JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – Jacksonville’s downtown is about to feel a lot more open — and a lot more social.
On Wednesday night, the Jacksonville City Council unanimously approved a new ordinance that allows restaurants and bars across all of downtown Jacksonville to serve food and alcohol outdoors — expanding well beyond the limited areas where it was previously allowed.
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The measure, proposed by Council member Raul Arias, is designed to bring more life, energy, and walkability to the city’s urban core. Arias said the change is one piece of a larger effort to revitalize downtown as new residential and business developments continue to rise.
“If we’re going to call ourselves a world-class city, we have to act like it,” Arias said during an earlier discussion of the bill. “Our downtown is our most critical need right now.”
What’s changing
Under the new rules, downtown restaurants and bars can now:
- Serve customers on sidewalks directly next to their property, extending up to the curb line;
- Allow alcohol consumption in three areas — inside the business, on a connected patio, or in a recreational space such as a pool or golf zone, as long as city distance requirements are met;
- Apply for permission to expand outdoor seating into nearby sidewalks with approval from the Downtown Investment Authority.
Bars must still serve alcohol from inside the building and take steps to ensure drinks stay within the approved boundaries — using barriers, staff supervision, or cameras to prevent underage or public drinking.
Restaurants must prepare food on-site and earn at least 51% of their revenue from food and nonalcoholic beverages while following city maintenance and cleanliness standards.
The new rules apply within the Downtown Overlay Zone, which stretches from Brooklyn through the Working Waterfront east of EverBank Stadium, including redevelopment districts such as the Northbank, Southbank, Cathedral District, LaVilla, and the Sports & Entertainment District.
Expanding outside of downtown?
While the new ordinance only applies downtown, District 14 Councilman Dr. Rahman Johnson asked during the meeting whether other parts of Jacksonville — such as Baymeadows, Mandarin, or the Beaches — could one day see similar outdoor service rules.
“Specifically, in our code, we address downtown cafés and bars in parts 8 and 9 of Chapter 250,” a city staff member explained. “We addressed a couple of specific areas where we have outside cafés, and those are generally the areas of San Marco, Riverside, and Avondale. So those are the specified areas in our code where that is allowed.”
For now, those areas — along with downtown — are the only parts of Jacksonville where outdoor dining and alcohol service are explicitly permitted by city code.
Inside the bill
According to the bill filed on Oct. 13, 2025, the measure formally amends several sections of the Ordinance Code to modernize how and where businesses can serve customers outside.
- Section 154.108 is updated to expand the definition of a vendor’s premises, replacing older language that limited alcohol service to patios and linking it to the broader areas outlined in Section 250.801.
- Section 250.801 now defines “adjacent” to include sidewalk extensions and added public space approved by the Downtown Investment Authority.
- The code’s definition of a bar removes references to the old E-Town Zone and recognizes any standard bar within the Downtown Overlay, without requiring food sales.
- The definition of a restaurant or café now aligns with the Downtown Overlay boundaries, deleting older references to the “Central Business District.”
- The ordinance deletes the E-Town Zone entirely, simplifying downtown zoning language.
The policy has no fiscal impact on the city and focuses primarily on alcoholic beverage regulation and business operation standards downtown.
What’s next?
The ordinance now heads to Mayor Donna Deegan’s desk for her signature. Once signed, the changes take effect immediately, allowing downtown restaurants, cafés, and bars to begin applying for outdoor service permits.
Arias says the move is a step toward making downtown Jacksonville more inviting and lively, encouraging people to spend more time — and money — in the city’s core.