The winner of the design competition for the Duval County Courthouse Public Art Project will be announced at 9 a.m. June 1 on the courthouse lawn, the city announced May 28.
Mayor Lenny Curry will be joined by Cultural Council of Greater Jacksonville Executive Director Diana Donovan to make the announcement.
The 3-acre lawn at the courthouse will become a safe, active urban park with multiple spaces for small events, free speech and sculptures, according to a city news release.
After a national search and evaluating more than 140 submissions, the Art in Public Places Committee selected three finalists:
• Cliff Garten of Cliff Garten Studio in Venice, California.
• Walter Hood of Hood Design Studio in Oakland, California.
• Matt Niebuhr and Dave Dahlquist of RDG Art Studio in Des Moines, Iowa.
The project’s $619,000 budget, 0.75% of the courthouse construction cost, was set aside by a local ordinance for Art in Public Places installations.
It is the largest budget for an art installation since the program was established by City Council in 1997, with the longest list of design restrictions intended to maintain public safety and control maintenance costs.
In June 2020, the Duval County Courthouse Plaza Stakeholder Committee approved requirements comprising: No trees may be planted, no water features or long-term seating may be installed and any landscaping in the design must be easily maintained with lawn mowers, leaf blowers and pressure washing.
In addition, the site plan must allow for possible future restoration of Monroe Street between Pearl and Julia streets, along Adams Street and the south side of the courthouse.
The project is scheduled to be complete in about 10 months.