New parks on the Northbank and Southbank of Downtown Jacksonville were among public projects that made headlines in recent months.
Here is an update on the city of Jacksonville's contributions to the Downtown revitalization effort.
Riverfront Plaza
On the site of the demolished Jacksonville Landing, the city opened the first phase of Riverfront Plaza park Dec. 5.
The initial phase of the 6-acre park includes a playground on top of a pavilion building, an event lawn, improvements to Riverwalk and plaza space connecting to the Jacksonville Center for the Performing Arts.
A second phase of construction is underway for the east end of the park, where plans call for a rain garden, water feature, civic stairs, a beer garden and a pedestrian ramp to the Main Street Bridge.
The first phase of the project cost $38 million, while the city lists the second phase at $40 million.
RiversEdge
Three days before Thanksgiving, the city opened four connected parks and Riverwalk improvements at RiversEdge, the site of the demolished JEA Southside Generating Station on the Southbank.
Features include winding walkways, a yoga lawn and a playground with swings, merry-go-rounds and high-tech touch-activated games.
The city issued a site-clearing and horizontal development permit in July 2024 for the RiversEdge parks and recreation area, for installation of hardscape and landscape, on 4.1 acres at a project cost of $35 million.
Music Heritage Garden
Construction is underway on the $6 million Music Heritage Garden park stretching from Water to Hogan streets along the Jacksonville Center for the Performing Arts.
Plans include walkways shaped like musical notes, playable recordings of music connected to Jacksonville and a Walk of Fame dedicated to local musicians.
The city expects completion in spring 2026.
Southbank Riverwalk
The city plans a 1,200-foot extension of the Southbank Riverwalk on a timeline for completion in fewer than two years, a representative of the Parks, Recreation and Community Services Department told the DIA board in January.
Jill Enz, the department’s chief of natural and marine resources, said the extension would connect the pedestrian and cycling path from the Baptist Medical Center to the Fuller Warren Bridge Shared Use Path.
According to materials in Enz’s presentation to the board, the project is funded through the city’s Capital Improvement Plan, with $7.1 million allocated in the fiscal year 2025 budget for the extension and enhancement.
McCoys Creek
The city broke ground in September on the Hogan Street Link section of Emerald Trail, the 30-mile pedestrian/cyclist path through and around Downtown.
The Hogan Street Link, scheduled for completion by early 2027, runs north on Hogan Street from Riverfront Plaza to Union Street. As part of the project, Hogan Street will be narrowed to one lane of northbound traffic with a two-way bicycle lane.
In October 2025, the city reconnected McCoys Creek to the St. Johns River in a rerouted channel between the One Riverside development and the Acosta Bridge.
The city said the $107.6 million project was designed partly to facilitate greater recreational use of the creek, which previously had run beneath the former Florida Times-Union building.