Walnut Street Historic Laundry PUD Rezoning
At a glance
- What: Ordinance 2026-0654 rezones about 2.31 acres on Walnut Street in the Springfield historic district from Industrial Light to a PUD, to reuse the former Duval Laundry building as a mixed-use venue: office, retail, restaurants, a food hall, event space with live music, and some light manufacturing and warehousing. A companion land use amendment, 2026-0653, was withdrawn.
- Where it stands: the Land Use and Zoning Committee approved 2026-0654 as amended, 7-0, on 2026-10-20 and withdrew 2026-0653, 5-0. The council hearing is next (the council had continued both bills to October 27 earlier).
- Conditions: a traffic study at PUD verification (unless waived by the Chief of Traffic Engineering); vehicular access subject to traffic engineering and development services review; and no live music or amplified sound between 12:00 a.m. and 9:00 a.m. The committee adopted Arias's amendment loosening the staff draft (10:00 p.m. to 9:00 a.m.) and attached the revised exhibit dated September 15.
- Parking: 46 spaces on site, 2 accessible and 8 motorcycle spaces, a shared agreement for 70 more spaces at the adjacent Rethreaded property, possible on-street spaces, and other lots the owner is trying to buy. The Springfield overlay has no parking requirement for most uses. The venue could hold 500 to 600 people; valet and shuttles are planned for large events.
- Debate: how late outdoor amplified sound should run. Supporters (Arias, Diamond) stressed the isolated industrial setting and that the owner asked for no city money. Carrico and the chair worried about nearby homes and a Boys & Girls Club teen center about two blocks away. No neighborhood opponent spoke; the Springfield civic group supports the project.
- Next: full council hearing; changes to the hours would need a new bill.
- Official minutes (2026-10-20): 2026-0653 (land use change to Community General Commercial) was withdrawn 5-0; 2026-0654 (Duval Laundry PUD) was approved as amended with conditions 7-0. Next stop is the full council.
What the official minutes record
Committee of 2026-10-20 (2026-10-20 - Land Use & Zoning): two speakers in support; ex parte declarations from Carrico and Johnson. Motions: to amend conditions (Arias/Diamond), to approve the amendment (Carrico/Arias), and to approve as amended with conditions (Carrico/White). The vote was 7-0 (Carlucci, Diamond, Arias, Carrico, Gaffney, Johnson, White).
Conditions listed in the minutes: a traffic study at PUD verification unless waived by the Chief of Traffic Engineering; vehicular access subject to Traffic Engineering and Development Services; no live music or amplified sound between 10 p.m. and 9 a.m. The recorded amendment attaches Revised Exhibit 3, the written description dated September 15, 2026. The captions describe a hand vote on a proposal to loosen the sound limit to midnight; the minutes do not record a changed hour, so the final sound limit should be checked against the version the council adopts.
Sources
- 2026-10-20 - Land Use & Zoning (committee meeting of 2026-10-20; auto-captions)
- Council agendas and legislation: https://jaxcityc.legistar.com/Calendar.aspx
- Land Use and Zoning Committee minutes, October 20, 2026: https://jaxcityc.legistar1.com/jaxcityc/meetings/2026/10/3801_M_Land_Use___Zoning_Committee_26-10-20_Meeting_Minutes.pdf
- 2026-10-20 - Land Use & Zoning
Discussion time
About 35 minutes across 1 meeting (from transcript timestamps; approximate).
| Meeting | Minutes |
|---|---|
| 2026-10-20 - Land Use & Zoning | 35 |
Log
2026-10-20 - Land Use & Zoning
Committee withdrew 2026-0653 (5-0) and passed 2026-0654 as amended 7-0 after a long debate on parking and the amplified-sound cutoff.
Minutes: 0653 withdrawn 5-0; 0654 approved as amended with conditions 7-0.