Urbanism and Culture on Florida's First Coast. https://www.thejaxsonmag.com Today, the average person will struggle to find a restaurant to dine along the river in downtown that is not located inside of a hotel. However, riverfront dining was a part of downtown's identity for more than a century. Here is a look at seven downtown riverfront dining experiences that no longer exist. - 1. Ocean Street Market *Location: The foot of Ocean Street * A 1928 Sanborn Map of the Ocean Street market. | Jacksonville Public Library Special Collections Department Prior to World War II, the foot of Ocean Street was Jacksonville’s answer to the kind of interactive riverfront tourists seek when visiting... Wed, 11 Mar 2026 11:00:00 -0400 https://www.thejaxsonmag.com/article/7-riverfront-dining-experiences-that-no-longer-exist/ https://www.thejaxsonmag.com/article/7-riverfront-dining-experiences-that-no-longer-exist/ After a failed attempt to acquire the DCPS Southbank headquarters, Fleet Landing now has plans for a 32-story tower in Brooklyn at 111 Riverside Avenue. The project will seek conceptual approval from the Downtown Development Review Board on March 12, 2026. Here is a look at the project's conceptual plans. Let us know what you think! - GENERAL INFORMATION Application 2026-003 seeks conceptual approval for a housing development serving the elderly. The project encompasses approximately 500,000 square feet and includes 239 residential units, 40 licensed care units, and a variety of resident amenities. The subject property is located on the site of the former Haskell headquarters in... Sat, 07 Mar 2026 03:00:00 -0500 https://www.thejaxsonmag.com/article/fleet-landing-riverside-seeks-ddrb-conceptual-approval/ https://www.thejaxsonmag.com/article/fleet-landing-riverside-seeks-ddrb-conceptual-approval/ Baptist Health is proposing to build a 15-story, 226-key hotel at its Southbank medical campus. The project will seek conceptual approval from the Downtown Development Review Board on March 12, 2026. Here is a look at the project's conceptual plans. Let us know what you think! - Application 2026-002 seeks conceptual approval for an approximately 226 key hotel with conference and event space, a rooftop lounge, restaurant, and ground floor café. The proposed 15-story hotel development would be a mix of boutique hotel and extended stay including amenities. The project incorporates 3-story parking on-site. The site is... Thu, 05 Mar 2026 17:00:00 -0500 https://www.thejaxsonmag.com/article/baptist-health-jax-hotel-headed-to-ddrb/ https://www.thejaxsonmag.com/article/baptist-health-jax-hotel-headed-to-ddrb/ We’re just two weeks out from State of the South: Jacksonville - sign up now before registration closes at the end of this week! - MDC and LISC Jacksonville are partnering to host a convening March 10th-12th at Mt. Bethel Missionary Baptist Church about community resilience in the face of development, climate, and other pressures. Session topics include Southern data, heirs’ property, community organizing, food access, family supports, disaster recovery, storytelling, and more. We are... Wed, 04 Mar 2026 03:00:00 -0500 https://www.thejaxsonmag.com/article/register-for-state-of-the-south-jacksonville/ https://www.thejaxsonmag.com/article/register-for-state-of-the-south-jacksonville/ On Friday, February 27, the Jacksonville Aviation Authority hosted a behind-the-scenes walking tour of the Jacksonville International Airport Concourse B construction site for members of the media. Here is a look at where things currently stand along with what's to come. - A rendering of Concourse B. | Jacksonville International Airport The behind-the-scenes tour was led by Nick Marollo, a Jacobs Engineering project representative. The behind-the-scenes tour began with a look at the lower level of Concourse B. Moving to the main level, here is a view of Concourse C. The Oak... Sat, 28 Feb 2026 20:00:00 -0500 https://www.thejaxsonmag.com/article/a-behind-the-scenes-look-at-jaxs-concourse-b/ https://www.thejaxsonmag.com/article/a-behind-the-scenes-look-at-jaxs-concourse-b/ Founded in 1995 by Patrick D. Bienvenue, Rosemary Beach is a New Urbanism–inspired planned community located just west of Panama City Beach. Its design draws inspiration from the French Quarter in New Orleans. - Bisected by County Road 30A just west of U.S. 98, Rosemary Beach was designed by Duany Plater-Zyberk & Company. The 105-acre, Gulf-front community includes more than 400 homesites and a mixed-use town center. The development is named for Rosemary Milligan, the entrepreneur who sold the Bienvenue family the property. A... Sun, 22 Feb 2026 20:00:00 -0500 https://www.thejaxsonmag.com/article/a-walk-through-walton-countys-rosemary-beach/ https://www.thejaxsonmag.com/article/a-walk-through-walton-countys-rosemary-beach/ In honor of Black History Month, here are eleven historic African American cultural heritage destinations in Jacksonville to visit. - Cedar Point Preserve 7222 Cedar Point Rd. The ruins of the Fitzpatrick Plantation at Cedar Point are near the southern tip of Black Hammock Island. Built in the late 1700s, land was originally granted to Samuel Mills and later acquired by the Fitzpatrick family. Enslaved African laborers were forced to... Mon, 16 Feb 2026 21:00:00 -0500 https://www.thejaxsonmag.com/article/11-black-cultural-heritage-sites-to-visit-in-town/ https://www.thejaxsonmag.com/article/11-black-cultural-heritage-sites-to-visit-in-town/ The story of Jacksonville can be tasted as much as it can be told. Especially amongst Jacksonville's Gullah Geechee community. The Gullah Geechee descended from enslaved Central and West Africans who worked the plantations of the Lowcountry in the coastal Southeastern United States. After the abolition of slavery, the Gullah Geechee settled in remote areas, in particular the barrier islands stretching from North Carolina to Northeast Florida, where they formed a unique culture and strong communal ties that remain today. - Food has always been at the heart of Gullah Geechee life. This is certainly true in Jacksonville, where foodways are a bridge between land, water, ancestry, and memory. Drawing from West and Central African, Native American, European, and Caribbean traditions, the region’s cuisine tells a story of creativity born from... Wed, 11 Feb 2026 03:00:00 -0500 https://www.thejaxsonmag.com/article/the-gullah-geechee-roots-of-jacksonvilles-cuisine/ https://www.thejaxsonmag.com/article/the-gullah-geechee-roots-of-jacksonvilles-cuisine/ In town for a business trip, The Jaxson's Ennis Davis shares a few sights and scenes from the streets of a snow covered Downtown Cleveland. - The 52-story Terminal Tower was the second-tallest building in the world when it was completed in 1926. The 36-story Sherwin-Williams Headquarters was completed in 2024. At 616 feet, it is the fourth-tallest building in the city. Public Square is a five-acre central plaza in the heart of downtown Cleveland. It... Tue, 10 Feb 2026 03:00:00 -0500 https://www.thejaxsonmag.com/article/sights-scenes-downtown-cleveland/ https://www.thejaxsonmag.com/article/sights-scenes-downtown-cleveland/ In his first book since 2014, Jaxson co-owner Ennis Davis has collaborated with urban planner and historian Adrienne Burke to highlight the story of Jacksonville's Gullah Geechee Heritage. Preorder your author signed copy of Jacksonville's Gullah Geechee Heritage today. - Jacksonville’s Gullah Geechee Heritage The Jaxson is pleased to announce that one of our co-owners and editors is publishing a new book. Jacksonville’s Gullah Geechee Heritage, a collaboration between local urban planners and historians Ennis Davis and Adrienne Burke, will be released by Arcadia Publishing on April 28, 2026. Jacksonville,... Sun, 08 Feb 2026 20:00:00 -0500 https://www.thejaxsonmag.com/article/book-explores-jacksonvilles-gullah-geechee-heritage/ https://www.thejaxsonmag.com/article/book-explores-jacksonvilles-gullah-geechee-heritage/ Centered around Ward Street in