On Tuesday night, the Jacksonville City Council approved a $1.4 billion renovation deal for EverBank Stadium with a 14-1 vote, in agreement with the Jaguars and the city.
This move edges the Jaguars closer to securing the franchise’s long term stability pending approval from 24 out of the NFLs 32 owners at the leagues meetings in October in Atlanta.
If all goes well construction is set to kick off after the team wraps up its 2025 season aiming for completion before the start of the 2028 season.
Jacksonville Mayor Donna Deegan expressed excitement about this milestone stating that it signifies unity and collaboration within their community. The city will chip in $625 million matching the teams contribution of another $625 million for this project. And also extend the Jaguars lease by three decades with a commitment to stay put. Additionally Jacksonville plans to allocate $150 million, towards maintenance requirements before construction commences totaling their investment at $775 million.
In case the renovations for EverBank Stadium exceeds its budget both the team and the city will share any costs, up to $5 million with the Jaguars covering expenses beyond that amount. Additionally the Jaguars are set to invest $100 million, in downtown development. This investment will be channeled towards a mixed use project located near the office building and Four Seasons hotel currently being built at the Shipyards.
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The initial renovation deal for EverBank Stadium
The initial agreement involved a $300 million community benefits deal where both parties contributed $150 million each. The city committed $50 million, for countywide initiatives focusing on housing, homelessness and workforce development $30 million for the neighborhood near the stadium $56 million for completing downtown riverfront parks and $14 million allocated to the 14 Council districts.
The revised legislation approved on Tuesday reduces the Jaguars contribution by $31.3 million. Despite this reduction the Jaguars President stated that the team would uphold its commitment of $100 million without city funding making it the largest community benefits agreement in NFL history. The Jaguars also intend to fulfill their promise to support the community.
Included in the renovation deal for EverBank Stadium is a statement regarding the stadium project detailing specifics such as escalators, elevators and suites. The Council will receive updates on any modifications to the stadium design and construction during finance committee meetings.
According to Lamping by 2025 season’s end the stadiums capacity will remain similar to its state. Additionally; there is an option for one game to be played away, from Jacksonville.
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In 2026 they plan to close the deck at the stadium reducing the seating capacity to around 43,500 seats. The team is allowed to play home games without any restrictions. It has been agreed that they will not exceed three away games, between 2025 and 2026.
Furthermore this renovation deal for EverBank Stadium locks in how many home games the Jaguars can play outside of Jacksonville.
For the year 2027 no games are scheduled to be held in Jacksonville. Instead the team has the option to play up to three games in London.
The community benefits agreement is set to resume on July 23rd. City officials are optimistic about its completion.
Since 2013 (except for 2020 due to the pandemic) the Jaguars have played a game each year in London. Last season saw them playing two matches in London but only serving as hosts once. A similar schedule is planned for 2024.
Mark Lamping, president of Jaguars mentioned that efforts towards an renovated stadium began early, as 2016. And Tuesday night’s vote marked the end of an eight year process.
“We decided to start the EverBank Stadium renovation project because we looked at cities that faced issues, with their sports teams ” explained Lamping. “Unfortunately many cities that lost their NFL teams shared problems; they were markets the team didn’t have a solid lease in place and there were unresolved stadium issues. From the beginning Shads commitment was to prevent Jacksonville from facing a fate.
“We’ve dedicated an amount of time and resources in the last four years and we’re excited to see this goal come to fruition. It was Shads vision, shared by the community to ensure the Jaguars stay in Florida for generations. Thanks to the mayor and her team we’ve made that vision a reality.”
The upgraded EverBank Stadium will resemble SoFi Stadium in Inglewood, California. Featuring a canopy over each seat that would reduce temperatures by 15 degrees. The seating capacity for Jaguars games will be 63,000. Can be expanded to over 70,000 for events, like the Florida Georgia game and other sporting events and concerts.
