVED: Groover-Stewart Drug Company Building Now Houses Novel Coworking

    Dyal-Upchurch Building, Jacksonville, FL

    JAX EVOLVED: Downtown Jacksonville Adaptive Reuse Collection

    The Barnett, Jacksonville, FL

    JAX EVOLVED: The Barnett’s Long Journey to Redevelopment

    JAX EVOLVED: Brewster Hospital to North Florida Land Trust, LaVilla, Jacksonville, FL

    JAX EVOLVED: From Brewster Hospital to North Florida Land Trust

  • More
    • Culture
      • All
      • Art
      • Hidden Gems
      • Local Quirks
      • Music
      • Shopping
      Local Producer Alex Moye Releases New Album, “All I Need”

      Local Producer Alex Moye Releases New Album, “All I Need”

      Jacksonville Jazz Fest to Return This Fall

      Jacksonville Jazz Fest to Return This Fall

      Green Turtle Restaurant in Jacksonville, fl

      Remembering Joe Adeeb’s Green Turtle Restaurant

      Dockless Mobility Program Brings E-Scooters to Downtown Jacksonville

      Dockless Mobility Program Brings E-Scooters to Downtown Jacksonville

      MURAL SPOTLIGHT: Riverside Park Place by Jason Tetlak

      MURAL SPOTLIGHT: Riverside Park Place by Jason Tetlak

      “Jax River Jams” Concert Series Coming to Riverfront Plaza in April

      Sugar Ray, Quad City DJ’s Highlight Jax River Jams Lineup

      Art Notes - Jacksonville, FL

      ART NOTES: Jazz Discovery Series 2021 Kicks off Friday Night

      “Jax River Jams” Concert Series Coming to Riverfront Plaza in April

      “Jax River Jams” Concert Series Coming to Riverfront Plaza in April

      Joseph E. Lee Jacksonville's first black attorney

      Joseph E. Lee Was Jacksonville’s First Black Lawyer – and He Didn’t Stop There

    • Community
      Prati Italia Jacksonville FL

      How the Prati Italia Team Survived the Pandemic

      Jax-Based SipClean Debuts New Canned, Non-Alcoholic Rosé

      Jax-Based SipClean Debuts New Canned, Non-Alcoholic Rosé

      Cowford Chophouse Partners with JAMS for 2021 MOO-VE IT 5K

      Cowford Chophouse Partners with JAMS for 2021 MOO-VE IT 5K

      Taverna Meals for Medical Workers Jacksonville Baptist Health

      Taverna Gives Back to First Responders with “Meals for Medical Workers”

      Local Companies Anact, SurfearNEGRA Join Forces to Address Aquatic Inequality

      Local Companies Anact, SurfearNEGRA Join Forces to Address Aquatic Inequality

      The Pitman Sisters, TikTok video stars from Jacksonville, FL

      How “The Pitman Sisters” Became TikTok Famous During COVID-19

      Local Women in Cannabis, Jacksonville, FL

      Breaking the “Grass Ceiling”: Local Women in Cannabis

      Urban Mining Jacksonville FL

      How Urban Mining Utilizes Donations to Provide Computers for Local Kids

      Cowford Chophouse Teams Up with Jacksonville Arts & Music School for 4th Annual MOO-VE IT 5K

      Cowford Chophouse Raises Over $18,000 for Jacksonville Arts & Music School

    • Food + Drink
      • All
      • Beer
      • Reviews
      Southern Italian Deli Market Jacksonville FL

      Cugino’s Sausage Launches The Southern Italian Deli & Market

      Prati Italia Jacksonville FL

      How the Prati Italia Team Survived the Pandemic

      Crazy Beans Coffee Makes Debut Inside JRTC at LaVilla

      Crazy Beans Coffee Makes Debut Inside JRTC at LaVilla

      Green Turtle Restaurant in Jacksonville, fl

      Remembering Joe Adeeb’s Green Turtle Restaurant

      Dochi, Jacksonville, FL

      Japanese Donut Pop-Up Shop Dochi Coming to Town Center

      Jax-Based SipClean Debuts New Canned, Non-Alcoholic Rosé

      Jax-Based SipClean Debuts New Canned, Non-Alcoholic Rosé

      Taverna Meals for Medical Workers Jacksonville Baptist Health

      Taverna Gives Back to First Responders with “Meals for Medical Workers”

