Intuition Ale Works will close permanently due to rising costs and industry challenges. However, neighboring businesses remain hopeful for upcoming downtown changes.<\/p>\n
JACKSONVILLE, Fla. \u2014 For decades, businesses in downtown Jacksonville have endured slow seasons, economic setbacks and repeated promises of revitalization. This week, one of the area\u2019s longtime staples announced it will close its doors for good.<\/p>\n
Intuition Ale Works, a craft brewery that has operated downtown since 2016, announced it will permanently close on April 24. The decision comes after months of attempting to sell the business amid rising costs and shifting consumer habits in the craft beer industry.<\/p>\n
Just next door, leaders at Manifest Distilling say the closure is difficult to watch, but they remain hopeful about downtown\u2019s future.<\/p>\n
David Cohen, co-founder of Manifest Distilling, opened his business on East Forsyth Street a decade ago and has watched downtown change and struggle over the years.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe survived those 10 years of being here, of seeing those seasonal elements, of going through pandemics, of being shut down because of the fire across the street,\u201d Cohen said. \u201cSo we\u2019ve kind of survived through all that.\u201d<\/p>\n
Manifest has adapted over time, expanding from a tasting room to retail distribution and opening its doors to football fans on Jacksonville Jaguars game days. Cohen said Sundays, especially during popular matchups, are among the distillery\u2019s busiest days.<\/p>\n
But Intuition Ale Works, located just steps away, announced this week that it plans to permanently close after nine months of searching for a buyer.<\/p>\n
Founder Ben Davis said it’s due to rising costs and industry challenges in a social media post announcing the decision.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe craft beer industry has changed dramatically since COVID,\u201d Davis wrote. \u201cCosts are higher, margins are thinner, and competition is relentless.\u201d<\/p>\n
Davis also said he believed in the long-term potential of downtown Jacksonville, but acknowledged that optimism alone was not enough to sustain the business.<\/p>\n
\u201cRenderings and potential do not pay the bills,\u201d he wrote.<\/p>\n
For Cohen, the loss is deeply personal. Manifest and Intuition opened around the same time and grew alongside each other for nearly a decade.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe\u2019re devastated to see them go,\u201d Cohen said. \u201cWe built out this space at the exact same time with them. They\u2019ve been here through thick and thin with us for 10 years.\u201d<\/p>\n
As Intuition prepares to close, major redevelopment projects are still on the horizon for downtown Jacksonville, including the Gateway Jax project, a new Four Seasons hotel and the Jaguars\u2019 $1.4 billion \u201cStadium of the Future\u201d renovations.<\/p>\n
City leaders hope those projects will bring increased foot traffic and new opportunities for businesses that have weathered years of uncertainty.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe\u2019re excited,\u201d Cohen said. \u201cWe\u2019re looking forward to it.\u201d<\/p>\n
Gateway Jax is expected to open in 2028. The new Four Seasons hotel is slated to open in 2027, and stadium renovations are projected to be completed in 2028.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Intuition Ale Works will close permanently due to rising costs and industry challenges. However, neighboring businesses remain hopeful…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":138516,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[8],"tags":[116,118,117],"class_list":["post-138515","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-jacksonville","tag-jacksonville","tag-jacksonville-headlines","tag-jacksonville-news"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/138515","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=138515"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/138515\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/138516"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=138515"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=138515"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=138515"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}