Bagels, yogurt and a German-themed beer garden are part of the initial retail lineup for the Vandeveer mixed-use development in Downtown Jacksonville, developer Gateway Jax announced July 22.
The seven-story Vandeveer, the first project in Gateway Jax’s more than $750 million Pearl Square district, is nearing an opening. The 205-unit apartment building at 515 N. Pearl St. is named after the late Thomas Vandeveer Porter, whose historic Porter House Mansion is immediately east of the building.
In a news release, Gateway Jax listed the retail lineup as follows:
• St. Augustine’s Bar Citra will expand into a 2,000-square-foot space where it will sell coffee, pastries, seasonal plates and wines. The restaurant is led by spouses Rachel Gant and Andrew Deming.
• Buchner’s Bierhalle of Murray Hill will turn the Porter House lawn east of the Vandeveer into Buchner’s Biergarten starting this fall. The menu includes German beers and shareable small plates.
• After making its Jacksonville debut at St. Johns Town Center in late 2025, PopUp Bagels will open its second location in the city in a 1,443-square-foot space at Vandeveer. The chain is based in Westport, Connecticut.
• Go Greek Yogurt will open its first Northeast Florida location in a 1,141-square-foot space in the development. The menu includes yogurt and bowls.
• JetSet Modern Pilates will operate in a 2,495-square-foot space, joining two other locations in Jacksonville and Jacksonville Beach. Plans call for a fall opening.
• Pearl Street Nails will open in a 2,032-square-foot space, one of more than 135 salons across the Southeast by its operator.
Except for Buchner’s and JetSet, tenant openings have not been set. Gateway Jax said in the release that openings for those tenants would occur through early 2027.
“The retail mix at Vandeveer has been intentionally designed to bring daily life to the Urban Core, encourage everyday activation and support the kind of walkable, connected environment essential to Downtown Jacksonville’s continued evolution,” Bryan Moll, CEO of Gateway Jax, said in the release.
In 2024, Jacksonville City Council approved a $9.06 million REV grant and $4.63 million completion grant for the Vandeveer, then known as Block N11.
DLP Capital and JWB’s Downtown Fund are the primary investors in the development.