JACKSONVILLE, Fla. — Action News Jax’s Ben Becker has confirmed another major downtown employer may be considering leaving the area, citing ongoing safety concerns.
EverBank is exploring potentially moving its offices from the EverBank Center on 301 West Bay Street - and more than 700 employees - to a location outside downtown.
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Those familiar with the situation say the bank has raised concerns about security issues near its downtown offices, along with a lack of available employee parking.
At the same time, sources tell Becker the City of Jacksonville is offering EverBank $9.8 million over the next ten years in an effort to keep the company downtown.
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Action News Jax first reported last year that Citizens Insurance announced it was also leaving the EverBank Center, citing incidents in which employees were harassed by homeless individuals.
Action News Jax reached out to the Mayor’s Office, which did not acknowledge the specific proposal, only saying, “We absolutely want one of our largest employers to remain downtown, and city leaders have been discussing how to best achieve that goal. The proposal will be reviewed and finalized by the Downtown Investment Authority Board in the coming weeks.”
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Downtown Vision’s annual “State of Downtown” report in 2025 already highlighted the need to fill empty office space. According to the report, Jacksonville’s office vacancies sat at 25.7 percent, which comes in more than six percent higher than both the national average as well as the next highest mark by a major Florida metro.
The potential EverBank move is expected to be discussed Monday morning during a meeting of the Special Committee on the Future of Downtown.
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