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Jacksonville police move headquarters to former Florida Blue building
The Jacksonville Sheriff’s Office formally opened its new headquarters at 532 Riverside Ave., replacing its longtime base downtown. City officials say the move centralizes operations and upgrades facilities while avoiding the cost of a new-build project estimated at $200 million to $300 million.
JACKSONVILLE, Fla. — The Jacksonville Sheriff’s Office officially opened its new headquarters Tuesday at the former Florida Blue building, moving administrative and investigative operations from the Police Memorial Building downtown after decades at that site.
Sheriff T.K. Waters, Mayor Donna Deegan and City Council President Nick Howland took part in a ribbon-cutting ceremony at 532 Riverside Ave. The headquarters’ public counter is open to residents.
Waters said the new space has improved agency morale and gives employees more room to gather, including a cafeteria. Deegan said Jacksonville’s population of more than 1 million and its area of over 840 square miles have outgrown the former headquarters. She pointed to centralized operations, updated technology and facility improvements as benefits of the move.
Waters thanked city leaders for supporting the relocation, saying it helped the city avoid constructing a new facility that could have cost an estimated $200 million to $300 million.
The opening is part of a broader reshuffling of JSO public-facing services. A Public Services Building at 450 Magnolia St. opened last month. Residents can go there for fingerprinting, public records, performer work applications and renewals, and recruitment services. It is open weekdays from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m., except federal holidays. The District 1 substation also moved to that building from Norwood Avenue earlier this month.
The parking lot at the Riverside headquarters remains available for JSO’s Safer Transaction program, which provides a place for people to meet for legal exchanges arranged through online marketplaces. A prescription drug drop box at the site is accessible 24 hours a day.
At the ceremony, Howland cited 63 murders in Jacksonville in 2024, which he described as the lowest number in the Sheriff’s Office’s recorded history.