Jacksonville Beach: Summer of '09

Sea Walk Pavilion

The Seawalk Pavilion amphitheater is the centerpiece of entertainment and special events in Jacksonville Beach.

Looking to revitalize the core of the beachfront community The City of Jacksonville Beach selected Haskell to take on the task of creating a unique gathering place that would enhance the cultural life of the more than one million people it serves.
Working within a limited budget Haskell planned and executed the development of a park area that also functions as a concert and festival venue. The Sea Walk Pavillion is the centerpiece of the new Commons space, an architecturally exciting facility designed to cope with the harsh oceanfront environment.

Built in just four months the project has been the recipient of nine local and national awards of excellence.

This prominent ocean-front landmark with its five-story look-out tower stands on the site of the old Murray Hall Hotel.  The U.S. Volunteer Life Savings Corps was begun at Pablo Beach in 1912, and the first life-saving station was completed in 1913.  Nineteen volunteer lifeguards equipped with a surf boat and lifelines patrolled the beach.  In those early days, the F.E.C. Railroad paid $25 per month for support of the lifeguards.  In 1918, the Pablo Beach Town Council deeded the present site to the American Red Cross for the construction of a new "very substantial and very expensive" life saving station, which was completed in 1920 and stood until 1946 when the present station was built.  Jefferson D. Powell designed this building, the tower of which has rounded corners and the clean lines of the Moderne style.