Demolition on the last structure left standing at The Jacksonville Landing is scheduled to begin this week.
That’s according to WJCT News partner News4Jax, which reports work on the section that used to house Benny’s Steak House and Fionn MacCool’s will begin after the public access to the Northbank Riverwalk that was open during the holidays is closed.
Last February, Landing owner Toney Sleiman reached a deal with Mayor Lenny Curry to sell the Landing back to the city.
Jacksonville City Council members voted 15-1 in March to approve a $15 million buyout of Jacksonville Landing Investments LLC’s long-term lease, an additional $1.5 million to help relocate tenants and $1.5 million to demolish the 32-year-old shopping center.
The demolition is scheduled to be completed by May 28, 2020, and likely sooner.
Downtown Investment Authority CEO Lori Boyer told WJCT News in November that a request for bids to redevelop the Landing property could be put out as soon as March.
The short-term plan for the Landing property calls for grass to be planted. The possibility of public events at the location will depend on how quickly the bid process goes.
“If we have already awarded the site to someone and someone else is assuming site control in July – it might not make sense,” Boyer previously told WJCT News.
Bill Bortzfield can be reached at bbortzfield@wjct.org, 904-358-6349 or on Twitter at @BortzInJax.