      The Homestead Restaurant, Jacksonville Beach, FL

      Long Before Taco Lu, There Was The Homestead Restaurant

      Norikase Jacksonville

      BENTO Group to Debut Norikase Concept in Jacksonville

    • Hidden Gems
    • Local Quirks
    • Lists
    • Sports
    • 904VIEWS
    • Seven Bridges
    • Music
No Result
View All Result
Subscribe
The Coastal
  • Development
    Building Up Jax - Jacksonville Construction and Development Updates Each Saturday

    Building Up Jax: South Moon Under coming to SJTC

    Building Up Jax - Jacksonville Construction and Development Updates Each Saturday

    Building Up Jax: Capriotti’s Sandwich Shop coming to Mandarin

    Building Up Jax - Jacksonville Construction and Development Updates Each Saturday

    Building Up Jax: Scramblers coming to Deerwood, Lakewood

    Building Up Jax - Jacksonville Construction and Development Updates Each Saturday

    Building Up Jax: Gucci to SJTC; Taverna debuting new concept

    Building Up Jax - Jacksonville Construction and Development Updates Each Saturday

    Building Up Jax: Dolly Llama to PVB; Lowe’s, Wawa to CR-210

    Building Up Jax - Jacksonville Construction and Development Updates Each Saturday

    Building Up Jax: Vestcor planning Lofts at San Marco East

    Building Up Jax - Jacksonville Construction and Development Updates Each Saturday

    Building Up Jax: Rockler Woodworking coming to SJTC

    Building Up Jax - Jacksonville Construction and Development Updates Each Saturday

    Building Up Jax: Sportsman’s Warehouse coming to River City Marketplace

    Building Up Jax - Jacksonville Construction and Development Updates Each Saturday

    Building Up Jax: Tesla expanding its local presence

  • History
    • All
    • Jax Evolved
    Florida Times-Union building

    Story of a Building: The Florida Times-Union Building

    Edgewood Bakery

    Remembering Edgewood Bakery: Once a Murray Hill Staple, Now an Empty Building

    jacksonville university

    A Brief History of Jacksonville University

    history of Ed wAters College

    A Brief History of Edward Waters College

    Worman's bAKERY AND DELI

    Remembering Worman’s Bakery and Deli

    Before Normandy Mall, There Was the Loew’s Normandy Drive-In Theatre

    Before Normandy Mall, There Was the Loew’s Normandy Drive-In Theatre

    Green Turtle Restaurant in Jacksonville, fl

    Remembering Joe Adeeb’s Green Turtle Restaurant

    San Marco Theater, San Marco, Jacksonville, FL

    Story of a Building: San Marco Theatre

    Sun-Ray Cinema building Five Points Jacksonville FL

    Story of a Building: Sun-Ray Cinema Building

  • Jax Evolved
    VyStar at 100 West Bay Street, Jacksonville, FL

    JAX EVOLVED: VyStar Reinvigorates the Former Life of the South Building

    JAX EVOLVED: San Marco Preservation Society Now Occupies South Jacksonville City Hall

    JAX EVOLVED: San Marco Preservation Society Now Occupies South Jacksonville City Hall

    Old St. Luke's Hospital jacksonville fl

    JAX EVOLVED: Old St. Luke’s Hospital Building Now Houses Jacksonville Historical Society

    Paul Davis Restoration, formerly Chevrolet Parts Depot, Springfield, Jacksonville, FL

    JAX EVOLVED: Paul Davis Restoration Gives Life to Old Chevrolet Parts Depot

    Old St. Andrew's Church building, Jacksonville, FL

    JAX EVOLVED: Old St. Andrew’s Church Building

    Novel Coworking / Groover-Stewart Drug Company Building, 25 N. Market Street, Jacksonville, FL - Image copyright 2020 Google

