Retrofit Atlas

Malls · Florida

Grande Boulevard Mall

Imported, unreviewedReinhabitedClosedJacksonville, FL

Opened 1983. Closed 1994. Reinhabited in 1994.

Status nowClosedextracted, unreviewed
documented
The former mall is now part of Florida State College at Jacksonville's Deerwood Center.

en.wikipedia.org

What it becameeducationextracted, unreviewed reported
Retrofit year1994extracted, unreviewed reported
Walkability12 of 20 · 15-minute 6 of 6EPA, OpenStreetMap
Rail within 800 mNoOpenStreetMap, HUD
Ask who owns this Download dossier (PDF) · early access Download record (JSON) API Share LinkedIn Correct this record

Solid = from the authors' map · outlined = public source · dashed = model-written, not yet reviewed by a person. Tap any value's source label to see where it came from. documented = a quoted excerpt (click to read it) · reported = a source named, no excerpt yet · no source.

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Site profile12 elements · what this retrofit is built with · tap a chip for the evidence

Ownership
University, hospital or churchThis site: Florida Community College at Jacksonville county-parcels · all sites with this
Place
15-minute neighbourhood (5+ of 6 daily needs within 800 m)This site: 6/6 openstreetmap · all sites with this
30,000+ vehicles a day on an adjacent roadThis site: 46,500 on SOUTHSIDE BLVD fhwa-hpms · all sites with this
Bike network nearbyThis site: 11 ways openstreetmap · all sites with this
Fast-growing county (8%+ 2018–23)This site: 9% census-acs · all sites with this
Grocery within 800 mThis site: 5 stores openstreetmap · all sites with this
Interstate or freeway within 600 mThis site: SOUTHSIDE BLVD fhwa-hpms · all sites with this
Renter-majority tractThis site: 78% census-acs · all sites with this
Tract population up 25%+ since 2013This site: +28% census-acs · all sites with this
Walkable block group (EPA ≥ 12)This site: …index 12 epa-walkability · all sites with this
Strategy
ReinhabitedThis site: The former mall is now part of Florida State College at Jacksonville's Deerwood Center. extraction · all sites with this
New use
EducationThis site: The former mall is now part of Florida State College at Jacksonville's Deerwood Center. extraction · all sites with this

All elements and lists · Trends

Now

StatusClosedextracted, unreviewed
documented
The former mall is now part of Florida State College at Jacksonville's Deerwood Center.

en.wikipedia.org

StrategyReinhabitedextracted, unreviewed
documented
The former mall space was converted into classrooms and open space.

en.wikipedia.org

New useseducationextracted, unreviewed reported
What is there nowThe former mall is now part of Florida State College at Jacksonville's Deerwood Center.extracted, unreviewed
documented
The former mall is now part of Florida State College at Jacksonville's Deerwood Center.

en.wikipedia.org

Retrofit year1994extracted, unreviewed reported
RedeveloperFlorida Community College at Jacksonvilleextracted, unreviewed reported

