Published on March 28, 2025 at 1:39 pm
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Step-by-step, more than 350 people climbed 734 steps to the top of the Bank of America Tower on March 22 to raise money in support of the Lung Association research.
The fundraiser has participants scale Jacksonville’s tallest skyscraper. At 617 feet tall and with 42 floors, the Bank of America tower (formerly known as the Barnett Center), has been the tallest in Jacksonville since 1990.
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And more high-rises could be on the way to Downtown Jacksonville. A developer is planning a 17-story hotel and residential tower on Riverfront Plaza’s northeast corner, pending a proposed land swap with the city. Another residential tower is planned for the Southbank next to Friendship Fountain.
All of this raises the question (see what we did there?): Just how tall does Jacksonville’s Downtown stand? The number of high-rises (defined as 12-stories or more) is our number of the week: 33.
33
Jacksonville’s second-tallest building is 1 Independent Square, formerly known as the Wells Fargo Center, at Bay and Laura streets. Opened in 1974, the 37-story building was once Florida’s tallest.
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The Everbank building ranks as Jacksonville’s third-highest skyscraper, constructed in the 1980s with 32 floors and standing at 447 feet.
A residential building completed in 2008 is Downtown’s fourth-tallest structure. The Peninsula is a 36-story condo complex on the Southbank.
Overwhelmingly, though, Jacksonville’s Downtown is dominated by shorties. In total, 550 buildings within the city’s official definition of Downtown are classified as low-rises (under six stories): 105 retail, 195 office, 35 industry, 27 multifamily housing and 188 other. The other category includes uses like medical, hospitality, mixed-use and more, says Rachael Wyant, director of research with the economic development nonprofit Downtown Vision.
The 54 mid-rise structures (six to 11 stories) include 1 retail building, 23 office, seven multifamily and 23 other.
Downtown’s 33 high-rises are predominantly offices — 18 — while the remainder are a mix of 11 residential and 4 other uses.
How does Jacksonville’s Downtown stack up against other Florida cities? As of 2025, the top 10 tallest buildings in Florida are all in Miami, according to this unofficial tally. That means, of the state’s buildings taller than 550 feet, over 94% are in the Greater Miami area. The rest are in Tampa and Jacksonville.
Charts in this post are by Jacksonville Today’s Megan Mallicoat.
