JACKSONVILLE, Fla. — Jacksonville’s Eastside - one of the city’s most historic areas - is now looking to stay in step with the future vision of a new and improved downtown Jacksonville.
City officials and community members gathered Thursday to unveil the new and improved Union Terminal Warehouse.
>>> STREAM ACTION NEWS JAX LIVE <<<
First built in 1913, the building served as the largest industrial building in Jacksonville for decades.
Now, it’s a 330,000 square foot mixed use development, with apartments, office and restaurant space, and a grand rooftop view of downtown and the stadium district.
“There’s not been substantial investment in the Eastside for almost six decades,” Suzanne Pickett, President and CEO of the Historic East Side CDC, said. “So this is a substantial investment, and just a catalyst for continuing investment and our work in revitalization in the Eastside.”
[DOWNLOAD: Free Action News Jax app for alerts as news breaks]
Supporters see the $72 million revitalization as a solid investment in an area many considered to be left behind, but it’s an area rich with Jacksonville history.
“That’s where somebody made a mark on the wall to store warehouse carts,” project developer Ryan Akin said during a tour of the building Thursday. “It just tells part of the story and the next tenants or business that occupies this space, they’ll add to the story.”
[SIGN UP: Action News Jax Daily Headlines Newsletter]
Now – the hope is the project can serve to not just preserve those rich pieces of history in Jacksonville’s Eastside, but usher in the new and exciting era of development with Jacksonville’s new “Stadium of the Future” set to arrive in the coming years.
“We actually sit in the middle where the heart of all of this development that’s around us,” Pickett said. “So our goal is for the work in the Eastside and the revitalization to be a compliment to all of the work in the neighborhoods around us.”
Click here to download the free Action News Jax news and weather apps, click here to download the Action News Jax Now app for your smart TV and click here to stream Action News Jax live.