Site context

FEMA flood zoneX · AREA OF MINIMAL FLOOD HAZARDFEMA NFHL
EPA-regulated facilities within 500 m13: COMMERCIAL CENTER AT BAYMEADOW; CVS PHARMACY #2669; DEERMEADOWS BAPTIST CHURCH; HOLY FAMILY CATHOLIC SCHOOL; LAST EFFORT INCEPA FRS
Census tract 120310159255,969 people, 11,189 per sq mi; median household income $61,237; median gross rent $1,480; 78% renters; 9.5% vacant units; 0.0% commute by transitACS 2023 5-year
Walkability (EPA, block group)index 12 of 20; 86 intersections per sq mi; nearest transit stop 583 m; land-use mix 0.21; 76,608 jobs within 45 min by car, 40,530 by transit; 9% of households without a carEPA Smart Location
Within a 10–15 minute walk (800 m)6 of 6 daily needs: 5 grocers, 3 schools, 14 parks or playgrounds, 2 health, 5 civic, 34 food and drink; 11 cycleway segments, 109 sidewalk-tagged segmentsOpenStreetMap
Opportunity ZonenoHUD
Housing permits, Duval County (FL), 20241,131 units in 5+ unit buildings, 230 in 2–4, 5,134 single-family; 2023: 5,099 in 5+Census BPS
Social vulnerability (CDC SVI 2022, tract)overall percentile 0.55; socioeconomic 0.67; housing and transport 0.40; 22% below 150% of poverty; 6% of households with no vehicleCDC/ATSDR
Other atlas sites nearby0 within 10 km, 5 within 25 kmcomputed
Overture Mapsno place match; building footprint 13,890 m², 9.043676376342773 mOverture (CDLA-Permissive 2.0)
Attention: Wikipedia page views385 since 2015; 385 in the last 12 months; peak 2026-06 with 259Wikimedia
Tract change 2013–2023population +28% (4,644 → 5,969); median income +49% ($41,056 → $61,237); renters 89% → 78%; median home value +191% ($96,100 → $279,300)Census ACS 5-year
Natural hazard risk (FEMA National Risk Index, tract)relatively low overall (score 28.3); expected annual loss $951,536; community resilience relatively moderateFEMA NRI
Tax-credit housing within 1 kmnoneHUD LIHTC
Retail trade in the county, 2025 (BLS QCEW)55,755 jobs in 3,672 establishments; average annual pay $43,941; employment location quotient 1.00; employment -0.1% on the yearBLS QCEW 2025, NAICS 44-45, private
Jobs located in the tract, 2022511 jobs; 129 in retail trade, 93 in accommodation and food (workplace blocks summed to tract 12031015925)Census LEHD LODES8 WAC 2022
Upward mobility (Opportunity Atlas, 2010 tract)children of low-income (25th percentile) families reached the 40th income percentile as adults; 2.2% incarcerated at the 2010 count (505 children in the sample); born 1978–83, measured 2014–15Opportunity Insights
Food access (USDA FARA 2019, 2010 tract)not a low-access tract at 1 mile; poverty rate 23.5%; median family income $51,719; 281 SNAP householdsUSDA ERS
SchoolsDuval County School District (PK-12); 0 public schools within 1 mileNCES EDGE
Elevation46 ft above sea level at the site pointUSGS 3DEP
Storm events in the county, 2016-2025655 county-logged events: 261 thunderstorm wind, 175 heavy rain, 68 flood, 61 hail; $2,393,950 property damage reported; 1 direct deaths; forecast-zone events (most flood, winter and heat) not countedNOAA Storm Events
Homes for sale in ZIP 32256, 2026-09median list price $285,000 (-5.6% on the year); 243 active listings; median 55 days on market; 23% with a price cutRealtor.com Research
Retail trade in the county, 2012 to 20233,433 establishments (+6%); 55,193 jobs (+19%)Census CBP
Housing market in the countytypical home value $294,079 (-0% 1 yr, +15% 5 yr); typical rent $1,603/mo (+2% 1 yr), 2026-09Zillow Research
Traffic on the busiest road within 600 m (2024)46,500 vehicles a day on SOUTHSIDE BLVD (freeway or expressway, 6 lanes); 1,348 trucks; 15 counted segmentsFHWA HPMS

Summary, model-written

Grande Boulevard Mall opened in November 1983 as an enclosed shopping center anchored by Jacobson's. Over the 1980s it experienced declining store counts, rising vacancy, and competition from a new mall that opened in 1990. The property was sold to Florida Community College at Jacksonville in 1994, converted to a campus by 1995, and now operates as part of Florida State College at Jacksonville's Deerwood Center.

Why. The record shows anchor tenant loss, increasing vacancy, and the opening of a competing mall in 1990 as visible pressures leading to the mall's closure; no explicit debt or financing issues are mentioned.

Where it stands. The site is currently controlled by Florida State College at Jacksonville as part of its Deerwood Center, following the 1994 sale to the college.

