Prime F. Osborn III Convention Center is a convention center located in downtown Jacksonville, Florida. Opened in 1986, it was built incorporating Jacksonville Terminal Complex / Union Station as well as several thousand square feet of newly built structure.

Located in the Jacksonville neighborhood of LaVilla, the Prime Osborn contains two exhibition halls totaling , several ballrooms and meetings rooms. The City of Jacksonville is looking to replace the Prime Osborn within the next decade, with a larger 500,000+ square foot convention center in downtown Jacksonville. The JTA Skyway's LaVilla station is located across the street.

The Convention Center was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1976. Some of the passenger trains handled in Jacksonville were 18 to 22 railcars long. Within the terminal, there was a restaurant, snack bars, news stands, a barber shop, florist, a drug store, and gift shops. The Jacksonville terminal had 32 tracks. 29 of those tracks were passenger tracks with platforms. Of those, 1-15 were stub or "head" tracks, which ended at the bumper posts. (Some of these massive decorative concrete posts still stand within the Convention Center Concourse).

The station was last used on January 3, 1974; Amtrak moved to a new smaller station on the Northside. In 1982, a public-private partnership was started, led by former CSX chairman Prime F. Osborn III. The new convention center opened on October 17, 1986.

Future and proposed projects

First Coast Commuter Rail is a proposed passenger rail system serving Jacksonville and the Northeast Florida region. It is currently in the early planning stages. Three routes were analyzed in depth: north to Yulee, southwest to Green Cove Springs, FL, and southeast to St. Augustine, FL.

Brightline is an inter-city passenger rail system between Miami and Orlando. Jacksonville is a likely expansion point for the near future, as the FEC Railway already owns the tracks running there.

See also

  • Architecture of Jacksonville
  • List of convention centers in the United States
  • Northeast Florida Commuter Rail

References

  • JTA Commuter Rail Plan
  • FEC Passenger Railway Plan
  • Prime F. Osborn III Convention Center