JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – Downtown Jacksonville has a grocery store again — and now City Hall is debating what it will take to bring an even bigger one.
Over the past week, shoppers have been getting used to the new ALDI at Market and Union.
At the same time, Jacksonville City Council members are preparing to take up an incentives proposal tied to Gateway Jax’s planned N7 development at 119 W. Beaver St., a mixed-use tower that would set aside space for a Publix-sized grocery store downtown.
Joan Grayson, who lives near the newly opened ALDI on Market and Union streets, told News4JAX reporter Briana Brownlee and photojournalist Jesse Hanson she is already changing her routine.
“I’m like two blocks from here, and I was going to have to go all the way out to 48; it is such a convenience,” Grayson said. “It was almost a food desert out here for a good while.”
Grayson said she’s already been to ALDI twice in the same week and expects to shop there regularly.
For Diane Watson, the change is even more practical. Watson uses a wheelchair and said having a grocery store closer to home makes everyday errands easier.
“A lot of seniors don’t have to travel so far,” Watson said. “It’s right up the street from where we stay; it makes a big difference.”
ALDI opened on June 17 after renovating the long-vacant space. The building at 777 N. Market St. was originally built as a Winn-Dixie, later operated as a Harvey’s supermarket, and then sat dark for about a year after Harvey’s closed in June 2025.
Now that one grocery option is back downtown, the focus is shifting to whether the city will help finance another — this time a Publix or another major grocer just a few blocks away.
City records show a demolition permit has already been issued for 119 W. Beaver St., the site where the project is planned.
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The legislation moving toward the City Council would authorize a redevelopment agreement between the city, the Downtown Investment Authority, and the developer, 119 Beaver St. W LLC. The project is part of Gateway Jax’s downtown plans and calls for a 14-story tower with about 259 apartments and roughly 37,000 square feet of ground-floor retail.
The grocery component is built directly into the proposal. At least 30,000 square feet of that retail space would be set aside for a Publix grocery store or another “similarly well-known” grocer approved by the Downtown Investment Authority.
To help make that happen, the deal includes two major incentives: a Recaptured Enhanced Value (REV) grant capped at $21.412 million, and a completion grant of up to $28.25 million.
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The REV grant would be tied to future property tax revenue generated by the project and paid out over 17 years.
The completion grant is different — it would be paid in cash in two installments only after the project is substantially complete, and only if a grocery lease is in place at completion for at least 30,000 square feet for a minimum of 10 years. It would also require a future City Council appropriation before any money is released.
That cash component is drawing the most attention.
Councilman-at-Large Matt Carlucci said some council members are uneasy about using completion grants, especially with other budget pressures on the horizon, with the upcoming property tax referendum going on the ballot.
“Building the Publix, we have to come up with a completion grant, which is cash,” Carlucci said. “With the referendum on property taxes, that could make that very difficult to do.”
Even with those concerns, Carlucci said supporters believe a full-service grocery store is essential as more residents move into downtown apartments.
“That Publix plays such a huge role not only for the Gateway but for all of downtown,” he said. “There are so many people moving downtown that they need a grocery store. That Publix will attract or at least retain people downtown.”
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The Downtown Investment Authority has already recommended approval of the incentives in a resolution adopted in December. City Council still must vote on the ordinance for the deal to move forward, and the completion grant would require a separate appropriation later on.
For residents, the debate isn’t just about development terms or incentive structures — it’s about whether grocery shopping becomes a quick walk down the street or another cross-town errand.
City Council is expected to take up the proposed agreement and incentives at Tuesday’s meeting.