Gateway Jax has initiated a $50 million redevelopment of the historic Ambassador Hotel building in Downtown Jacksonville’s Urban Core, setting the stage for a new hospitality offering in the city’s central business district. The project will convert the 100-year-old property at 310 W. Church St. into Hotel Merrydelle, a 109-key boutique hotel.
Gateway Jax, formed in 2022 in partnership with JWB Real Estate Capital and DLP Capital, is positioning the hotel renovation as part of a broader mixed-use vision for the area. The company reports a development pipeline exceeding $2 billion that spans 25 city blocks in the Urban Core of Downtown Jacksonville. That pipeline includes plans for more than 5,000 multifamily units as well as approximately 500,000 square feet of commercial and retail space.
The Ambassador Hotel, a century-old structure, is being reimagined as Hotel Merrydelle through a development partnership that includes Marriott International and Indigo Road Hospitality Group. While detailed design and operational plans were not disclosed, the project is described as a boutique concept, indicating a differentiated positioning within the local hospitality market.
The renovation of the property is scheduled to be completed by 2027, establishing a defined timeline for delivery of the hotel component within Gateway Jax’s larger Urban Core initiatives. The repositioning of this historic asset is intended to integrate into the surrounding mixed-use development activity Gateway Jax is pursuing across multiple city blocks.
Public-sector support is also part of the capital stack for the project. In May, the Downtown Investment Authority approved an additional $10 million in funding to subsidize the redevelopment of the Ambassador Hotel into Hotel Merrydelle. This incremental commitment supplements Gateway Jax’s $50 million investment and underscores continued municipal engagement in Downtown Jacksonville’s Urban Core.
Gateway Jax’s broader portfolio, created through its partnership with JWB Real Estate Capital and DLP Capital, contemplates a mix of residential, commercial and retail components to reshape a substantial portion of Downtown Jacksonville. Within this context, the transformation of the Ambassador Hotel into a 109-key boutique property represents the hospitality anchor of a larger, long-term repositioning effort. Together with public funding support, the redevelopment is intended to reinforce ongoing investment momentum in Jacksonville’s Urban Core as the project advances toward its anticipated 2027 completion.
