More than 50 people turned out last night for the Sustainable Neighborhood Tour presented by Urban Land Institute (ULI) North Florida and the First Coast American Planning Association (APA). The tour showcased the sustainability of urban neighborhoods like Riverside, which was recently named one of the 10 Great Neighborhoods in America by APA, and potential new areas of development in downtown Jacksonville.

The tour began at Intuition Ale Works on King Street in Riverside and the first stop was at the CoRK building and arts district on Rosselle Street. CoRK is a 25,000 square foot warehouse centered around artists’ studios and galleries featuring artwork by Dolf James, Jim Draper, Jen Jones, Paul Ladnier and other prominent artists. The next phase of the development at CoRK is scheduled to include more art studios, a live music venue and space dedicated to performance art.

The second stop on the tour was at 1661 Riverside in 5 Points, where architect Richard Skinner detailed the design and building process for the mixed-use project overlooking Memorial Park. Also at this stop, restaurant developer Allan DeVault presented details about the new mixed-use project on Oak Street that will house Chew restaurant.

The last stop on the tour was at the old Park View Inn on North Main and State streets in downtown Jacksonville. The old hotel has been torn down to a two-level structure that developers hope will one day house a major retailer, such as Walgreens, as well as a mixed-use space in the historic Claude Nolan Cadillac Building designed by Henry J. Klutho. You can read more about the historic site here.

Following the tour, happy hour was hosted at Intuition Ale Works where guest speakers Bill Killingsworth from the City of Jacksonville Planning Department and Brad Thoburn with the Jacksonville Transportation Authority updated the group on recent news.

If you missed the event, make sure to stop by the sites on your own time and learn more about how sustainable neighborhoods are making Jacksonville a great place to live and work!