JACKSONVILLE CITY COUNCIL APPROVES $1.4 BILLION RENOVATION OF JAGUARS’ EVERBANK STADIUM
The Jacksonville Jaguars and the city of Jacksonville have officially reached an agreement on a “groundbreaking stadium of the future deal” that would bring state of the art renovations to the Jaguars’ Everbank Stadium and transform the outlook of downtown Jacksonville, the team announced this week.
The deal, which was passed on Tuesday, keeps the Jaguars in Jacksonville for at least another 30 years and sees both the city and the team contribute $625 million each towards renovations of the stadium. The agreement also officially ends the long-standing – mostly fabricated – discussions about moving the Jaguars to London.
Both parties’ contribution will bring the total to $1.25 billion and with the total renovation project expected to cost up to $1.4 billion, an estimated $150 million is expected to be incurred in construction preparation, maintenance and repairs, an amount the city has also agreed to pay. That means the city will be responsible for 55% of the total cost.
The agreement also calls for Jaguars owner Shad Khan to be responsible for any capital overages as well as 80.4% of the game-day expenses.
“This day has been a long time coming,” said Jacksonville Mayor Donna Deegan. “I am truly grateful for the partnership with the Jaguars throughout the negotiation process, and to the City Council for passing this historic deal. Together, we are turning renderings into reality for the betterment of Jacksonville.”
Jaguars’ President Mark Lamping said the Jaguars began the process of working toward an eventual new or renovated stadium in 2016 and Tuesday night’s vote was the culmination of eight years of work.
Owner Shad Khan was enthusiastic about the vote and said in a statement: “The belief and determination of Delores and Wayne Weaver to make the Jacksonville Jaguars a reality more than 30 years ago was reaffirmed today by the leadership of Mayor Donna Deegan, her team and the Jacksonville City Council. The message then, and now, should be clear. Never doubt Jacksonville!”
“We’ve spent a tremendous amount of time and resources, particularly over the last four years,” said Lamping. “And we’re thrilled that we could turn that goal. It was a goal that Shad had and that the community shared to keep the Jaguars here in northeast Florida for generations to come this evening. We’ve turned that goal into a reality thanks to the mayor and her team.”
The facility improvements would include adding a roof to the stadium, which would include a shaded canopy similar to the one at SoFi Stadium in Inglewood, California, designed to reduce the temperature by at least 15 degrees. The new stadium is expected to be ready in time for the 2028 NFL season.
The Jaguars confirmed they will play at Everbank Stadium for the next three years, then an alternate ‘to-be-decided’ venue in 2027 before their “stadium of the future” opens in 2028.
Jacksonville City Council voted almost unanimously in favor of the agreement with the final vote going 14-1. The agreement, however, still needs to be approved by three-quarters (24) of the 32 NFL owners at the league meetings in October before construction starts in 2026. The project will have an initial 12-to-14-month design phase.
The agreement makes the Jaguars the second NFL team to reach a deal with its home city for stadium renovations this week after the Carolina Panthers struck a deal with the city of Charlotte on Monday. With both teams receiving financial backing for stadium renovations from their cities, the pressure now falls on the state of Missouri, whose voters declined providing financial help for the maintenance and renovation of Arrowhead Stadium, home of the back-to-back defending Super Bowl Champions, the Kansas City Chiefs, in April.
-Maher Abucheri
Twitter: @pabloikonyero
Photo: AndrewAvitus. This file is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution 3.0 Unported license.