JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – Almost four years after opening, Unity Plaza in Jacksonville’s Brooklyn neighborhood has been abandoned.
All three restaurants on the first floor of the 220 Riverside apartment complex are closed. The fountain in the plaza’s center -- littered with trash.
At the center of the filth, an injured duck.
“It’s a death trap.” said Valerie Hale, a wildlife rehabilitation rescue volunteer. “The sides on the fountain are just vertical walls. There’s no exit for any animal that gets into that pond."
Neighbors who frequent the area said they are disgusted with the plaza’s state.
“There’s been a lot of debris and trash and everything goes into the pond here and overall the upkeep has gone south,” said McKenna Blansett, who lives in the area.
Isabelle Campbell agreed.
“It’s really sad. It’s really dirty," said Isabelle Campbell, a neighbor. "Something needs to be done.”
Unity Plaza opened in September 2015. It was 10 years in the making and was designed to unite the people of Jacksonville, but some say it’s doing the opposite.
News4JAX set out to find who's responsible for maintaning the fountain.
According to a statement from the City of Jacksonville:
“The City of Jacksonville has expressed frustration and voiced concerns with Hallmark Partners many times because, quite frankly, they are not holding up their end of the deal. The city pays them to maintain Unity Fountain appropriately. The COJ has stepped in and sent crews to clean Unity Fountain on multiple occasions even though it’s not our responsibility as per the agreement. Because of this, at this time we are considering other options to ensure it stays in the condition the people deserve.”
A statement from Hallmark Partners, Inc. reads:
“The property owners in Brooklyn pay to maintain (the) pond at the corner of Riverside Avenue and Forest Street. It collects and cleans the stormwater (and associated litter) for all the properties in the area. We administer the contract with the lake maintenance company. We work with them to be as responsive as possible.”
News4JAX reporter Zachery Lashway is working closely with Hale to feed and monitor the mallard in hopes of rescuing it in the coming days. Lashway called FWC on Friday, but as of Thursday, the duck was still in the fountain.
“Mallards are federally protected birds.” Hale said.
Jacksonville City Councilman Sam Newby said in a statement: “I am disappointed with the current condition of Unity Plaza. Therefore, I am diligently working with DIA (Downtown Investment Authority) and the City of Jacksonville to find solutions for improved maintenance of this valuable resource.”
