J Magazine Fall 2017

SPECIAL
REPORT
The Prime F. Osborn III Convention Center, bless its heart, is still the grand Neo-Classical Revival monument that,
in its time as Union Terminal, welcomed thousands of people to Jacksonville every day for more than a half-century.
These days, it’s being crowded, and even obscured, by the new Jacksonville, with the Lofts at LaVilla smack in its
front yard and the new Jacksonville Regional Transportation Center arising on its north flank.
But if you get the right angle, the Prime Osborn retains much of its grandeur and some of its dignity, after having
been repurposed 30 years ago into an expansive meeting facility. “With 265,000 square feet of space,” its marketing
material says, “the Prime F. Osborn III Convention Center is large enough and versatile enough to accommodate
gatherings of virtually any size.”
But it’s not a
convention center.
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J MAGAZINE | FALL 2017