The developer buying the Duval County Public Schools’ longtime downtown headquarters said October 16 it’s planning riverfront condominiums and hotel space that will be “the waterfront opportunity of the decade.”
The project “puts Jacksonville’s greatest natural asset, the St. Johns River, at the heart of downtown life,” Ashco Centers founder Edward Ashurian said in a release showing renderings of two 20-story towers on the property at 1701 Prudential Drive.
Ashurian said he wanted the 4.87-acre project to be “a community gathering place on the St. Johns River where everyone can dine at the water’s edge, stroll the riverfront and explore new amenities.”
The Duval County
School Board approved selling the site to Ashco for $15,132,000 on October 6 but that agreement allows the school district up to three years to go to closing.
The school district hasn’t made a final pick between potential locations for a new headquarters or set a timetable for leaving its current offices, which have been in use for about 45 years. The property has been proposed for sale several times in recent years, with a sales agreement struck in 2025, but that ultimately fell through.
Ashco has called its new development The Seaport at St. Johns and said it’s expected to include about 110,000 square feet of retail space, a grocer and “destination waterfront dining.”
The company’s plans are changeable but currently include 150 high-end condo units and a marina as well as a luxury hotel, spokeswoman Litsa Dawkins said.
The new buildings will neighbor The District, a Southbank mega-project whose long-planned development is part of a pattern of increased residential development downtown.
Dawkins said Ashco, which owns a number of retail and commercial properties around the city, is still evaluating potential hotel operators and is in the process of putting together the team of businesses to produce a landmark project.
“We’re looking for the best architects, the best site engineers,” Dawkins said, adding that the Jacksonville-based company feels invested in delivering quality results.
“This is our backyard,” she said.
This article originally appeared on Florida Times-Union: Firm buying Duval School Board HQ touts big 'waterfront opportunity'
