Daily's Place

The venue was first proposed in 2009 as a complete renovation of the aging pavilion tent at Metropolitan Park. After a city council meeting held in January 2010, renovations plans were placed on hold, however the demolition of "Kid Kampus" continued with the space becoming a grassy field by 2011.

file:DailysPlace Jax Edited1.jpg

In early 2015, Shahid Khan, owner of Jaguars, proposed a plan to develop the eastern area of Downtown Jacksonville.{{cite journal |last1=Gilliam |first1=Derek |last2=Skepple |first2=Junior |date=March 8, 2017 |title=Jaguars announce bid to redevelop Shipyards, reveal plans|url=http://www.bizjournals.com/jacksonville/news/2017/03/08/jaguars-announce-bid-to-redevelop-shipyards-reveal.html |journal=Jacksonville Business Journal |publisher=American City Business Journals |access-date=April 23, 2017}} Focusing on the Shipyards, the plan sought to develop the space into a commercial, residential and leisure complex. Projected renderings saw the demolition of the pavilion tent and constructing a 9,000 seat outdoor amphitheater.{{cite web |url=http://www.archdaily.com/600608/populous-unveils-plan-to-redevelop-jacksonville-s-shipyards-district |title=Populous Unveils Plan to Redevelop Jacksonville's Shipyards District |last1=Giermann |first1=Holly |date=February 19, 2015 |website=ArchDaily |access-date=April 23, 2017}} When reviewed by the city council, these plans were denied due to concerns over environmental impact. With the success of the Everbank Field renovations, Khan developed new plans for the Shipyards area, which were ultimately approved by the city.{{cite web |url=https://thecoastal.com/buzz/buildingupjax/khans-shipyards-bid-chosen-bold-city-opens-downtown/ |title=Building Up Jax: Khan's Shipyards bid chosen, Bold City opens downtown |author= |date=April 22, 2017 |website=The Coastal |access-date=April 23, 2017}}

The Jaguars announced plans for additions and renovations to Everbank Field, including the addition of an amphitheater, at their 2015 State of the Franchise address.{{cite web |url=https://thecoastal.com/buzz/amphitheater-upgrades-coming-to-everbank-field/ |title=Amphitheater & Upgrades Coming to Everbank Field |author= |date=December 9, 2015 |website=The Coastal |access-date=April 23, 2017}} The $90 million budget for the enhancements was set to be split by the City of Jacksonville and Khan's Iguana Investments.{{cite web |url=https://www.jaxdailyrecord.com/showstory.php?Story_id=546586 |title=$90M upgrades at EverBank Field clear Finance Committee |last1=Chapman |first1=David |date=December 1, 2015 |website=Financial News & Daily Record |publisher=Observer Media Group |access-date=April 23, 2017}}

Phase 1 of construction saw a revamp of the US Assure Club with turf of the football field. Phase 2 of the plan saw the addition of an amphitheater and an indoor practice field.{{cite news

| author =Katrina Suits

| title = Hellas Construction Selected by Jacksonville Jaguars to Install Turf at New Indoor Practice Facility at Daily's Place

| quote =The Jacksonville Jaguars have selected Hellas Construction to install its Velocity turf at Daily's Place, the all new covered amphitheater and flex field adjacent to EverBank Field in downtown Jacksonville. | newspaper =www.pressreleasejet.com

| date =February 28, 2017

| pages =1

| url =https://pressreleasejet.com/news/hellas-construction-selected-by-jacksonville-jaguars-to-install-turf-at-new-indoor-practice-facility-at-dailys-place.html

| access-date = February 28, 2017

}}

Initial design concepts saw the amphitheater as an outdoor, covered venue featuring a mezzanine and balcony; with the practice area being a separate building. Both venues were connected to the stadium and parking areas via covered walkway. Later renderings saw the two spaces as one space, connected via one roof and divided via hangar doors.

Construction was set to begin in July 2016{{cite web |url=https://www.jaxdailyrecord.com/showstory.php?Story_id=547851 |title=Work underway on amphitheater, flex field at EverBank Field |last1=Brune |first1=Karen |date=June 29, 2016 |website=Financial News & Daily Record |publisher=Observer Media Group |access-date=April 23, 2017}} however financial restrictions and permits pushed the groundbreaking back to August 2016.{{cite web |url=http://www.firstcoastnews.com/news/local/amphitheater-flex-field-construction-to-begin-next-month-jaguars-confirm/86766035 |title=Amphitheater, Flex Field construction to begin next month, Jaguars confirm |last1=Bennett |first1=Neal |date=March 17, 2016 |website=First Coast News |publisher=Tegna, Inc. |access-date=April 23, 2017 }}{{Dead link|date=January 2024 |bot=InternetArchiveBot |fix-attempted=yes }} Final costs estimated to be over $40 million.{{cite journal |last=Gilliam |first=Derek |date=April 6, 2017 |title=Hunt+Danis picks up $44.8M permit for construction of Daily's Place |url=http://www.bizjournals.com/jacksonville/news/2017/04/06/hunt-danis-picks-up-44-8m-permit-for-construction.html |journal=Jacksonville Business Journal |publisher=American City Business Journals |access-date=April 23, 2017}} The facility was initially announced to be managed by SMG, Iguana Investments created a sister company, Bold Events, that will operate and promote all events at the amphitheater and stadium. With this partnership, 500 presale tickets will be available for Jaguars season ticket holders.

