July 23, 2026 — Northeast Florida (First Coast) new business activity

Northeast Florida's seven counties recorded 562 new business filings the week of July 2 to 8, a week shortened by the July 4 holiday.

State offices paused for the July 4 holiday, so filings were recorded on fewer days than a normal week. That calendar gap, not a change in the local economy, is what pushed the count down. The same week a year ago was also a holiday week, and it also came in low. The 13 week average of 948.9 filings is the better read on the region's normal pace, and July has opened below March and April in each of the last five years.

Property holding and asset protection was the one major category that grew, rising from 95 to 97 filings. Another 23 of the week's new companies were named after street addresses, a common mark of a property holding entity. Investors did not take the holiday off. Construction and trades added 50 new businesses, professional services added 60, and hospitality and tourism added 54. The mix looked like a normal week at reduced volume.

Duval County accounted for 345 filings, more than six of every ten, and 324 of those were in Jacksonville. St. Johns followed with 88, then Clay with 61 and Flagler with 44. Putnam was the one county to rise, up from 11 to 13, and Palatka rose from 7 to 10. The word logistics appeared in 10 new business names, well above its usual rate, and 36 transportation and warehousing businesses formed. Jacksonville's freight economy keeps drawing new operators.

A steady slowdown over the past 13 weeks with a dip this past week pulling the average down.

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.

• 2025-26
• 2024-25
• 2023-24
• 2022-23
• 2021-22

New business formation usually runs highest around Mar and is quietest around Nov, holding near 4,000 a month across the years.

Each line is one year, ending at the current month on the right, so you can read the past year left to right. New Year's Day is left out because the state office is closed, so almost no businesses register that day.

Property Holding & Asset Protection grew the most this week, 2 more (up 2.1%). Professional Services dropped the most, 71 fewer (down 54.2%).

Duval led the region this week with 345 new filings. 1 other county also grew from the week before.

