reporter Briana Brownlee<\/a> and photojournalist Jesse Hanson took those viewer questions directly to the Jacksonville Sheriff\u2019s Office. <\/p>\nIn a statement before the ordinance was signed, JSO said it would not comment yet. News4JAX has since reached out again to the sheriff\u2019s office, requesting an interview now that the measure has been approved.<\/p>\n
\u201cAt this time, we are going to refrain from speaking about this ordinance, as it continues through the process of approval or veto by Mayor Donna Deegan.\u201d<\/p>\n
Jacksonville Sheriff’s Office<\/p>\n
With JSO declining to speak, News4JAX asked Councilmember Raul Arias, who drafted the ordinance, whether safety was taken into account.<\/p>\n
Arias said the legislation includes required safety reviews.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe safety component is really the biggest part for me,\u201d he said. \u201cWithin the first six months and again at the end of the first year, we\u2019re going to review it. I\u2019m going to get with JSO to confirm that there haven\u2019t been any incidents between the hours of 2 a.m. and 3 a.m.\u201d<\/p>\n
Where the later hours apply<\/p>\n
The extended last call would apply only to businesses inside the Downtown Entertainment District, which includes:<\/p>\n
The Central Core<\/p>\n
The North Core<\/p>\n
The Sports and Entertainment District<\/p>\n
If Deegan signs it, 63 businesses inside those zones would be allowed to serve alcohol until 3 a.m.<\/p>\n
Everywhere else \u2014 including the city\u2019s neighborhoods \u2014 would remain at a 2 a.m. cutoff.<\/p>\n
Arias said some businesses outside downtown, including in areas like the Southside and Mandarin, have asked to be included. <\/p>\n
But he says the focus is on strengthening a walkable, concentrated nightlife area downtown.<\/p>\n
Five Points not included <\/p>\n
Although business owners in Five Points told council members this week that their neighborhood has grown into an extension of downtown\u2019s entertainment scene, the district\u2019s boundaries do not include Five Points.<\/p>\n
Arias confirmed that Five Points is not part of the ordinance.<\/p>\n
Could later hours ease congestion?<\/p>\n
During public comment, several business owners and residents said extending service by an hour could actually make the area safer by reducing the mass exodus that happens at 2 a.m.<\/p>\n
\u201cCurrently, at 2 a.m., we turn the lights on and push thousands of people out,\u201d business owner Evan Rider said. \u201cAt 3 a.m., closing staggers and exits reduce congestion and actually make things safer.\u201d<\/p>\n
Another speaker told council members, \u201cWe\u2019ve invested millions downtown. A later hour makes sense there \u2014 but not in residential districts where people are trying to sleep.\u201d<\/p>\n
The legislation is effective upon Mayor Deegan\u2019s signature.<\/p>\n
Copyright 2026 by WJXT News4JAX – All rights reserved.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"JACKSONVILLE, Fla. \u2013 Jacksonville is officially extending alcohol sales to 3 a.m. in the Downtown Entertainment District after…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":179423,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[8],"tags":[2318,1039,116,118,117],"class_list":["post-179422","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-jacksonville","tag-downtown","tag-duval-county","tag-jacksonville","tag-jacksonville-headlines","tag-jacksonville-news"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/179422","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=179422"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/179422\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/179423"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=179422"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=179422"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=179422"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}