LaVilla, Jacksonville's notorious early 20th century red light district was a dense and complicated landscape that most Jaxsons know very little about. Home to more than 60 bordellos and popular madams Cora Crane, Belle Orloff and Lyda De Camp, here are five forgotten facts associated with the district. - “Disorderly houses,” not brothels Owned by Cora Taylor Crane, The Court was the red light district’s largest disorderly house. Located at the southwest corner of Ward and Davis Streets, Crane purchased the property from the parents of James Weldon and John Rosamond Johnson in 1902. The transaction was handled by... Sun, 01 Feb 2026 03:00:00 -0500 https://www.thejaxsonmag.com/article/inside-lavillas-long-forgotten-red-light-district/ https://www.thejaxsonmag.com/article/inside-lavillas-long-forgotten-red-light-district/ Since 2019, the Great Cities Symposium has brought substantive civic and business leaders to Jacksonville from peer cities to share their experience and expertise leading impactful projects in their communities. This year urban design luminary Victor Dover is the featured speaker at the 2026 Great Cities Symposium on February 5th, presented by Gateway Jax and Scenic Jacksonville. - Victor Dover, FAICP, has spent a career proving that good planning is not an abstract ideal but a practical tool for shaping places people love. As a founding principal of Dover, Kohl & Partners, Dover has helped cities and towns across the United States—and around the world—rethink how neighborhoods, streets,... Fri, 30 Jan 2026 03:00:00 -0500 https://www.thejaxsonmag.com/article/scenic-jacksonvilles-2026-great-cities-symposium/ https://www.thejaxsonmag.com/article/scenic-jacksonvilles-2026-great-cities-symposium/ Redevelopment has begun at 721 N. Pearl Street, where the long-standing First Baptist Church Lighthouse Garage is being transformed into an activated retail destination. - Gateway Jax, a Jacksonville-based commercial real estate development firm, today announced it has broken ground on 721 N. Pearl Street. The project will convert an existing parking structure into a retail-oriented anchor, serving as a cornerstone for a new pedestrian shopping corridor along Beaver Street within the Pearl Square neighborhood.... Mon, 26 Jan 2026 04:00:00 -0500 https://www.thejaxsonmag.com/article/gateway-jax-breaks-ground-on-721-n-pearl-street/ https://www.thejaxsonmag.com/article/gateway-jax-breaks-ground-on-721-n-pearl-street/ Set on a narrow peninsula shaped by the Arlington River and Big and Little Pottsburg Creeks, the neighborhoods surrounding the intersection of Atlantic Boulevard and University Boulevard hold some of Jacksonville’s oldest continuously occupied homes. These waterways and crossroads have long defined the character of Oak Haven and Love Grove. The following five intersecting facts explore highlights their shared history. - The birthplace of the Woody’s Bar-B-Q chain The original Woody’s Bar-B-Q restaurant at 1638 University Boulevard South. Nearly fifty years ago, Woody and Yolanda Mills-Mawman set out to open a restaurant inspired by their love of barbecue and a collection of cherished homemade recipes. Drawing from the South’s time-honored barbecue... Mon, 26 Jan 2026 03:00:00 -0500 https://www.thejaxsonmag.com/article/the-historic-neighborhoods-at-atlantic-and-university/ https://www.thejaxsonmag.com/article/the-historic-neighborhoods-at-atlantic-and-university/ Tucked along the west bank of the St. Johns River, just north of Downtown Jacksonville, the neighborhood of Fairfield holds a history far richer than its modest footprint suggests. Once a thriving hub of entertainment, innovation, and ambition, Fairfield played a formative role in Jacksonville’s early growth. Over time, however, waves of industrialization and large-scale infrastructure projects reshaped the area, leaving behind a layered legacy that mirrors the broader story of urban development in Northeast Florida. - A Vision Born After the Civil War The intersection of Parker and