The show will go on at The Jacksonville Landing during Florida-Georgia weekend.
Our Florida Times-Union news partner reports the city of Jacksonville issued a special events permit Wednesday for the Landing to once again be a festive gathering spot for fans, but the permit will limit the crowd to no more than 7,500 people at a time.
The Landing will be able to set up outdoor bars serving alcoholic beverages, but the city’s permit limits the Landing to five of those bars.
Attendees will undergo “wanding” with metal detectors and bag searches before entering the fenced-off area at the Landing for the Florida-Georgia events.
The convergence of fans in Gator blue and Bulldog red will be the largest gathering at the Landing since an August mass shooting at a video game tournament inside the Chicago Pizza restaurant there.
The restrictions attached to the special events permit are aimed at providing a safe environment, city officials said.
“We expect full compliance with the permit conditions as they were the result of the best advice the administration received from police, fire and other public safety experts,” Brian Hughes, chief of staff for Mayor Lenny Curry, said in announcing the permit. “This entire week Mayor Curry and the administration are committed to providing the teams, fans and other visitors with the safety to come and enjoy this great game in our city.”
The Landing said it is “excited to continue as the heart of downtown Jacksonville.”
The riverfront mall will have outdoor areas with two stages for concerts from noon Friday until 2 a.m. Saturday. The celebration will resume from 11 a.m. Saturday until 2 a.m. Sunday with more music on outdoor stages. The Landing will uses its Jumbotron screen in the courtyard to show the football game Saturday afternoon.
A longer version of this story is available on jacksonville.com.
