For the most part, Duval County dodged a bullet with Hurricane Ian. Many prayers go out to our fellow Floridians all over the state, most significantly those in the Ft. Myers area, as they struggle to put shattered lives back together. Many prayers also go out to those who lost their lives and those with family members or friends who
The history and heritage of Jacksonville’s many Gullah Geechee descendants have been largely overlooked, with little recognition given to the community. According to the Gullah Geechee Heritage Corridor Commission, the Gullah Geechee are descendants of Central and West Africans who were enslaved and brought to the Americas from the late 1600s to 1866, bringing with them traditional foodways, customs, arts,
If Jacksonville hadn’t faced budget crunches for years coming out of the 2008 crash, Mayor Lenny Curry might never have happened. Curry, an accountant by training and a political pugilist by trade, built his argument in the 2015 campaign on a number of points. A major one was budget. He blasted Alvin Brown’s administration for a so-called “pension disaster” when
Over the weekend, I visited the Cummer Museum for the opening of the Deborah Roberts exhibition I’m. On a large wall, visitors encounter a description of the exhibition, which notes the title I’m “signals a merging of the individual self (the ‘I’) with a larger sense of being (‘am’) and suggests a sense of self-determination and a reclaiming of community.”
Although it hasn’t always been accessible or maintained, Exchange Club Island is an official city park and one of Jacksonville’s unique urban spaces. Here’s a dive into the colorful history of the accidental island beneath the Mathews Bridge. An accidental island More than 50,000 people drive over one of Jacksonville’s most singular parks every day without ever realizing it. Officially
It’s September in Jacksonville, which brings some potential relief from brutal summer heat, a heightened focus on tropical weather activity, renewed hopes for the Jaguars to return to respectability and an opportunity to bust out college colors, whether red and black, orange and blue, or garnet and gold. It also means a return to the Silly Season. What is the
Founded in 1822, Jacksonville is home to 107 properties and districts listed on the National Register of Historic Places. Of this number, seven are officially recognized as National Register historic districts. The most recent addition, the campus of Edward Waters University, was listed on the National Register on Aug. 8th of this year. Here is a look into the history
The public phase of the mayoral campaign of Jacksonville Chamber of Commerce CEO Daniel Davis, who didn’t quit his day job for this run, kicked off last Thursday at a trucking company on the Westside. The vibe was retro. The loud, optimistic country songs were interchangeable and on a seeming loop. There was no AC in the warehouse-style showroom space,
Why isn’t the school day as long as the work day? That’s the thought that’s been running through my mind since my 7-year-old returned to the classroom last month. After three years of only creative entrepreneurship through writing and publishing, I returned to the workforce in a fully remote position in April of this year. The expected work hours are
The new federal Reconnecting Communities Pilot Program offers cities funding for projects that restore neighborhoods split and disrupted by highways in the mid-20th Century. Several projects from Jacksonville would be a perfect fit for the grant, but the city would have to move quickly to meet the Oct. 13th deadline. Will Jacksonville apply, or will the city miss out on
