Renderings of Pearl Square, the Gateway Jax development in the NorthCore area of Downtown Jacksonville, show sidewalk seating. | Jacksonville Daily Record
Published on November 5, 2025 at 11:34 am
Free local news and info, in your inbox at 6 a.m. M-F. Sign up for the Jacksonville Today newsletter.
The Jacksonville City Council is considering legislation that would allow sidewalk dining throughout Downtown, as opposed to select areas where it is currently permitted.
Ordinance 2025-0772, filed by council member Raul Arias, would allow Downtown restaurants and bars to serve patrons on sidewalks adjacent to their property, bound by an invisible line extending from the property side lot lines to the street and in the street. The ordinance would apply throughout the Downtown zoning overlay, which extends from Brooklyn through the Working Waterfront district east of EverBank Stadium.
Jacksonville Today thanks our sponsors. Become one.
The legislation would delete language that defines Downtown bars as those “located within the boundaries of the E-Town (Entertainment Town) Zone.” The E-Town zone is synonymous with The Elbow entertainment district in Downtown’s historic core, a collection of more than 20 bars and restaurants centered by the historic Florida Theatre at Forsyth and Newnan streets.
Read the rest of this story at the Jacksonville Daily Record, a Jacksonville Today news partner.
