Union Terminal Warehouse Unveils Six-Figure Public Mural Collection in Downtown Jacksonville

A century-old access tunnel beneath Jacksonville's Union Terminal Warehouse has been converted into a permanent public art gallery, creating what organizers say is a new cultural destination for downtown. The collection, called Duuuval Walls, features works by 25 artists across 600 feet of wall space at 700 E. Union St. and is valued at more than six figures.

The collection debuted following a two-day mural jam on July 11–12 that drew more than 800 visitors who watched artists create original works in real time. The tunnel runs along the east side of the restored warehouse and is slated to become part of the future Emerald Trail corridor, a planned 30-mile network of trails and greenways connecting Jacksonville neighborhoods.

What's happening

Downtown Vision Inc., a nonprofit that manages Jacksonville's downtown business improvement district, organized the project through its PlacemakingJax program, which is presented by VyStar Credit Union. The curatorial team invested more than 750 hours in planning and production over eight months, according to the organization's announcement.

The project received 89 applications for 25 mural spaces. Nearly all selected artists were born, raised, or educated in Duval County, with a small number from elsewhere in Florida who had ties to Jacksonville. The lineup also included Al Díaz, a New York City graffiti pioneer, and two local high school artists, one of whom had never painted a mural before.

Artists worked with complete creative freedom—no prescribed themes or design restrictions were imposed. The festival also featured Larry Love's organic market, food trucks, a curated gallery exhibition called Small Walls with works available for purchase, and six hours of artist talks and educational programming.

The participating artists were Al Díaz, Barbara Hoinides, Camille Faustino, Elena Ohlander, ESH, FREAKY, Gaines, Gist, Grace Bio, Jarett Walker, Metamorphvic, Mike McIntire, Point, Rachael Sharpe, RESKEW, Scotty Briggs, SOMAR, Tierra Scott, Tracie Thompson, Trevor Locy, Tyler Murphy, UrbanMedium, Will Morgan, Werms, Worx of Oz, Zende T. Randolph, and Zulu Painter.

Union Terminal Warehouse, developed by Columbia Ventures, is a redeveloped century-old building that now houses residential apartments, small offices, flexible commercial spaces under the Workhouse at Union Terminal brand, and amenities. The property is located in the Eastside neighborhood along the planned Emerald Trail route.

How this activates underused downtown space

The tunnel was previously a utilitarian pass-through corridor beneath the warehouse. By converting it into a walkable art gallery open to the public at no charge, organizers aim to transform the space into a destination that draws foot traffic and encourages people to linger downtown.

Placemaking projects like Duuuval Walls are designed to convert underutilized public or semi-public spaces into community gathering spots. The concept is that activating these spaces with art, programming, or amenities can spur adjacent economic activity, make neighborhoods feel safer and more welcoming, and give residents a reason to visit areas they might otherwise pass by.

In Jacksonville, the Downtown Investment Authority and Downtown Vision have used placemaking strategies in recent years to encourage residential and commercial development in the urban core. The city's consolidated government has prioritized downtown revitalization through incentives, infrastructure improvements like the Emerald Trail, and support for cultural programming. This project adds a free, publicly accessible cultural amenity to the mix.

The PlacemakingJax program, introduced in 2022, funds pop-up activations and larger-scale interventions in downtown Jacksonville. Funding comes in part from the annual DTJax Gala held each February, along with support from sponsors including the Jessie Ball duPont Fund, the Community Foundation of Northeast Florida, and the Downtown Investment Authority.

What it means for the Emerald Trail and downtown's east side

The tunnel is positioned along the future Emerald Trail, a planned 30-mile system of trails, bike lanes, and pedestrian paths that will loop through Jacksonville's urban core and connect more than a dozen neighborhoods. The Emerald Trail is a multi-year, multi-phase infrastructure project intended to improve walkability, provide recreation space, and knit together areas that have been divided by highways and industrial corridors.