    JAX EVOLVED: Groover-Stewart Drug Company Building Now Houses Novel Coworking

    Dyal-Upchurch Building, Jacksonville, FL

    JAX EVOLVED: Downtown Jacksonville Adaptive Reuse Collection

    The Barnett, Jacksonville, FL

    JAX EVOLVED: The Barnett’s Long Journey to Redevelopment

    JAX EVOLVED: Brewster Hospital to North Florida Land Trust, LaVilla, Jacksonville, FL

    JAX EVOLVED: From Brewster Hospital to North Florida Land Trust

  • More
    • Culture
      • All
      • Art
      • Hidden Gems
      • Local Quirks
      • Music
      • Shopping
      Local Producer Alex Moye Releases New Album, “All I Need”

      Local Producer Alex Moye Releases New Album, “All I Need”

      Jacksonville Jazz Fest to Return This Fall

      Jacksonville Jazz Fest to Return This Fall

      Green Turtle Restaurant in Jacksonville, fl

      Remembering Joe Adeeb’s Green Turtle Restaurant

      Dockless Mobility Program Brings E-Scooters to Downtown Jacksonville

      Dockless Mobility Program Brings E-Scooters to Downtown Jacksonville

      MURAL SPOTLIGHT: Riverside Park Place by Jason Tetlak

      MURAL SPOTLIGHT: Riverside Park Place by Jason Tetlak

      “Jax River Jams” Concert Series Coming to Riverfront Plaza in April

      Sugar Ray, Quad City DJ’s Highlight Jax River Jams Lineup

      Art Notes - Jacksonville, FL

      ART NOTES: Jazz Discovery Series 2021 Kicks off Friday Night

      “Jax River Jams” Concert Series Coming to Riverfront Plaza in April

      “Jax River Jams” Concert Series Coming to Riverfront Plaza in April

      Joseph E. Lee Jacksonville's first black attorney

      Joseph E. Lee Was Jacksonville’s First Black Lawyer – and He Didn’t Stop There

    • Community
      Prati Italia Jacksonville FL

      How the Prati Italia Team Survived the Pandemic

      Jax-Based SipClean Debuts New Canned, Non-Alcoholic Rosé

      Jax-Based SipClean Debuts New Canned, Non-Alcoholic Rosé

      Cowford Chophouse Partners with JAMS for 2021 MOO-VE IT 5K

      Cowford Chophouse Partners with JAMS for 2021 MOO-VE IT 5K

      Taverna Meals for Medical Workers Jacksonville Baptist Health

      Taverna Gives Back to First Responders with “Meals for Medical Workers”

      Local Companies Anact, SurfearNEGRA Join Forces to Address Aquatic Inequality

      Local Companies Anact, SurfearNEGRA Join Forces to Address Aquatic Inequality

      The Pitman Sisters, TikTok video stars from Jacksonville, FL

      How “The Pitman Sisters” Became TikTok Famous During COVID-19

      Local Women in Cannabis, Jacksonville, FL

      Breaking the “Grass Ceiling”: Local Women in Cannabis

      Urban Mining Jacksonville FL

      How Urban Mining Utilizes Donations to Provide Computers for Local Kids

      Cowford Chophouse Teams Up with Jacksonville Arts & Music School for 4th Annual MOO-VE IT 5K

      Cowford Chophouse Raises Over $18,000 for Jacksonville Arts & Music School

    • Food + Drink
      • All
      • Beer
      • Reviews
      Southern Italian Deli Market Jacksonville FL

      Cugino’s Sausage Launches The Southern Italian Deli & Market

      Prati Italia Jacksonville FL

      How the Prati Italia Team Survived the Pandemic

      Crazy Beans Coffee Makes Debut Inside JRTC at LaVilla

      Crazy Beans Coffee Makes Debut Inside JRTC at LaVilla

      Green Turtle Restaurant in Jacksonville, fl

      Remembering Joe Adeeb’s Green Turtle Restaurant

      Dochi, Jacksonville, FL

      Japanese Donut Pop-Up Shop Dochi Coming to Town Center

      Jax-Based SipClean Debuts New Canned, Non-Alcoholic Rosé

      Jax-Based SipClean Debuts New Canned, Non-Alcoholic Rosé

      Taverna Meals for Medical Workers Jacksonville Baptist Health

      Taverna Gives Back to First Responders with “Meals for Medical Workers”

