JACKSONVILLE, Fla. — It's being called "The Stadium of the Future".
Wednesday morning the Jaguars announced massive renovation plans that include a glass roof, expanded concourses and even residential development outside the stadium.
But who's going to pay for it?
The possible price tag for everything involved with the project - from stadium renovations to development around the stadium comes in around $2 billion. That would make "The Stadium of the Future" the most expensive project in Jacksonville history.
"This venue is much more than just a stadium, it's a reflection of our city and community," that's one of the lines about the project from a video that the Jaguars released Wednesday morning. But the project includes much more than just the stadium.
According to a proposed Memorandum of Understanding between the Jaguars and the City of Jacksonville, the project cost would be a 50/50 split. But with all of the external elements the city would actually pay for roughly 2/3 of the stadium renovation. The team would contribute more than 80 percent of the funding for development around the stadium. In total, each side would contribute roughly $1 billion to the project.
"This needs to become more of a neighborhood," said Jaguars President Mark Lamping while making the case for a bigger project footprint, "it's not just designed for people when they visit the stadium, but to have people live here, work here."
"There is a community already here," said Jacksonville Urban Planner Ennis Davis, who added that Eastside residents are already trying to revitalize their neighborhood.
The Eastside Legacy Business Council is an organization made up of property and business owners who created cultural initiatives like the Melanin Market and the instillation of murals that commemorate local history. While Davis is in favor of renovating TIAA Bank Field, he's like to see investment in the existing neighborhood.
"Over the next few months it'll be pretty interesting to see what their intentions are for the property surrounding the stadium and then have the conversation about safeguards that we need to put in place to support the existing community here and protect the cultural heritage of the community in this area," said Davis.
None of the plans for this project have been approved yet.
The Jaguars have been involved in Eastside development. In May 2021 Jaguars owner Shad Khan donated $1 million to the organization LiftJax and this April the Jaguars helped renovate a playground on the Eastside.