Union Terminal Warehouse sits in the Eastside neighborhood, an area east of downtown's central business district that has historically been industrial and has seen less redevelopment activity than neighborhoods to the south and west. The warehouse redevelopment itself is part of a broader effort to bring residential and commercial uses to the Eastside.

By creating a public art draw along the trail route before the trail is fully complete, the project seeds a future amenity and signals to potential developers and residents that the area is changing. In urban redevelopment, cultural programming and public art are often deployed early in a neighborhood transition to establish a new identity and attract the kind of foot traffic that supports retail and hospitality businesses.

For the Emerald Trail specifically, having an activated, colorful, Instagram-friendly destination along the route could help build public support and usage once segments open. Trails and greenways typically see higher use and better maintenance outcomes when they connect to destinations people want to visit—parks, restaurants, shops, or in this case, a public art gallery.

Artist support and Jacksonville's creative economy

The festival's structure—open call with competitive selection, no creative restrictions, and substantial planning resources—reflects an approach to public art that treats artists as professionals rather than decorators. By paying artists, providing materials and logistical support, and giving them creative control, the project invests directly in Jacksonville's creative workforce.

Jacksonville's arts and culture sector has grown in recent years, with organizations like the Cultural Council of Greater Jacksonville, Jax Wall Project, and Black Mural Map supporting local artists and advocating for public art. The city has added murals and installations in neighborhoods including Brooklyn, Springfield, and San Marco, though the scale and coordination of those efforts have varied.

A competitive, well-resourced public art project can have economic multiplier effects. Artists who gain visibility and experience through high-profile commissions can attract private commissions, gallery representation, and teaching opportunities. Public art also functions as tourism and place-branding infrastructure—murals become backdrops for social media content, which in turn markets the city to visitors and potential residents.

The inclusion of two high school artists in the lineup also points to workforce development. Providing early-career artists with mentorship and professional-level project experience can help retain creative talent in the region, a recurring challenge for mid-sized metros competing with larger art markets.

Full-circle moment for a historic building

Union Terminal Warehouse has a long history in Jacksonville's Eastside. Before its recent redevelopment by Columbia Ventures, the building housed raw studio space used by local artists, according to statements from curator Elena Ohlander and Kandice Clark, both of whom worked in the building before the renovation.

The building's transformation from informal artist workspace to a mixed-use development with residential, office, and commercial tenants mirrors a pattern seen in many cities: historic industrial buildings that once provided affordable space for artists and makers are renovated into market-rate apartments and offices, often displacing the very communities that activated them.

By commissioning murals from some of the same artists who used the building in its pre-redevelopment phase and making the art publicly accessible, the project attempts to preserve a thread of the building's cultural history even as its use changes. Whether that symbolic gesture translates into sustained support for working artists—through affordable studio space, public art budgets, or other means—is an open question that often follows this kind of development.

The project is also a case study in how developers and arts organizations can collaborate. Columbia Ventures provided the wall space and supported the festival as part of the building's redevelopment, recognizing that public art could enhance the property's profile and attract tenants and visitors. For developers in competitive urban markets, cultural programming can be a differentiator.

What happens next

The Duuuval Walls collection is now open to the public at 700 E. Union St. Visitors can walk the 600-foot corridor along the future Emerald Trail tunnel without charge. The space is intended to serve as a backdrop for photos, a date-night stop, and a destination for tourists exploring Jacksonville.

More information about the project is available at DTJax.com/placemaking. Union Terminal Warehouse offers tours of available residential and commercial spaces through its leasing office at utwjax.com.

As Jacksonville continues to grow—with major development projects underway downtown, along the Emerald Trail, and in growth corridors across Duval and neighboring counties—projects like Duuuval Walls test the proposition that investing in public space and local culture can shape how and where that growth happens. The question for Northeast Florida is whether one-off placemaking wins can scale into sustained infrastructure that supports artists, activates neighborhoods, and makes the region's rapid growth more livable.