The twin marble lions that guard St. Augustine's Bridge of Lions are named Firm and Faithful. The lion statues were erected in the 1920s. | Noah Hertz, Jacksonville Today
Published on January 26, 2026 at 2:55 pm
Free local news and info, in your inbox at 6 a.m. M-F. Sign up for the Jacksonville Today newsletter.
St. Augustine’s Bridge of Lions will shut down late Tuesday through early Wednesday as crews work to move the city’s iconic marble lion statues ahead of a state project to fix up the city’s seawall.
The Bridge of Lions will close to all traffic from 11 p.m. Tuesday through the early hours of Wednesday. The bridge is expected to reopen about 5 a.m.
Jacksonville Today thanks our sponsors. Become one.
The twin statues, named Firm and Faithful, will be transported to a secure facility where they will remain for several years. Meanwhile, Florida Department of Transportation crews will be working to mitigate St. Augustine’s downtown flooding.
Some St. Augustine residents have expressed concern that raising the seawall along the Matanzas River may detract from the view of the river, but FDOT says it will help with flooding that the city’s historic downtown often experiences during storms.
Work on the seawall is set to begin Feb. 1, but that work can’t begin until the heavy lion statues are moved away from the west side of the bridge.
Jacksonville Today thanks our sponsors. Become one.
Fixing up the lions
Once the lions are moved this week, that’s when local artists Joe Segal and Enzo Torcoletti will get to work, ensuring the statues will stand for decades to come.
The artists will assess how cracks on the statues hold up to water intrusion and will apply a fresh sealant.
Segal worked on the lions the last time they were moved away from the bridge 20 years ago. During that time, he says, a big focus was on small cracks that had formed on the statues due to their proximity to busy roadways.
“We have the pictures of what the cracks looked like 20 years ago and what they look like now,” Segal says. “Visually it doesn’t look like they’ve opened up or moved, which is good.”
He says his team could work on the lions while they were by the bridge, but fixing them up will be much easier away from the roadway.
The lion statues will remain away from the bridge while the seawall project is underway. FDOT says that if all goes according to plan, the project will be wrapped up by the end of 2027.
FDOT will host an open house event about the project in March, when people can ask questions and learn more about the seawall improvements.
FDOT’s open house is scheduled for 4-6 p.m. March 5 at St. Augustine City Hall in the Alcazar Room at 75 King Street. The open house will also be available online.