      The Homestead Restaurant, Jacksonville Beach, FL

      Long Before Taco Lu, There Was The Homestead Restaurant

      Norikase Jacksonville

      BENTO Group to Debut Norikase Concept in Jacksonville

    • Hidden Gems
    • Local Quirks
    • Lists
    • Sports
    • 904VIEWS
    • Seven Bridges
    • Music
No Result
View All Result
The Coastal
No Result
View All Result

The ’90s Revitalization Project That Tore Through Jacksonville’s Core

by The Coastal
October 3, 2017
in Development, Featured
Times-Union Center
Share on FacebookShare on Twitter

The latest efforts to revitalize downtown Jacksonville are far from the first attempt at doing so.

In fact, there were two massive urban revitalization projects undertaken by the city within a decade of each other. The latter project, dubbed the Better Jacksonville Plan, is one we’ve already delved into the past.

Today, we look at the predecessor to the Better Jacksonville Plan: the River City Renaissance plan.

The plan was born when state attorney Ed Austin defeated Tommy Hazouri to win the title of Jacksonville’s mayor in 1991. Austin began working on a plan to revitalize the city’s urban core, which had been in decline for years. Tasked with hammering out the details of this plan was chief administrator Lex Hester.

Hester had been a widely-respected figure during the city’s consolidation with Duval County in the ‘60s, and served as executive director of the commission tasked with eliminating the widespread corruption among city officials at the time. He left Jax for Broward County shortly after, but returned when Austin took office after being offered a significant raise.

Upon his return, Hester faced one of the biggest challenges of any city official up to that point: coming up with a feasible, affordable way to revive an urban core that had been on the decline since before he left town.

You MightAlso Like

Building Up Jax - Jacksonville Construction and Development Updates Each Saturday

Building Up Jax: South Moon Under coming to SJTC

Building Up Jax - Jacksonville Construction and Development Updates Each Saturday

Building Up Jax: Capriotti’s Sandwich Shop coming to Mandarin

Building Up Jax - Jacksonville Construction and Development Updates Each Saturday

Building Up Jax: Scramblers coming to Deerwood, Lakewood

Building Up Jax - Jacksonville Construction and Development Updates Each Saturday

Building Up Jax: Gucci to SJTC; Taverna debuting new concept

What he ended up coming up with by 1993 was a $235 million plan to revamp downtown’s historic neighborhoods.

Unfortunately, things never really turned out as planned.

An early stage of the project involved demolishing a large collection of older buildings to make room for future development. Many historic buildings, mostly concentrated in LaVilla and Brooklyn, were torn down during this stage. This included, among others, an old military jail and the infamous Ward Street bordellos.

Much of the once-prominent Ashley Street in LaVilla, once referred to as the Harlem of the South, was completely destroyed.

Once the dust cleared, the urban core was left with a collection of empty lots, with nothing but the occasional pieces of concrete and brick there to signify their previous use.

The plan was to fill these newly empty spaces with new private developments, but the development never happened. The anticipated hype for the revival of LaVilla and Brooklyn was never quite achieved. Significant new development wouldn’t come to Brooklyn for several more years – and for LaVilla, the wait continues as remaining properties continue to decline.

The ultimately fruitless destruction of historic structures wasn’t the Renaissance plan’s only shortcoming. A new convention center was promised, with plans for it to be located along the same stretch as the Landing and the newly-remodeled Times-Union Center for Performing Arts. These plans fell through, and haven’t been revisited since.

The plan also came with such a giant price tag that many residents expected much more – and many also complained about pumping all that money into such a limited part of the city.

