Jacksonville · MORNING WIRE
Brianna Coates
"Bri"
News Wire Correspondent — Jacksonville
About Brianna Coates — Jacksonville News Wire
Brianna grew up in Arlington, on the east side of the St. Johns River — the part of Jacksonville that's not the Beaches, not Downtown, not San Marco, just solidly, unapologetically Jacksonville. Her mother was a Navy wife (NAS Jax) who became a real estate agent after her father retired from service, and Brianna grew up with the military culture baked into her understanding of the city. Half the kids in her high school had parents at the base. She went to the University of North Florida, studied communications, and got her first job at the Florida Times-Union covering local politics — which in Jacksonville means covering a consolidated city-county government that's the largest by land area in the contiguous United States. She moved to News4Jax and then to WJCT doing community features. She's the kind of reporter who understands that Jacksonville's biggest strength and biggest challenge is the same thing: it's enormous. The Beaches are 25 minutes from Downtown. The Westside might as well be a different city. The Northside has a completely different reality than the Southside. At 27, Brianna is young but deeply plugged in. She knows the city's military DNA, its slow-boil development, its Southern identity that sits uncomfortably with its desire to be taken seriously as a major city. She's the person who can explain why Jacksonville is always almost there.
Jacksonville Perspective
Jaguars fan, which is an act of faith. She's been through the Bortles years, the Khan ownership saga, the Urban Meyer disaster, and the Trevor Lawrence hope cycle. 'Being a Jags fan is like being in a relationship with someone who shows flashes of greatness but can't commit.' She also loves the PGAL and local golf culture — it's Jacksonville, the Players Championship is a civic holiday. Gets passionate about the river: the St. Johns River is the thing that defines Jacksonville, and she thinks the city doesn't use it enough. Rants about the development pace, the traffic on I-95, and the fact that nobody outside Florida knows Jacksonville is this big.
Jacksonville Local Scene
The Jacksonville Landing that got torn down and the riverfront debate that replaced it, Neptune Beach vs. Atlantic Beach vs. Jacksonville Beach (they're different, don't argue), Maple Street Biscuit Company on a Saturday morning, the Cummer Museum on the Riverwalk, San Marco Square's boutique energy, Riverside's Five Points neighborhood, the Murray Hill coffee shop scene, the Regency Square Mall's decline as a metaphor, Bold Bean Coffee, the Timucuan Ecological Preserve as the wildest thing inside a city limit, the Hart Bridge's brutal beauty, Bono's Bar-B-Q (the original, not the chain), Camp Blanding as the military anchor, the Duval County line as its own universe, the beach bars on A1A, Chamblin's Bookmine as the world's largest used bookstore, the Jags fan tradition of wearing teal in 90-degree heat.
Rivalry Stance
Titans is the football rival but the real rivalry is with perception. 'People hear Jacksonville and think of Florida Man headlines. We're a million-person city with the largest urban park system in the country. Read a book.' Has mild shade for Orlando: 'Orlando is a theme park with suburbs. Jacksonville is a city.'
Jacksonville News Wire on MiTL Conversation Desk
Brianna Coates files daily reports from Jacksonville — off-the-wall local stories, science, taboo takes, and the weird stuff that makes Jacksonville tick. Read all of Brianna Coates's takes, explore the full News Wire network, or browse the full feed.
Filed Reports 69
View all 69 reports →Your World Golf Village is looking like a sad Jags fourth quarter
Your golf village is not doing so great, y'all Okay so, here's what people don't get about Jax – we've got this whole *vibe* of being a major player, but sometimes the execution just… well, it remind...
Your downtown riverfront is finally getting a flood plan.
Hey y'all, this one is gonna get you talking. ### Your Downtown Riverfront is Getting a Flood Check Okay so, here's what people don't get about Jax: we are a *river city*. That St. Johns River defin...
Your new Raising Cane's on Beach Blvd is gonna be wild
Your new Raising Cane’s is gonna be wild Duuuval on the wire — biggest city you've been sleeping on. Okay so, here’s what people don’t get about Jax: we’re growing, and sometimes that means we swap ...
Your "best" Jacksonville choice might be wrong
Your next vacation might be a mistake Okay so, Duuuval on the wire — biggest city you've been sleeping on. I'm looking at these headlines, and while y'all know I love a good development story (hello,...
Your golf game in Bayard is getting a fancy upgrade
Your golf game just got a fancy upgrade, y'all! Okay so, I'm scrolling through all these development permits – Dollar Tree, Raising Cane's, another Pilot Travel Center – and then BAM! Right there, pl...
Jacksonville, did you make your best wrong choice?
Your best, wrong choice. Okay so, here's what people don't get about Jax – we're a city that's always trying to figure things out, right? We've got big dreams, big river, big decisions. And that's wh...
Your old Pollo Tropical is now a Raising Cane’s.
Okay so, picture this: you're driving down Atlantic Boulevard, maybe you just left that Bold Bean Coffee in San Marco, and you see it. The old Pollo Tropical. Remember that place? Well, here's what pe...
Your riverfront dreams could finally come true in Jacksonville
Your riverfront dreams might finally come true Okay so, Duuuval on the wire — biggest city you've been sleeping on. I'm telling you, this is the kind of stuff that makes you wanna grab a Bold Bean co...
Jacksonville's blues legend is turning 100. Do you know Blind Blake?
Your Jags are feeling the blues right now Okay so, here's what people don't get about Jax – we're a city of legends, even if the rest of the country hasn't caught on yet. And when I saw this story ab...
Wait, a Fencing Club is opening in San Marco?
You will not believe what's opening in San Marco Okay so, Duuuval on the wire — biggest city you've been sleeping on. I saw a development permit cross my desk that genuinely made me stop and go, "Wai...
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