A nearly $15 million renovation to make Jacksonville’s southbank riverwalk safer and more enjoyable for you is now underway.
The plans unveiled today include replacing now breaking and decaying wood with concrete, adding new lighting, more shade and seating space, floating docks and more.
“We have a beautiful river and it’s a shame not to have something that we can be really proud of and get on, and now we’re going to have that,” says Councilman Don Redman, who represents the southbank.
The funding for this project was actually approved years ago, and at that time, the price tag covered the entire renovation. Now, however, the easternmost portion of the riverwalk will not be included. Haskell Company, which is leading the project, says the pricing now vs. more than two years ago doesn’t bring in as much.
And that’s not the end of the obstacles the city expects to face in order to complete this project.
“At almost every single turn, we encountered some legitimate problem,” says Jacksonville’s Chief Administrative Officer Karen Bowling.
They’ve already had to work extensively with businesses along the southbank concerned about the noise level associated with construction.
The demolition on the Maritime Museum by the Friendship Fountain will take place this month, and then after Florida/Georgia the second phase of the project will begin tearing up existing wood on sections of the riverwalk starting in the east and working west. New construction will begin as demo starts to move forward.
Haskell says the materials are all designed to reduce the maintenance and operations cost for the city, like LED lighting. The lighting will also be able to change color based on events in town, like the Jaguar games.
Sign Up
