Stadium, MOSH and roads top list of most expensive projects in Deegan’s budget

Renovations to Everbank Stadium and public investment in the Jacksonville Museum of Science & History’s new home top the list of the most expensive projects in the mayor’s proposed $586.11 million Capital Improvement Plan. 

Mayor Donna Deegan’s annual infrastructure spending proposal would appropriate $220 million next year of the city’s $775 million portion of its $1.55 billion split with the Jacksonville Jaguars to renovate the city-owned football stadium.

The capital plan, unveiled alongside Deegan’s $2.026 billion general fund budget Monday, breaks down what the mayor called a budget “heavy on infrastructure.”

The $27 million for the MOSH’s move to a new Downtown Northbank facility would be the city’s final installment of a $50 million pledge to help the organization with the design and relocation work. The museum’s total cost is expected to be at least $131 million.

UF Health Jacksonville would get $24 million in the plan for capital improvements, an annual contribution council approved years ago totaling $284 million. 

There’s also $25 million to continue construction of the city park at Riverfront Plaza Downtown.

The mayor also highlighted $6.179 million for sidewalk repairs, $5.75 million for new sidewalks and $8.85 million for the city’s solid waste projects.

This year’s infrastructure plan comes in at $98 million less than the plan approved by City Council last year.

In a news conference Monday after her budget address to City Council, Deegan said her administration has spent the last two years removing projects with no funding plan from the list to reduce the amount of debt the city would need to complete them. 

Of the 132 projects on Deegan’s proposed list, including the stadium renovation, $437.54 million is funded by debt financing. It’s typical for cities to fund major infrastructure projects through debt. 

Documents in the capital plan show the remaining $130.56 million is funded by fuel and bed tax, grants and cash on hand.

“It simply means that there’s no reason to put those projects on the books until we’re ready to do them,” Deegan said.

“Every budget is a choice. It’s also a statement of our values. So we had to balance what money we have this year versus what do we really have to fund,” she said. “You see it’s a very infrastructure heavy budget. And the reason for that is it’s a top priority for us. I personally believe, if you take care of public infrastructure, everything else follows.” 

Deegan, a Democrat, is facing a Republican-majority City Council that wants to see non-public safety spending shrink this year, to prepare for the possibility of big money losses if Florida voters approve a property tax cut referendum in November.

For council Finance Committee Chair Will Lahnen, the magic number is $832 million. That’s where non-public safety spending was in this year’s city budget. He told Jacksonville Today he’d like the final general fund budget to come in at or under that amount. 

As for the capital improvement plan, he said some projects have increased in cost, and that’s what he’ll be focused on during the Finance Committee’s budget hearings in August. 

“There’s a fairly lengthy list of projects noted as having cost increases,” Lahnen said. “We’ll be getting more information about those. Particularly on some of those projects that were approved in prior years, but not all of them have started. So if there has been a big cost increase to a project that hasn’t started yet, I think we need to redebate that.”

Project price tags

Here are 10 of the most expensive projects in Deegan’s capital budget proposal:

Roadway resurfacing: $31.13 million

Deegan’s proposed budget would increase spending on countywide road resurfacing to $31.13 million, up from $13.2 million in this year’s plan. In her speech Monday, the mayor claimed the city has paved more miles of roadway in the last three years than in any other three-year stretch in the last decade. 

Septic tank removal: $25 million

Work began in March to replace and remove more than 300 septic tanks in the Christobel neighborhood. But JEA and the city have been slowly working to replace aging septic tanks in Jacksonville’s historically underserved neighborhoods for years and get residents connected to the public wastewater system. In the early 2020s, city leaders called compromised septic tanks a $2 billion problem. Deegan’s proposed capital plan increases funding by $9 million over this year’s budget.

Chaffee Road: $15 million 

The city has been working on the $82.63 million street and traffic control improvements of Chaffee Road from Normandy Boulevard to Crystal Springs Road for several years. The corridor has seen rapid residential and commercial development in recent years. A budget breakdown in the capital plan shows 2026-27 is the final year of financing for the project. 

Old Middleburg 103rd – Branan Field: $15 million 

This will be the third year city officials have put money toward plans to expand the road to four lanes with a closed drainage system, new curbs and gutters, bike lanes and sidewalks. Budget documents say the $124 million project is needed to improve bicycle, pedestrian and vehicle safety.

Oceanway Center and Brentwood branch libraries: $15 million

The city plans to build a 30,000-square-foot library at 12210 New Berlin Road in the Oceanway Neighborhood and completely replace the existing library at 3750 Springfield Blvd. in Brentwood. This year, the city would spend $8 million on the Oceanway library and $7 million on the Brentwood branch. The total project costs are $26.85 million and $15.188 million, respectively. The city has not given a definitive date to complete the Brentwood project. But budget documents say the Oceanway Center is scheduled for completion this year.

JSO warehouse consolidation: $10 million 

The Sheriff’s Office has asked the Deegan administration and council to approve spending for the project that would consolidate several evidence and equipment warehouses and possibly some JSO offices, into a single facility at 1357 W. Beaver St. If approved, the project would be completed in 2027.

Acree Road bridge replacement: $9.75 million

This money would replace three timber bridges on Acree Road that the Florida Department of Transportation has deemed structurally deficient, according to the budget. “Emergency maintenance and bridge closures in the past few years have shown these bridges to be near the end of their useful life,” budget documents say. The project was originally scheduled to be completed two years ago.

Northbank Riverwalk bulkhead replacement: $9 million

These dollars are part of a $74.64 million, multiyear replacement of the St. Johns River bulkhead system on the Downtown Northbank. The work is also scheduled to get another $9 million in 2027-28 to finish the project.

Emerald Trail – Hogan’s Creek to Riverwalk: $8 million

This segment of the larger $279 million, 30-mile multiuse Emerald Trail project connecting the city’s urban neighborhoods to Downtown would extend the Hogan’s Creek Greenway along the creek corridor to the south of Duval Street. There, plans show it will create a loop connection on the east side of Downtown with the Northbank Riverwalk and EverBank Stadium, VyStar Veterans Memorial Arena and Baseball Grounds of Jacksonville. Last year, the Trump administration pulled the largest grant ever awarded to Jacksonville that earmarked $147 million from the federal government to help complete the Emerald Trail.

If council approves this line item, budget documents show the $30 million segment is still scheduled to receive $8 million over the next two years. 

Equestrian Center – Mounted Unit Facility: $8 million

JSO’s mounted horse unit is currently located Downtown. The Sheriff’s Office has told the Deegan administration that relocation to the Equestrian Center on the Westside will be healthier for the horses and allow for future growth. The $11.25 million project was originally estimated to be completed in 2025.

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Read Deegan’s full budget proposal and capital improvement plan here.