JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – The City of Jacksonville has issued more than $3,000 in fines to the current owners of the Regency Square Mall in a three-year span, because of the deteriorating conditions of the building, News4JAX has learned.
In recent weeks, a city council member and a state senator, both of whom represent the area where the mall sits, have expressed concerns about the state of the mall, with a leaky roof that’s caused barrels to be placed throughout the mall, to catch falling rain.
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This year, four citations were issued by city code enforcement, over the conditions of the roof. Each citation carried a fine of $255.
Additional records obtained by News4JAX on Thursday show that from August 2021 to June 2023, a total of 12 citations were issued by the city, for issues with the roof and ceiling, as well as with the mall’s air conditioning system, which was in need of repair. In all, the citations carried $3,310 in fines. All of the fines have been paid except for the most recently issued ones.
City officials have also issued several warning citations over the same timeframe. Those warnings addressed the same issues as the citations that resulted in fines, and also raised concerns about exposed wiring and damaged flooring. No citations resulting in fines have been issued for those two problems.
The city is in the process of initiating hearings for repeat violations for some of the issues, which could result in higher fines for each violation.
Regency Mall Realty, LLC, a partnership of two New York-based companies, Namdar Realty Group and Mason Asset Management, confirmed this week that it had finalized a contract to sell the mall, which it purchased in 2014. The buyer of the mall was not disclosed.