Thursday, Dec. 18: School Partnerships + Community Grants + Energy Protest
Thursday, Dec. 18
Your local news briefing
5 Headlines You Should Know Today
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Councilmembers push school board partnership on urban-core closures.
Two Jacksonville City Council members are urging greater collaboration with the Duval County School Board over planned school closures. Councilmembers Ju’Coby Pittman and Jimmy Peluso met this week with board members to express concerns that closures in the city’s urban core ignore signs of future growth. Long Branch Elementary is set to close next year, but Pittman and Peluso argue that neighborhood schools are vital assets — especially as redevelopment funds flow into areas like the Eastside. Both sides agreed on the need for more joint decision-making.
Brooks Rehab $68M expansion adds beds, jobs, new clinics.
Brooks Rehabilitation says it’s investing $68 million across three major construction projects in Duval and Clay counties, expecting to create 150 new jobs. The expansions include adding 48 beds and an Innovation Studio at the Brooks Rehabilitation Hospital-Bartram Campus in South Jacksonville. Helen’s House, the organization’s patient-family housing facility, will double in size, while the Orange Park outpatient clinic will add 7,000 square feet—featuring a new pediatric feeding and swallowing clinic funded in part by the state. Construction begins in 2026, with completion expected by early 2028.
Resilience Fund grants $841K to nonprofits; six get $50K.
Eighteen local nonprofits will share $841,000 in grants from The Community Foundation for Northeast Florida’s new Resilience Fund. Launched in June chiefly with a $1 million anonymous donation, the fund aims to support organizations providing essential services like food, housing, and health care to vulnerable populations across six counties. Jacksonville-based recipients receiving $50,000 each include Beyond90, Giving Closet Project, Lift Jax, NAMI Jacksonville, Volunteers in Medicine, and We Care Jacksonville. The grants are intended to stabilize nonprofit operations and build long-term capacity amid shifts in public funding.
Coal-for-Christmas protest targets JEA plant, rates, clean-energy plan.
Local environmental and civil rights groups are staging a holiday-themed protest at Jacksonville Electric Authority headquarters this week. Activists from the Sierra Club, NAACP, CLEO Institute, and others plan to deliver bags of coal, holiday cards, and a joint letter urging JEA to shut down its Northside Generating Station, one of the state’s few remaining coal plants. The groups argue the plant contributes to poor air quality and high utility bills, with another rate hike set for 2026. JEA’s next long-term energy plan is due that same year.
Northeast Florida’s 2025 dining boom spreads across region.
Northeast Florida’s dining scene surged in 2025, with dozens of new restaurant openings stretching from Downtown Jacksonville to Amelia Island. Highlights include Dorothy’s Restaurant in Downtown, Brine Oysters Champagne and Caviar in San Marco, Maschall’s Kitchen Halal Afghan Cuisine on the Southside, and Ajua Mexican Kitchen & Bar in Jacksonville Beach. In St. Augustine, Bea’s Fine Foods + All Day Café debuted alongside Jefe’s Fish Wagon, while Omni Amelia Island introduced Nonna Mia as part of a resort-wide revamp. The growth signals strong confidence in local tourism, population gains, and neighborhood spending power.
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