In today’s Meaningful Monday series, we are highlighting the Seminole Club, most recently known as the Sweet Pete’s Building. The building has a fascinating history and was Jacksonville’s oldest men’s social club. Built in 1903, it originally had a rooftop garden and was only two stories high. In 1907 the roof was removed and the third floor was added. Through the years there were other alterations, which can be seen in the picture. For over a century, it was a gathering place for civic and business leaders, including a presidential speech by Teddy Roosevelt (hence posting on President’s day).
The building was empty from 2004 until 2104 when it was purchased by Marcus Lemonis of the TV show, The Profit, who spent $2 million to bring it back to its former glory.
Our involvement in this historic renovation is two-fold. We were first hired by Marcus Lemonis to do the initial renovation after the building had been empty for a number of years. Two years ago, JWB Real Estate Companies purchased the building and we came back to do additional renovations and add a balcony to the third-floor event space.
The beautiful building, on the corner of North Hogan and Duval, sits next to the old Federal Reserve Building, which is also being renovated by JWB Real Estate Companies to create a fantastic live-work-play section of Downtown in a once unused and run-down area of Jacksonville.
Our Meaningful Mondays series honors the beauty and integrity of the beautiful old buildings in Downtown Jacksonville. The series will highlight a project that we’ve been involved with, are currently involved with or will be involved with.
( Much of the historic information was taken from and inspired by Wayne Wood’s newly-released book, Jacksonville’s Architectural Heritage-Landmarks for the Future, available at
Jacksonville Historical Society )