JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – City leaders are working to stop the spread of termites to other historic buildings and homes in Jacksonville’s Riverside and Avondale neighborhoods after a termite infestation was discovered inside the Woman’s Club of Jacksonville building owned by the Museum of Art and Gardens.
The Woman's Club, which is on the National Register of Historic Places, could soon disappear because of Formosan subterranean termites, which didn't show up in Florida until the late '80s and didn't reach Jacksonville until 2005.
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They work faster than the average termite and they colonize in the millions, rather than hundreds of thousands.
The Cummer Museum has invested in getting rid of the termites, but there’s no guarantee they won’t come back. That led the museum’s board to decide to tear down the historic building.
The concern moving forward is over the spread of the termites to other historic buildings and homes throughout Riverside and Avondale.
City Councilor Jim Love, who represents the district, said people should bait their homes and make sure they’re taking necessary steps to protect the growing area.
"I would suggest that they don't even purchase a home unless they have a termite bond," Love said. "I think that's a smart thing to do. I have it on both my buildings here in the Historic District. I recommend that everybody do that."
Love said they’ve enlisted the help of one of the most renowned experts on this type of termite in the world.
He said they are using bait traps at the Woman’s Club and throughout Riverside and Avondale, but there’s no way to get rid of them completely.