The venue was designed by the architectural firm Populous (who also designed all three sports venues in Jacksonville). First renderings show the amphitheater with a sleek technical design resembling a spaceship. Final design included an indoor tiered setting joined with the flex field. Exterior structure is composed of steel trusses creating the cage façade with PTFE fabric. The fabric roofing (similar to Ashe Stadium) provides natural ventilation and daylight and helps create dramatic LED lighting effect.

The venue features an 80-foot ceiling, the standard 60'x40' concert stage and a back house building. The amphitheater features a main floor, mezzanine and balcony, similar to the Radio City Music Hall. The main floor seats 3,500 with a general admission area (orchestral pit) that can add up to 500. The mezzanine and balcony features 1,000 seats each. The main floor also features 228-foot sliding panels on both sides that can open to create an open-air experience.

With its 5,500 capacity, it is the second largest concert venue in Jacksonville (with VyStar Veterans Memorial Arena seating 15,000 and the Moran Theater seating nearly 3,000). Its closest competitor, the St. Augustine Amphitheatre, seats close to 4,000. The manager of the amphitheater, Ryan Murphy, thinks the new downtown amphitheater is a good move for Jacksonville, he feels it will not draw crowds away from the St. Augustine venue.{{cite web |url=http://staugustine.com/news/local-news/2016-08-22/will-new-amphitheater-jacksonville-curtail-bookings-st-augustine |title=Will new amphitheater in Jacksonville curtail bookings in St. Augustine? |last1=Korphage |first1=Stuart |date=August 24, 2016 |website=The St. Augustine Record |publisher=Morris Communications |access-date=April 23, 2017}} Other amphitheaters in the metro area include:

• Coxwell Amphitheater seating 6,000 (strictly for UNF events)
• Seawalk Pavilion seating 3,000
• Unity Plaza Amphitheater seating 1,500
• Riverfront Amphitheatre seating 350

Jaguars President Mark Lamping states the purpose of the venue was to aid in revitalizing the lackluster downtown area. The venue plans to host 35-40 events per year,{{cite journal |last=Skepple |first=Junior |date=January 27, 2017 |title=Bold Events announces first set of shows to perform at new amphitheater by Everbank Field |url=http://www.bizjournals.com/jacksonville/news/2017/01/27/bold-events-announces-first-set-of-shows-to.html |journal=Jacksonville Business Journal |publisher=American City Business Journals |access-date=April 23, 2017}} with many shows held around the Jaguars home games.{{cite web |url=http://news.wjct.org/post/first-coast-connect-jacksonville-jaguars-president-discusses-daily-s-place |title=First Coast Connect: Jacksonville Jaguars President Discusses Daily's Place |last1=Kader |first1=Joy |date=February 15, 2017 |website=WJCT |access-date=April 23, 2017}} Lamping feels this will aid in bringing tourism to the city, while its actual economic impact is unknown.

A part of what we are doing with Daily's Place is making Jaguar home weekends bigger and more special. If there are people who attend Daily's Place who have not had the opportunity to experience Everbank Field, the design of Daily's Place allows people to interact with the stadium as part of their visit. Perhaps through that interaction it will spur some curiosity and maybe lead to a desire to sample Jaguars football.{{cite journal |last=Skepple |first=Junior |date=February 1, 2017 |title=What the creation of Bold Events and Daily's Place means for the Jags, Downtown|url=http://www.bizjournals.com/jacksonville/news/2017/01/31/what-the-creation-of-bold-events-and-dailys-place.html |journal=Jacksonville Business Journal |publisher=American City Business Journals |access-date=April 23, 2017}}

File:All Elite Wrestling logo 2024.svg since the promotion's founding in 2019]]

Daily's Place is the home venue of All Elite Wrestling (AEW), a professional wrestling promotion that, like the Jaguars, are primarily owned by the Khan family.{{Cite web |date=2019-01-08 |title=Jaguars owners backing new wrestling venture |url=https://www.espn.com.au/espn/story/_/id/25713592/jaguars-owners-backing-new-all-elite-wrestling |access-date=2022-02-28 |website=ESPN.com |language=en}}