Granted, there were positive developments that came from the River City Renaissance plan. As mentioned before, the Times-Union Center for Performing Arts was completely reworked to address complaints from visiting artists. The St. James building next to Hemming Park was bought by the city and renovated into a grand new city hall. The Sulzbacher Center, Jax’s primary homeless facility, was also constructed as a result of the plan – although the decision to place it downtown has arguably contributed to the homelessness problem in the urban core.

And while the price tag for the plan was high, it didn’t suffer from the same budgetary nightmares that its successor did.

So while there were positives to emerge from the plan, it’s difficult to overlook the negatives. Specifically, it’s frustrating to imagine what this current generation of developers and residents could have done with some of the historic properties that no longer exist. It’s equally frustrating to watch those properties rot away as empty lots, grass fields, and concrete remnants.

As we continue to embark on the path to a new generation of downtown revitalization, the River City Renaissance plan offers a cautionary tale of what can go wrong with such plans even with the best of intentions.

Tags: downtowndtjaxlavilla
Share30TweetSendShareShare
Previous Post

Building Up Jax: UberEATS expands to Jax, Wells Fargo Center re-opens

Next Post

The Coastal Fall 2017 Paper Edition Now Available!

The Coastal

The Coastal is a local magazine in Jacksonville, FL, founded in 2015 to bring you stories about the past, present, and future of the First Coast.

Related Posts

Building Up Jax - Jacksonville Construction and Development Updates Each Saturday

Building Up Jax: South Moon Under coming to SJTC

Building Up Jax - Jacksonville Construction and Development Updates Each Saturday

Building Up Jax: Capriotti’s Sandwich Shop coming to Mandarin

Building Up Jax - Jacksonville Construction and Development Updates Each Saturday

Building Up Jax: Scramblers coming to Deerwood, Lakewood

Building Up Jax - Jacksonville Construction and Development Updates Each Saturday

Building Up Jax: Gucci to SJTC; Taverna debuting new concept

Building Up Jax - Jacksonville Construction and Development Updates Each Saturday

Building Up Jax: Dolly Llama to PVB; Lowe’s, Wawa to CR-210

Building Up Jax - Jacksonville Construction and Development Updates Each Saturday

Building Up Jax: Vestcor planning Lofts at San Marco East

Next Post
The Coastal Fall 2017

The Coastal Fall 2017 Paper Edition Now Available!

Building Up Jax - Jacksonville Development and Construction News Every Saturday - The Coastal

Building Up Jax: Noted projects including Cinnaholic, Blaze Pizza

Main Street Bridge

904VIEWS: Jacksonville's Seven Bridges

Comments 1

  1. Pingback: Jacksonville’s Beautiful St. James Building is Now Its City Hall - Adapt + Reuse

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

LATEST POSTS

Building Up Jax - Jacksonville Construction and Development Updates Each Saturday
Development

Building Up Jax: South Moon Under coming to SJTC

South Moon Under to SJTC A new fashion retailer is coming to St. Johns Town Center. South Moon Under received...

Read more
Building Up Jax - Jacksonville Construction and Development Updates Each Saturday

Building Up Jax: Capriotti’s Sandwich Shop coming to Mandarin

Building Up Jax - Jacksonville Construction and Development Updates Each Saturday

Building Up Jax: Scramblers coming to Deerwood, Lakewood

Building Up Jax - Jacksonville Construction and Development Updates Each Saturday

Building Up Jax: Gucci to SJTC; Taverna debuting new concept

Building Up Jax - Jacksonville Construction and Development Updates Each Saturday

Building Up Jax: Dolly Llama to PVB; Lowe’s, Wawa to CR-210

The Coastal

© 2015-2021 Cowford Media / The Coastal Jacksonville LLC. All rights reserved.

Browse by Section

  • News
  • Culture
  • History
  • In the Community
  • Food + Drink
  • Sports
  • About

Follow Us

No Result
View All Result
  • News
    • Development
  • Culture
  • History
    • Jax Evolved
  • In the Community
  • Food + Drink
  • Sports
  • About
    • Contact Us
    • Submit Your Story
    • Advertise

© 2015-2021 Cowford Media / The Coastal Jacksonville LLC. All rights reserved.