Swift Streets. Parker Street is named after Fairfield’s founder, Jacob S. Parker. Fairfield’s story begins in the aftermath of the Civil War, during a period when Jacksonville was rapidly rebuilding and redefining itself. In the late 1860s, Jacob... Tue, 20 Jan 2026 03:00:00 -0500 https://www.thejaxsonmag.com/article/7-historical-facts-about-fairfield/ https://www.thejaxsonmag.com/article/7-historical-facts-about-fairfield/ On January 13, the Cummer Museum of Art & Gardens will use art and memory to tackle one of Jacksonville’s lesser-known stories: how water, development, and displacement have shaped the city’s neighborhoods. - An Evening to Explore the Intersection of Art & Infrastructure Tides of Transformation: Water, Memory, and the Shaping of Jacksonville brings together artist Calida Rawles and a panel of local historians, planners, and community advocates for a public conversation inspired by the Cummer’s current exhibition, Calida Rawles: Away with the... Tue, 13 Jan 2026 03:00:00 -0500 https://www.thejaxsonmag.com/article/exploring-the-intersection-of-art-infrastructure/ https://www.thejaxsonmag.com/article/exploring-the-intersection-of-art-infrastructure/ Located six miles southeast of downtown Jacksonville, Sans Souci is a mid-century community with an interesting story. Suited along Dean Road, just west of University Boulevard and south of Beach Boulevard, here are six fascinating historical facts about Sans Souci that you might not know. - Sans Souci was developed as a planned community A 1958 Sans Souci sales advertisement in the Florida Times-Union. | Florida Times-Union Sans Souci was developed as a planned community by the Adolph Wurn Corporation, founded by Adolph Wurn (1890–1974). Born in Lwów, Poland, in 1890, Wurn immigrated to the United... Mon, 12 Jan 2026 11:00:00 -0500 https://www.thejaxsonmag.com/article/6-things-you-didnt-know-about-sans-souci/ https://www.thejaxsonmag.com/article/6-things-you-didnt-know-about-sans-souci/ One woman shares her struggle trying to get swastikas removed from her community. - Sasha drives down County Road 121 in Union County everyday to go to work. It’s a scenic drive, but she listens to her jams to feel a last bit of freedom before going into the office. When she saw there would be construction on a particular stretch, she chose another... Sat, 03 Jan 2026 03:00:00 -0500 https://www.thejaxsonmag.com/article/the-struggle-to-remove-hate-signs/ https://www.thejaxsonmag.com/article/the-struggle-to-remove-hate-signs/ Here is a trip down memory lane, highlighting five early 20th century Jacksonville parks that don’t exist anymore. - Mason Park Stanton College Preparatory School opened in 1953 on the former location of Mason Park. | Ennis Davis, AICP On August 22, 1903, the North Jacksonville Street Railway, Town and Improvement Company launched streetcar service for Jacksonville’s Black community. Organized by prominent Black leaders R. R. Robinson, H. Mason,... Mon, 15 Dec 2025 08:00:00 -0500 https://www.thejaxsonmag.com/article/five-jacksonville-parks-that-dont-exist-anymore/ https://www.thejaxsonmag.com/article/five-jacksonville-parks-that-dont-exist-anymore/ Surrounded by McCoys Creek and Interstates 10 and 95, North Riverside is a collection of several small subdivision plats developed in the early 20th century during the aftermath of the Great Fire of 1901. Here’s a photographic journey into the history of various sites in a neighborhood significantly impacted by heavy industry and expressway construction. - Our Lady of the Angels Catholic Church Our Lady of the Angels Catholic Church was the second Roman Catholic parish established in Jacksonville. Founded in 1915, it was created to serve the city’s expanding population in the years following the Great Fire of 1901. After decades of declining membership, the... Mon, 08 Dec 2025 03:00:00 -0500 https://www.thejaxsonmag.com/article/6-historic-north-riverside-photographs/ https://www.thejaxsonmag.com/article/6-historic-north-riverside-photographs/