• Jacksonville's Finance Committee took up a redevelopment deal for 119 Beaver Street West downtown: 259 homes above 37,000 square feet of ground floor retail, with at least 30,000 square feet reserved for a grocery store such as a Publix. The package includes a 17 year grant of up to $21,412,000 and a $28,250,000 completion grant. A project this size carries years of work for site contractors, concrete crews, electricians, and plumbers, then the cleaning, security, landscaping, and staffing services a grocery anchored building needs once open. The 259 homes also bring residents whose spending supports nearby restaurants and personal services. City of Jacksonville Finance Committee, 2026-07-21
• A rezoning before Jacksonville's Land Use and Zoning Committee would move 16.73 acres near Union Heights Road and Old Kings Road from light industrial to a planned unit development so a concrete batch plant with material storage can be built. A batch plant means steady runs for truck drivers and fleet maintenance shops, plus demand for industrial equipment dealers, safety services, and the insurers who cover heavy operations. It also signals more concrete pouring ahead across Jacksonville's construction pipeline. City of Jacksonville Land Use & Zoning Committee, 2026-07-21
• Fernandina Beach announced $2 million in newly approved state funding for its historic downtown seawall, bringing the state's total to $9 million: $1 million for design and permitting and $8 million for construction to protect the waterfront and the businesses behind it. An $8 million construction phase is work for marine and heavy civil contractors, engineering firms, and barge and dredge crews. A protected waterfront also keeps the downtown shops and restaurants behind the seawall insurable and open. City of Fernandina Beach, 2026-07-08
• The Callahan Town Council reviewed a site plan for a proposed Hagan Ace Hardware warehouse on Dr Martin Luther King Jr Boulevard, along with a change to the site plan for the Callahan Business Center on US Highway 1. A new warehouse brings construction trades first, then warehouse staffing, freight carriers, forklift and racking vendors, and commercial insurance to western Nassau County, an area with far fewer projects than the coast. Town of Callahan, 2026-06-01
• Clay County published details of a proposed stormwater utility that would charge $85 per equivalent residential unit each year, covering 8,466 non residential parcels among 93,514 total parcels, with expected first year revenue of $8,218,308. The fee funds drainage projects, which is coming work for engineering firms and site and drainage contractors. Every one of the 8,466 business parcels also has a new line item to plan for, a natural conversation opener for accountants and commercial property advisors. Clay County, 2026-07-16
• FloridaCommerce awarded Keystone Heights $60,000 to review and update its comprehensive plan, part of a $1.5 million round of awards to 26 Florida communities. A comprehensive plan update is near term work for planning and engineering consultants. It also sets the table for growth decisions in southern Clay County, where the next wave of building sites and rezonings gets decided. FloridaCommerce, 2026-05-20
• FloridaCommerce awarded Palatka $75,000 to advance the Gateway Redevelopment Plan for the former Port Consolidated site, part of a $1.5 million round of awards to 26 Florida communities. Planning money moves first to engineering and planning consultants. A redeveloped former port site then means demolition, cleanup, and site work, and a stronger gateway lifts the downtown Palatka businesses around it. FloridaCommerce, 2026-05-20
• Crescent City published a rezoning proposal to create a new central business district downtown, cutting the minimum lot size from 10,000 to 6,250 square feet and reducing the number of nonconforming parcels from 40 to 22. Smaller minimum lots make more downtown parcels buildable and sellable. That helps real estate agents, small commercial builders, and any owner hunting an affordable storefront in south Putnam County. City of Crescent City, 2026-05-18
• St. Johns County commissioners heard a rezoning of about 3.08 acres near Cartwheel Bay Avenue to allow an automobile repair facility of up to 11,500 square feet with up to ten service bays. The county's planning agency recommended approval 6 to 0. An 11,500 square foot repair shop is construction work now, then openings for mechanics, parts suppliers, tool and uniform vendors, and the commercial insurers who cover garages, in one of the region's fastest growing counties. St. Johns County Board of County Commissioners, 2026-05-19
• St. Johns County commissioners also heard a request to rezone about 9.56 acres at 2121 US Highway 1 South from general commercial to intensive commercial, a district that allows heavier commercial use. The planning agency recommended approval 7 to 0. Opening 9.56 acres on the US 1 corridor to heavier commercial use puts developers, civil engineers, and construction trades first in line, with room for the kinds of businesses that need bigger footprints than general commercial zoning allows. St. Johns County Board of County Commissioners, 2026-05-19
• Palm Coast confirmed that the approved DC Blox data center project in Town Center is one building of 33,760 square feet, with the building permit issued April 8 and construction underway. The city noted the approved plans do not include the second building the company had described publicly. A data center under construction feeds electrical, mechanical, and fire suppression contractors now, then power, cooling, security, and IT service vendors once it opens. The city's clarification also tells vendors the real scope to size bids against: one building, 33,760 square feet. City of Palm Coast, 2026-06-19
• Flagler County commissioners took up a land use amendment and rezoning for the roughly 119 acre Seminole Woods mixed use project, allowing up to 502 homes and up to 414,691 square feet of commercial space. The county's planning board unanimously recommended approval. Up to 502 homes and 414,691 square feet of commercial space would carry years of work for homebuilders, site contractors, and the trades, then the landscaping, insurance, IT, and accounting services a new mixed use corridor needs as tenants arrive. Flagler County Board of County Commissioners, 2026-06-15

The week's filing counts and the public record point the same way. The 50 new construction and trades businesses and 97 property holding filings line up with the projects local governments moved forward this period. Those include the 259 home grocery anchored Beaver Street project in Jacksonville, the 119 acre Seminole Woods project in Flagler County, and the US 1 corridor rezonings in St. Johns County. The 36 new transportation and warehousing businesses fit the same picture as the proposed concrete batch plant in Jacksonville and the hardware warehouse under review in Callahan. For anyone selling to new businesses, the holiday made this a light week for volume, but the approvals kept coming. Reaching the new property holders, contractors, and haulers now, while they are still setting up, is the opportunity this week.

We count every new business filing recorded by the state for the seven counties of Northeast Florida: Baker, Clay, Duval, Flagler, Nassau, Putnam, and St. Johns. We wait about two weeks after the week ends for the state to finish recording all filings, so the counts are complete and accurate. Business categories come from how each business describes itself when it files. Local developments come from official government records and organizations' own announcements, listed below with links.

Frequently asked questions

Why was this week's count so low?

The week included the July 4 holiday, so the state recorded filings on fewer days than a normal week. The same week last year was also a holiday week and totaled 706. The region's 13 week average of 948.9 filings is the better measure of its normal pace.

Do these counts change after publication?

No. We wait about two weeks after each week ends so the state can finish recording every filing. The numbers you see here are complete and final.