JACKSONVILLE, Fla. — The Jacksonville Sheriff’s Office headquarters has officially closed its downtown location to the public.
In a news release, a JSO spokeswoman said Thursday was its last day open to the public before it reopens on Sept. 28 at its new facility in Brooklyn.
JSO headquarters is moving just a few miles south down the banks of the St. Johns River into the Florida Blue building off Riverside Avenue — a 20-story building that overlooks the river.
“The Police Memorial Building was nearly 50 years old and had numerous issues, including HVAC problems, leaks, lack of storage, and limited parking,” said Vic Micolucci, strategic communications executive at JSO.
“The agency outgrew the space for the hundreds of investigative and administrative employees who work each day. JSO is a modern and evolving agency that is growing to support our growing city.”
JSO says District 2 through 6 substations will remain open throughout the duration of the move, so they don’t expect any lapse in public services. District 1, however, will be closed starting tomorrow, Friday, Sept. 11, as it moves into the new facility.
“The Jacksonville Sheriff’s Office remains fully operational during the transition to the new headquarters,” JSO said in a news release.
“JSO will keep the public updated and release more details when the public services facilities are up and running in Riverside later this month. That will include exact addresses for services, parking information, and other relevant details to serve the city.”
But now that the headquarters will no longer be next to the jail, some people we spoke with wondered what’s going to replace that space.
“I would definitely like to see something that’s family-friendly, some type of entertainment venue,” said Russell Jackson, a Jacksonville resident for over 30 years. “We got prime real estate — make Jacksonville stand out from other river cities. (It could) be a huge, huge opportunity for this city.”
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Other residents say the city needs to have more affordable entertainment to build up the community and keep young people from ending up in the jail next door.
“They want to enjoy their time away from school and studies, but they also don’t want to get locked up or get in trouble,” said Jessenia Mitchell, another Jacksonville resident.
“People need places they can go hang out and just mingle without having to necessarily pay $100,” said Alissa Deacon, another Jacksonville resident.
The JSO headquarters move comes as the city plans to identify three potential relocation sites for the Duval County Jail.
Action News Jax asked the city if there are plans for the headquarters space, how long they expect it to sit empty, if they plan on selling to developers and what neighborhood businesses and residents can expect.
In a statement, a city spokeswoman said:
“The city will assess what temporary benefits the property might provide, with the understanding that once the existing jail property also becomes available, the combination of the two will provide much bigger options to review and consider.”
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