For a planner

  • The mall followed a reinhabit strategy to education, a precedent for adaptive reuse of retail.
  • No specific policy tools (e.g., tax incentives, zoning changes) are cited in the record.
  • Open questions include long‑term campus expansion plans, integration with surrounding land uses, and potential for further adaptive reuse.

For a developer

  • The site is under single ownership by the Florida State College system, limiting private acquisition.
  • Entitlement stage is complete – the retrofit to an educational campus is already built.
  • Context‑layer constraints (flood risk, transit access, environmental conditions) are not detailed in the record.
  • Market signal: Duval County grew 9.0% from 2018‑2023, indicating regional growth.

What we do not know yet

  • Parcel size and current building square footage are not provided.
  • Zoning designation and any land‑use restrictions are unknown.
  • Floodplain, stormwater, and environmental site assessment details are missing.
  • Transit proximity and pedestrian/bicycle infrastructure are not described.
  • The record’s verification status is draft, and many fields are model‑extracted without reviewer confirmation.

Generated by nvidia/nemotron-3-super-120b-a12b on NVIDIA API via Hermes CT from the fields, parcels, deals and context layers on this page, with no outside knowledge. It is regenerated when the record changes and has not been checked by a person. How it is made.

Similar sites

  • East Lake Square Mall, Tampa, FL · Malls · opened 1976; closed 1998; same strategy: reinhabit
  • Hickory Hollow Mall, Nashville, TN · Malls · opened 1978; same strategy: reinhabit
  • Normandy Mall, Jacksonville, FL · Malls · same strategy: reinhabit; also in FL; 20 km away
  • Omni Int’l Mall, Miami, FL · Malls · opened 1976; same strategy: reinhabit; also in FL

Elsewhere on the web

Pages with photos

Search images: Google · Bing · Commons · references: ULI case studies · Google Scholar

Multifamily screen

  • retrofit already built
  • closed or demolished site (sourced)
  • county grew 9.0% 2018–23

Inputs: record fields (size, status) and county Census ACS 2018–2023 figures (growth, rent). How the points work. Not a recommendation.

History and original facts

Opened1983extracted, unreviewed
Closed1994extracted, unreviewed
documented
In 1994, Grande Boulevard Mall was sold to Florida Community College at Jacksonville for $4 million, excluding the Jacobson's store. The former mall space was converted into classrooms and open space.

en.wikipedia.org

Stores at peak65extracted, unreviewed reported
Original developerNational Capital Investmentsextracted, unreviewed
documented
Grande Boulevard Mall was announced in 1982 by National Capital Investments.

en.wikipedia.org

AnchorsJacobson's
CountyDuval County
Census division5 · South Atlantic
NotesWikipedia categories: Defunct shopping malls in the United States

Not yet recorded: acres, GLA. Know it? Tell us.

Background

Grande Boulevard Mall was an enclosed shopping mall in Jacksonville, Florida, United States. It opened on November 17, 1983, near Baymeadows Road and Southside Boulevard, and was anchored by Jacobson's.

Excerpt from Wikipedia (authors and history), CC BY-SA 4.0. May be older than the record above.

Timeline

  1. 1982 Announced
  2. 1983 Opened
  3. 1986 Store count declined
  4. 1988 Vacancy increased
  5. 1990 Competitor opened
  6. 1994 Sold to college
  7. 1995 Converted to campus
  8. 2002 Anchor store closed

Sources

  • Wikipedia: Grande Boulevard Mall (Florida) · supports: after notes, original developer, status, strategy, year closed, year opened
    14 quoted sentences
    It opened on November 17, 1983, near Baymeadows Road and Southside Boulevard, and was anchored by Jacobson's.
    In 1994, Grande Boulevard Mall was sold to Florida Community College at Jacksonville for $4 million, excluding the Jacobson's store. The former mall space was converted into classrooms and open space.
    Grande Boulevard Mall was announced in 1982 by National Capital Investments.
    The former mall is now part of Florida State College at Jacksonville's Deerwood Center.

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