As cities age, they must figure out what to do with historic buildings that have outlived their original purpose.
For many years, Jacksonville’s most common solution to this dilemma was to just demolish the buildings. It’s why there are so many surface parking lots and parking garages downtown, and why LaVilla is full of empty lots rather than the historic buildings that once sat there.
But increasingly, over the past few decades, local historic properties have begun to receive the respect they deserve. Adaptive reuse projects – that is, projects wherein an existing building is repurposed after losing its original tenant – have sprung up across the city, from downtown to San Marco to Springfield and beyond.
These are just a few of the prime examples of what can happen when a developer is willing to put in the time, money, and patience required for an adaptive reuse project.
Prior to 2003, much of what was left of the old Normandy Mall was vacant and rotting away.
The mall had closed in the ‘90s, and part of the property had already been redeveloped into a shopping center.
Then along came Potter’s House Christian Fellowship with a bit of divine intervention.
The church bought the remains of the mall for $4 million and pumped an additional $7.5 million into renovating it. Part of the mall was torn down, splitting it into two separate buildings. A former anchor store within one half was converted into a new megachurch for Potter’s House.
The other half became a rebuilt mini-shopping mall, building upon the original structure of the Normandy Mall. This portion officially re-opened in 2007, with a collection of tenants including Soul Food Bistro, a large bowling alley and pro bowling shop, a fitness center, and several other small shops and amenities. The revamped mini-mall was given the name Kingdom Plaza.
Thanks to the work of Potter’s House, the old Normandy Mall still lives on after over fifty years.
