Check out the seven new hotels bringing 1,100 more hotel rooms to downtown Jacksonville
Jacksonville will soon see more than 1,000 new hotel rooms built in the urban core.
For years, Jacksonville -- and particularly its urban core -- has struggled with a shortage of hotel rooms.
That seems about to change.
Over the coming years, some 1,109 new hotel rooms will be entering the downtown market.
Plans are underway for a Hotel Indigo at 100 W. Bay St. and a Courtyard at Marriott is part of the Laura Street Trio project. A Residence Inn planned for Brooklyn is going through the city planning process, and the new owners of the Ambassador Hotel have said they’ll refurbish it into 100 rooms.
These developments could be a boon for Jacksonville's tourism industry and for downtown in general: growth in the hospitality industry impacts downtown businesses in a number of ways, said Jacksonville Downtown Investment Authority CEO Aundra Wallace. An increase in number of rooms brings more meeting space. More hotels mean more opportunity for retail to thrive in and around the hotels.
The introduction of a Marriott concept and smaller-scale Hyatt concept to downtown also helps draw loyalty business travelers from hotels in other neighborhoods to the urban core.
“We’re pushing these projects because we believe the ability for the market to absorb it,” said Wallace. “This allows us to see different projects come online, be redeveloped and increase the bottom line of a tax from the district.”
In all the flurry of development, here's what you need to know about the hotels coming to downtown Jacksonville.
Berkman Plaza: 312 rooms
This building, which has sat dormant since a 2007 construction accident that killed a worker, will soon have new life. The Berkman Plaza II at 500 E. Bay St. will be redeveloped into a mixed-use project that includes a 312-room hotel, parking garage with 500 spaces and a riverfront entertainment area. General contractor Robert Ohde said the project is expected to cost about $150 million.
Ambassador Hotel: 100 rooms
St. Augustine-based development company Axis Hotels LLC bought five parcels of downtown land, including the former Ambassador Hotel, with the intention of renovating. Plans include a four- or five-star hotel with 100 rooms and a rooftop bar, as well as 200 apartments and 15,000 square feet of retail space.
The building at 420 N. Julia Street has been abandoned since 1998.
Marriott Residence Inn: 135 rooms
In Brooklyn, Parkview Plaza Partners LLC is working on a 135-room hotel at the corner of Magnolia Street and Forest Street. The project narrowly received conceptual approval at last week's Downtown Development and Review Board meeting following criticism of its design.
Baywood Hotels Inc. is planning a surface parking lot at the front, with street view of the property while the hotel wraps around a vacant lot at the back end. Some members of the review board felt the design lacked street-front activation.
Marriott AC Hotel: 200 rooms
At the massive planned mixed-use development on the Southbank, Elements of Jacksonville LLC, has a purchase a sale agreement on a 30-acre parcel of land. Elements, a subsidiary of a company led by developer Peter Rummell and Dalton Agency's Michael Munz, is planning to builda 200-room AC hotel, which Munz described as a "design-led brand" owned by Marriott. While the project is still waiting on many moving parts, the planned hotel would mark a new concept for Jacksonville.
Marriott Courtyard: 145 rooms
Part of Steve Atkins' $100 million downtown development at the Laura Street Trio is the development of a Marriott Courtyard hotelwith 145 rooms. The building will also house retail and restaurant space. Though the project has been stretched out over almost a decade so far, recent progress at the Barnett Bank building has added confidence to Atkins' plan.
Hotel Indigo: 89 rooms
This hotel received final DDRB approval in May. Profit Investment Partners plans to renovate a building at the corner of Bay and Laura streets into a hotel with a rooftop restaurant and bar – and 89 hotel rooms. Along with queen- and king-size bedrooms, the hotel will have a fitness center on the fourth floor.
Hyatt Place: 128 rooms
In March, the DIA approved development rights for Mainstreet CV 76 S. Laura St. LLC to build a 128-room hotel on property at the intersection of Water Street/Independent Drive and Hogan Street. A conceptual workshop was held last week. This would be another new flag for Jacksonville's urban core.
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