July 2, 2026 — Northeast Florida (First Coast) new business activity

Northeast Florida's First Coast counties recorded 736 new businesses the week of June 11 to 17, up 14.5% from the week before and up 15.2% from the same week a year ago.

Duval County had the most activity, with 480 of the new businesses, up 74. Jacksonville alone had 456. The fastest growth was farther south. Palm Coast rose 40.5% to 52, and Flagler County rose 38.3% to 65. St. Johns County held about even at 88, and Clay County had 60.

New LLCs drove the gain. They made up 645 of the filings, 87.6% of the total, and added 94 over the week before. Property owners led the mix. Property holding and asset protection companies were the largest group at 102, up 13. The short term rental holdings inside that group rose from 4 to 7. Straight real estate firms added 7 to reach 35.

Service businesses were busy too. Professional services stayed the biggest single sector at 95, up 12. Administrative and support businesses rose 31.1% to 80. Hospitality and tourism added 12 to reach 45, and health care rose 19.4% to 43. Finance and insurance more than doubled, from 7 to 15, and wholesale and distribution tripled, from 5 to 15. Those two counts are small, so read them as early signals, not a trend.

No significant change over the past 13 weeks.

The bold line is the 13-week average. Read it for the longer trend. The thin line is each week's count, which swings week to week.

Administrative and Support Services grew the most this week, 19 more (up 31.1%). Construction and Trades dropped the most, 5 fewer (down 7.8%). Several smaller sectors also grew.

Duval led the region this week with 480 new filings. Gains were broad, with 4 other counties also up from the week before.

• The University of Florida picked a developer for the first building of its new graduate campus in the LaVilla area of downtown Jacksonville. The first phase carries about $287.5 million in construction cost, the city is committing more than 20 acres, and the campus will offer graduate programs in business, health care, and emerging technologies. A $287.5 million first building on more than 20 acres is years of work for construction firms, site and utility crews, and the architects, engineers, surveyors, and lawyers a project this size hires. Once it opens, a downtown campus feeds housing, food service, retail, and health care nearby, the same kinds of business already forming here in volume, with 95 professional services and 43 health care companies started this week. University of Florida, 2026-04-13
• The City of Jacksonville rezoned about 1.91 acres at 0 Granite Place, near New Berlin Road and Interstate 295, from a water related industrial category to light industrial, clearing the parcel for light industrial use, in Ordinance 2026-476. Light industrial ground near the Interstate 295 ring gives site and building contractors work now, and the warehousing or distribution tenant that lands there will need freight and delivery help, commercial cleaning, security, and the bookkeeping and insurance a new operation buys. That fits the 42 transportation and logistics and 80 administrative and support companies formed this week. City of Jacksonville City Council, 2026-06-09
• The City of Jacksonville rezoned about 0.45 acre at 1265 Kings Road to a planned development category to allow a community and veteran empowerment center, in Ordinance 2026-485. A new neighborhood center means build out work for trades and general contractors, and once it opens it needs staffing, maintenance, cleaning, and everyday personal services. Personal and other service businesses were already up 22.9% to 59 this week. City of Jacksonville City Council, 2026-06-09
• The St. Johns County Board of County Commissioners heard a request, REZ 2026-04, to rezone about 8 acres at the southeast corner of State Road 16 and Green Acres Road from a rural category to intensive commercial. The county planning board had recommended approval by a 5 to 1 vote. About 8 acres cleared for commercial use is future storefronts and offices. That is work for builders and trades, signage and paving crews, and the accountants, insurers, and cleaners the new tenants hire. It lines up with the 35 real estate and 48 retail businesses started here this week. St. Johns County Board of County Commissioners, 2026-06-16
• The St. Johns County Board of County Commissioners heard a request, MAJMOD 2026-02, to change the Ashford Mills planned community for a commercial property at Shearwater Parkway and County Road 210 West. The county planning board had recommended approval by a 6 to 0 vote. Commercial space inside a growing housing community draws retail, food, and personal service businesses chasing the new rooftops, plus the property managers who run it. That matches the 102 property holding and 45 hospitality and tourism companies formed this week. St. Johns County Board of County Commissioners, 2026-06-16
• The Clay County Board of County Commissioners took up PUD 26-0004, a request to rezone about 8.37 acres in District 5 from an agriculture and residential category to planned commercial development. Turning about 8.37 acres to commercial use opens site work and building jobs for local contractors, then retail and service tenants once it is built. Clay County had 60 new businesses this week, so there is a local base ready to serve it. Clay County Board of County Commissioners, 2026-06-09

This was a strong week for anyone selling to brand new companies on the First Coast, and most of them are new LLCs still choosing a bank, an insurer, a bookkeeper, and the basics. The best odds sit in Duval County, where the volume is, and in Palm Coast and Flagler, where growth is fastest. The run of commercial rezonings in St. Johns, Clay, and Jacksonville, plus the new downtown graduate campus, points to steady work ahead for construction and trades, property management, staffing, cleaning, and the accounting, insurance, and legal help new ventures need. Reaching these owners in their first weeks is the opening.

We count new business filings from the state's official records for the seven counties in Northeast Florida, grouped by the week each filing was recorded. We wait about two weeks after the week ends for the state to finish recording all filings, so these counts are complete. Figures compare the covered week to the week before and to the same week one year earlier.

Frequently asked questions

Which county had the most new businesses this week?

Duval County, with 480 of the region's 736 new businesses. Jacksonville alone accounted for 456.

Where is growth the fastest?

Palm Coast, up 40.5% to 52 new businesses, and the surrounding Flagler County, up 38.3% to 65.