Reviews continue for the first area AquaSonic car wash proposed in Jacksonville.
AquaSonicCarWash.com says the AquaSonic Jacksonville (University) at 3216 University Blvd. S. is “coming soon.”
A second “coming soon” is shown as AquaSonic Jacksonville (Normandy) but without an address. City utility JEA records show that location as 7002 Normandy Blvd.
For the first, the St. Johns River Water Management District is reviewing an environmental resource permit application submitted for the project Oct. 27 to redevelop the closed Piccadilly cafeteria site at northwest Beach and University boulevards.
The permit is for the development of a 1.82-acre site into a car wash with drive-thru lanes, automatic pay stations and vacuum stalls along with landscape areas, stormwater management systems and other utility services.
Dynamic Engineering Consultants PC of Delray Beach is the civil engineer. The property is owned by the Elizabeth H. Blow Irrevocable Life Insurance Trust of St. Augustine.
Dynamic Earth of Delray Beach prepared a geotechnical report about the project for HCW Acquisitions LLC, in care of Henley Car Wash LP of West Palm Beach.
It says the existing building would be demolished and the site prepared with a 5,000-square-foot car wash.
JEA issued a service availability letter Oct. 18, 2024, for the project.
The loopnet.com real estate site shows the 12,000-square-foot former Piccadilly, built in 1985, is available and that the structure can be removed for site redevelopment.
Piccadilly, which offered Southern comfort food, closed in 2023 after operating in the city for more than 50 years.
Goldstein Commercial Properties Inc. is representing the property for a ground lease.
For the Normandy site, JEA issued a service availability determination letter July 25 for a 1.66-acre site at 7002 Normandy Blvd. in West Jacksonville, east of Interstate 295. It is west of a Walmart Supercenter.
The proposed project involves construction of a 5,200-square-foot automated car wash facility,
A 6,465-square-foot former medical building occupies the site, which is owned by a limited liability company led by Chesapeake-Portsmouth Broadcasting Corp.
A JEA request indicates a project is being explored and not that a deal has been done.
A new player
AquaSonic automated express car wash is a new player developing in the U.S. market, starting in Florida.
On March 18, 2025, AquaSonic Car Wash announced the groundbreaking of its first Hillsborough County location in Tampa.
On AquaSonicCarWash.com, the company said it would be AquaSonic’s second in Florida after New Port Richey. That opened June 25.
The company website shows 12 coming soon that, in addition to Jacksonville, are in Bradenton, Lake Worth, Ocoee, Port St. Lucie, Sarasota, St. Petersburg (three) and Tampa, and one in Charleston, South Carolina.
Henley Investment Management said on HenleyIM.com in January 2024 that the London and West Palm Beach investor has spent the past two years developing the AquaSonic brand, which it describes as a “pioneering express tunnel car wash service” that uses technology to create what it says is the most “environmentally friendly, efficient and highest quality car wash” in the market.
It says it assembled a group of Florida investors to provide an initial $10 million investment for the first phase of the business.
HenlyIM.com posted Aug. 12 that it has committed $20 million to launch the chain and is raising an additional $100 million to accelerate growth.
The company is targeting more than 100 car washes across the country by 2028, which would make AquaSonic one of the biggest operators in the U.S.
The site said AquaSonic’s car washes will have a 140-foot tunnel wash lasting about 3 minutes.
License plate recognition technology will speed up the process for monthly unlimited wash club members, it said.
Each site represents an investment of $8 million to $10 million, according to Perenews.com, a site for private equity real estate news.