JACKSONVILLE, Fla. -- The City wants to invest $11 million to revitalize Downtown and create jobs all across our area. $9 million of the money would be used to improve Downtown. The additional $2 million is slated for economic expansion throughout the city.
The investments, which still need to be approved by the City Council, come from the mayor's debt refinancing. “This is a better chance than we have seen in many years to help increase the value of our urban core, our city’s heart and soul,” said Mayor Brown. "I look forward to working with our City Council, the business community and all stakeholders to ensure that these investments pay dividends for many years to come."
Mayor Brown has made reinvigorating Downtown a strategic priority. A recent survey of residents by the
JAX2025 initiative found that their top issue is improving Downtown Jacksonville.
“After surveying 14,000 people about the most important issue facing Jacksonville, the top issue by a 2-to-1 margin was improving Downtown,” said Ben Warner, president and CEO of Jacksonville Community Council Inc., the organization spearheading the JAX2025 visioning study. “So we’re excited that we’ll be able to see results so quickly after asking people about their vision for Jacksonville.”
Because the money comes from savings, it would allow the city to make improvements without taking on any more debt.
