Details of Roosevelt Square’s conversion into Ortega Park are becoming clearer.
The West Jacksonville shopping center operates on almost 29 acres at 4495 Roosevelt Blvd. The location is east along Roosevelt Boulevard between San Juan and Wabash avenues.
Developer and owner Dewberry Group already demolished the former Belk store and cleared that site and renovated and expanded the building anchored by Stein Mart to include Ulta Beauty and other stores.
In the next step, Atlanta-based Dewberry Group wants to demolish and rebuild parts of the center. Construction plans filed with the St. Johns River Water Management District show how.
• The center is 311,220 square feet.
• Dewberry will demolish 100,536 square feet. That includes the set of inline stores attached to the south of the Publix supermarket.
• It will build 93,275 square feet. That includes a new set of tenant spaces next to Publix; another building in front of the structure anchored by Metro Diner and Chase bank; and three smaller buildings next to Chick-fil-A and Taco Bell/KFC.
• The new building near Metro Diner will create a block of four multitenant retail structures with the “Ortega Alley” walkway through them.
• New entrances and roundabouts are planned on both sides of that block of structures. A streamlined traffic flow is shown throughout he property.
• The mall then will be 303,959 square feet.
The water management district is reviewing the construction plans.
Dewberry Group and civil engineer Mark Dowst & Associates Inc. of Daytona Beach want to replace existing stormwater ponds with structures called baffle boxes to reduce the nutrients discharging into the nearby St. Johns River.
Future development areas are planned near the former Belk site and the southern end of the Publix-anchored retail building.
The dewberrygroup.com site says Ortega Park will grow to nearly 700,000 square feet and include Class A multifamily “lifestyle experiences.”
Renderings show an apartment complex on the south end of the property near the vacant site where the Belk store was demolished.
“Coming soon: Ortega Park” says one sign on the property, which also shows the logo for “Dewberry Living.”
Roosevelt Square was built 58 years ago as an enclosed shopping mall.
Dewberry bought the property in 1997. It renovated the center in 1999 and 2003.
“With a third phase of renovations currently underway, Ortega Park will grow to nearly 700,000 sf and include upscale shopping, dining, and Class-A multi-family lifestyle experiences,” says the website.
“The retail expansion and upgrade will feature Ortega Alley – an expanse of pedestrian engagement befitting the area’s increasingly active culture.”
The city is reviewing building permits for four new retail buildings totaling about 45,000 square feet of space and the renovation and partial demolition of another structure.