On July 13, 2019, AEW hosted its streaming event Fight for the Fallen at Daily's Place.{{Cite web |date=March 4, 2019 |title=AEW reveals date and venue for Fight for the Fallen |url=https://www.f4wonline.com/other-wrestling/aew-reveals-date-and-venue-fight-fallen-278431 |access-date=April 17, 2019 |website=F4WOnline.com |publisher=Wrestling Observer Newsletter}} On March 18 and 25, 2020, AEW temporarily moved its weekly television program Dynamite, as well as its webseries Dark, to Daily's Place, due to cancellations of its traveling broadcasts due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The tapings were held behind closed doors with no outside spectators; they used non-competing wrestlers and crew to serve as the live audience.{{cite web |last=Mealey |first=Jason |date=13 March 2020 |title=AEW moves show from Rochester to Jacksonville due to coronavirus |url=https://www.news4jax.com/news/local/2020/03/13/aew-moves-show-from-rochester-to-jacksonville-due-to-coronavirus/ |access-date=22 March 2020 |website=News4Jax.com |language=en}}{{cite web |last=Papaleo |first=Dennis |date=3 April 2020 |title=AEW taped weeks of television, Georgia state official attended this week's taping |url=https://prowrestling.net/site/2020/04/03/aew-taped-weeks-of-television-georgia-state-official-attended-this-weeks-taping/ |access-date=5 April 2020 |website=Pro Wrestling Dot Net |language=en-US}} After over a month's worth of tapings were done at an "undisclosed location" to prevent fans from showing up (later revealed to be the Nightmare Factory training complex in Norcross, Georgia), AEW returned to Daily's Place to hold its pay-per-view Double or Nothing on May 23 (with TIAA Bank Field hosting a Stadium Stampede match as the main event), re-located from Las Vegas due to the pandemic.{{Cite web |date=2020-05-23 |title=AEW Releases Countdown Preview Clips for Double or Nothing |url=http://411mania.com/wrestling/aew-releases-extended-preview-clips-double-or-nothing/ |access-date=2020-05-24 |work=411MANIA |language=en-US}}{{cite web |last=Thomas |first=Jeremy |date=April 9, 2020 |title=AEW Double Or Nothing Venue Shut Down Until Further Notice |url=https://411mania.com/wrestling/aew-double-or-nothing-venue-shut-down-until-further-notice/ |access-date=April 10, 2020 |work=411mania}}

From that point, Daily's Place became AEW's home base, with all subsequent episodes of Dynamite, Dark, and pay-per-views originating from there during the pandemic period, with fans returning during the summer of 2020 at first at limited capacity, then gradually increasing as time went on. The promotion returned to live touring on July 7, 2021, though AEW still continues to periodically hold events at Daily's Place, promoted as "Homecoming" shows.{{cite web |last1=Middleton |first1=Marc |date=May 10, 2021 |title=AEW Announces Return To Touring, Tony Khan Comments |url=https://www.wrestlinginc.com/news/2021/05/aew-announces-return-to-touring-tony-khan-comments/ |access-date=June 8, 2021 |website=Wrestling Inc.}}{{cite web|url=https://prowrestling.net/site/2019/10/28/aew-announces-new-years-day-event/|title=AEW announces New Year's Day event|work=Pro Wrestling Dot Net|first=Jason|last=Powell|date=October 28, 2019|access-date=December 23, 2019|archive-date=October 2, 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211002041811/https://prowrestling.net/site/2019/10/28/aew-announces-new-years-day-event/|url-status=live}}

The venue opened on May 27, 2017, with a concert by the Jacksonville-based Tedeschi Trucks Band.{{cite web |author= |date=January 27, 2017 |title=Concert lineup for Daily's Place amphitheater in Jacksonville announced |url=http://www.actionnewsjax.com/news/local/concert-lineup-for-dailys-place-amphitheater-announced/488489043 |access-date=April 23, 2017 |website=WJAX-TV |publisher=Cox Media Group}}

On April 23, 2021, Machine Gun Kelly performed at Daily's Place on a tour in support of his album Tickets to My Downfall—marking the first full-capacity concert held at Daily's Place since the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic.{{Cite web |date=2021-04-09 |title=Daily's Place to fully reopen for Machine Gun Kelly concert |url=https://www.actionnewsjax.com/news/local/dailys-place-fully-reopen-machine-gun-kelly-concert/4RGUMBRUGRAYPHZVE7CRFLPSCE/ |access-date=2022-02-28 |website=Action News Jax |language=en}}

On October 1, 2021, AJR performed at the venue for the last show on the 2021 leg of their OK Orchestra Tour.

{{Reflist}}

{{All Elite Wrestling}}

{{Jacksonville Jaguars}}

{{Music venues of Florida}}

{{Authority control}}

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Category:2017 establishments in Florida

Category:Amphitheaters in the United States

Category:Downtown Jacksonville

Category:Jacksonville Jaguars

Category:Music venues in Florida

Category:Theatres completed in 2017

Category:Theatres in Jacksonville, Florida

Category:Wrestling venues in the United States

Category:All Elite Wrestling

Category:Professional wrestling in Jacksonville, Florida