There's now a five-story hospital off State Road 9B, a few minutes from I-95. It covers about 220,000 square feet, has 99 inpatient beds, and runs an emergency department around the clock. Next to it, on East Peyton Parkway, sits the site of a Whole Foods Market that doesn't have an opening date yet.
That's the order Durbin Park is filling in. The big institution came first, with lunch counters right behind it. The grocery-anchored center that would turn the area into a one-stop errand run is still months or years from finished, depending on which source you read. For anyone in St. Johns trying to plan around what's actually open, the useful question is what Durbin Park can handle today and what it can't handle yet.
What Opened on the 42.5 Acres in September
UF Health says the first phase of UF Health Durbin Park officially opened Sept. 22, 2026. News4JAX reported that the campus held its opening celebration a few days earlier, on Sept. 17. The two dates look like two separate milestones: the public celebration, then the day patient services officially started.
That first phase covers a 99-bed hospital, a 24-hour emergency department, outpatient surgery, and specialty services on a 42.5-acre campus. One building isn't open yet. The multidisciplinary medical office building on the campus is expected to start seeing patients soon, according to both UF Health and News4JAX, but neither has given a date.
So as of October 2026, the largest new building at Durbin Park is up and running. When a weekend sprain or a sick kid at 2 a.m. calls for an emergency room, there's now one off SR 9B.
The Pavilion Filled In One Counter at a Time
Before the hospital opened, The Pavilion at Durbin Park was adding food options a few months apart, and both 2026 arrivals are quick, made-to-order counters.
SoFresh opened April 14 at 505 Durbin Pavilion Drive, Suite 101. It serves bowls, wraps, salads, and smoothies out of a 1,894-square-foot space. The Jax Daily Record reports that this location was the first SoFresh for its local franchise owners, who later opened a second one at SilverLeaf Marketplace.
Chipotle Mexican Grill followed on Tuesday, June 23, at 480 Durbin Pavilion Drive, Suite 104, as the Times-Union reported.
Put the year's dates in order and you can see how the area is filling in:
| Date in 2026 | What happened | Where | Status as of Oct. 10 |
|---|---|---|---|
| April 14 | SoFresh opens | 505 Durbin Pavilion Dr., Suite 101 | Open |
| June 23 | Chipotle opens | 480 Durbin Pavilion Dr., Suite 104 | Open |
| Q2 | Regency starts The Berkeley at Durbin Park | SR 9B and E. Peyton Pkwy. | Under construction, no opening date |
| Sept. 17 | UF Health holds campus opening celebration | Off SR 9B | Done |
| Sept. 22 | Hospital's first phase officially opens | Off SR 9B | Open |
| "Soon" | Medical office building begins seeing patients | UF Health Durbin Park campus | Pending |
Everything in the "Open" column is either a quick meal or medical care. No grocery store, no general retail, and no sit-down restaurant has opened in 2026 at the sites covered here.
The Berkeley's Calendar Depends on Which Source You Read
Those missing pieces belong to The Berkeley at Durbin Park. Regency Centers is building it as a 106,054-square-foot open-air center next to the hospital, at a cost of $55 million. Whole Foods Market is the anchor, with TJ Maxx, Firebirds Wood Fired Grill, and Shake Shack also announced. WhatNow reports that more retail, dining, and service spaces are planned as leasing continues.
The timeline is less settled. Here's what's been published since July, in order:
- July 6, 2026. News4JAX, citing a Regency Centers LinkedIn post, reported that groundbreaking was planned for the fourth quarter of 2026.
- July 2026. Regency's earnings presentation said the company started The Berkeley in the second quarter of 2026 and estimated completion in 2027.
- July 29, 2026. Regency's second-quarter results release listed The Berkeley among that quarter's development starts.
- Sept. 4, 2026. WhatNow reported that construction was underway, cited Regency's latest investor materials for an expected completion in 2028, and said Whole Foods hadn't announced an official opening date.
A Q2 "start" and a Q4 "groundbreaking" can both be accurate if they describe different steps, such as a financial start on a development followed later by physical site work. None of the sources lays out that distinction, though, and none of them gives an opening date for any tenant. The most honest summary as of October 2026 is that the center is underway and its completion is estimated somewhere between 2027 and 2028.
Where the Whole Foods Run Goes in the Meantime
Until The Berkeley opens, the nearest Whole Foods stores are the long-running one at 10601 San Jose Blvd. and the newer Downtown Jacksonville store at 1 Riverside Ave., which opened in May 2026, according to WhatNow.
That's the real gap in Durbin Park's order of arrival. You can get an ER visit, outpatient surgery, a burrito bowl, and a smoothie near SR 9B today. A Whole Foods trip, a TJ Maxx stop, a Firebirds dinner, or a Shake Shack burger near the hospital will have to wait until The Berkeley is finished. Those four tenants are the whole list announced so far, which leaves plenty of room for new names as leasing continues.
What Else Lands Before Then
The Berkeley's 2027-to-2028 window overlaps with several St. Johns County projects that run on their own schedules. Placing them on the same calendar gives a better picture of what changes first.
Already done. The county finished its CR 210 improvements from I-95 to U.S. 1 and held a ribbon-cutting on April 24. The work widened the road from Trinity Way to Beachwalk Boulevard, added sidewalks and drainage improvements, and put in a new signal at Badger Park Drive and Cumberland Park Drive. A separate 2.3-mile widening of CR 210 from Greenbriar Road to Cimarrone Boulevard, from two lanes to four, is still on the county's list of ongoing projects. The county hasn't published a completion date for it.
Next month. DeLeon Shores Park is getting dog-park upgrades, a rebuilt skate park, three lit pickleball courts, a walking path, restrooms, and pavilions. The county's project page, published in March 2026, projected completion in November 2026.
Fall 2027. The county broke ground March 10 on the $23.8 million Greenbriar Park and Library at 505 Rally Road. Plans include baseball and softball fields, pickleball courts, a playground, and a library and community center. The St. Johns County Public Library System lists a projected target opening of fall 2027.
If Regency's July estimate holds, The Berkeley and the Greenbriar library could open within months of each other. If the 2028 figure WhatNow reported holds, the new pickleball courts at Greenbriar Park will be in use before the Whole Foods opens.
Keeping track of what opens when around Durbin Park is the kind of local detail Daly N Braxton follows every day, from the hospital campus to The Berkeley's construction updates. When you want to talk about how this new corner of St. Johns fits into your own plans, Schedule Your Consultation.
