{"id":140079,"date":"2026-02-01T23:20:09","date_gmt":"2026-02-01T23:20:09","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/140079\/"},"modified":"2026-02-01T23:20:09","modified_gmt":"2026-02-01T23:20:09","slug":"ed-tooker-resident-news","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/140079\/","title":{"rendered":"Ed Tooker \u2013 Resident News"},"content":{"rendered":"

Originally from New Jersey, Ed Tooker never planned on settling in Jacksonville. He was heading south en route to Fort Lauderdale, where he had previously spent spring break and planned to move. On the way, though, he stopped in Jacksonville to visit a friend who lived in Riverside, rerouting his trip and, ultimately, his life.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt was the best detour I ever did \u2013 the rest is history,\u201d said Tooker, remembering how he first came to move to Jacksonville in 1988.<\/p>\n

Though he moved away twice \u2013 once to Portland and later, to Atlanta \u2013 Jacksonville kept pulling him back. After a decade in Atlanta working in real estate, he returned for good and now lives in a historic 1938 bungalow on Felch Avenue.<\/p>\n

\"Ed\u2019sEd\u2019s historic 1938 bungalow, which he lovingly restored.<\/p>\n

\u201cI drove around street by street,\u201d he said, describing how he found his home. \u201cSaw a little bungalow and told my agent, \u2018Start writing an offer.\u2019\u201d<\/p>\n

He\u2019s since renovated and updated the house with care. He shares his home with MYSTR, a 12-year-old rescue dog he recently adopted and saved from euthanasia.<\/p>\n

\"EdEd and his dog, MYSTR<\/p>\n

Tooker loves San Marco\u2019s walkability and central location. He appreciates being steps from the Metro Diner and minutes from downtown, where he frequently attends concerts, plays and sporting events.<\/p>\n

Tooker also finds joy in the neighborhood\u2019s historic character. He calls San Marco Square the crown jewel of the community and always enjoys showing it off when people come to visit him.<\/p>\n

Outside of real estate, Tooker is deeply involved in the local LGBTQ community, serving as an event organizer with the OUTdoorsy Adventure Team, a nonprofit that hosts inclusive hikes and outdoor experiences across Jacksonville and beyond.<\/p>\n

\"EdEd with the OUTDoorsy Adventure Team Crew<\/p>\n

One of his signature events is an annual sunrise beach gathering, followed by a hike at Cradle Creek Preserve and brunch. The group also holds urban hikes through historic neighborhoods like LaVilla, fostering appreciation for their architecture and culture.<\/p>\n

Tooker sees these hikes as more than just exercise; they\u2019re a way to connect people to the city\u2019s changing landscape. He\u2019s especially excited about the Fuller Warren Shared Use Path, the Emerald Trail and their potential to link neighborhoods across Jacksonville.<\/p>\n

\"EdEd enjoys San Marco\u2019s walkability, particularly crossing the Fuller Warren Shared Use Path to cross over to Riverside.<\/p>\n

\u201cPeople won\u2019t be segregated to parts of the city; they\u2019ll be exposed to lots of different people,\u201d said Tooker.<\/p>\n

Most hikes are local, within an hour or so of town, though the group occasionally ventures farther: They\u2019ve gone zip-lining and kayaking in Ocala and took their first flyaway trip to Puerto Rico last June.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe had someone in the group whose family lives there,\u201d said Tooker. \u201cSo they helped organize and show us the culture from a local perspective.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"AfterAfter several moves, Ed has found his home in San Marco.<\/p>\n

In addition to hiking with OUTdoorsy, Tooker enjoys some time to himself fishing. He fishes off his paddleboard in the river, the Intracoastal and the ocean. He also likes surf fishing from the beach and has gone fly fishing in North Georgia and Tennessee.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhether I catch something or not, it\u2019s always a good day when I\u2019m fishing,\u201d he said. \u201cEven if it\u2019s a crappy day, it gets you out of your head.\u201d<\/p>\n

After three detours to Jacksonville, he is certain this one is permanent.<\/p>\n

\u201cI live in the 904-area code for the third and last time,\u201d said Tooker.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Originally from New Jersey, Ed Tooker never planned on settling in Jacksonville. He was heading south en route…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":140080,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[8],"tags":[116,118,117],"class_list":["post-140079","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\/140079","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=140079"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/140079\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/140080"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=140079"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=140079"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=140079"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}