Prime F. Osborn III Convention Center

The prime Osborn center is a convention center. I was here for the souther womens show and the home and patio show. They have a huge room that they fill with different vendors who are their to showcase their products. Im very glad Jacksonville had something like this where we can have big shows and see things that are new that come to Jacksonville. They have a café type restaurant in the front entry and ticket office. It is nice. It looks like and old train station and they have an old rail car outside in the front.

This beautiful building was saved from the wrecking ball and transformed into a convention space. I love how they kept the old rail road elements intact and have some of the original train station benches still in service.
The original entrance area by the circular drive has soaring ceilings surrounded by gorgeous arched windows. I can imagine how impressive that entrance was for travelers back in the day. How exciting it must’ve been to begin a journey in that incredible space.
The reason it’s not a 5 star is for the outside appearance. Building: beautiful. Landscaping: neglected. The walk up to the exhibition entrance always has a downtrodden air which detracts from the total package.
Still though, it’s wonderful that Jacksonville kept this bit of history rather than simply razing it.

The Christmas made in the South is held here every year. It’s six dollars for admission. We make it a family event. The atmosphere is full of Christmas spirit and fun. Different small business come and sell their products. You can sample food and drinks. They have clothing and different arts and crafts. Different foundation are also their. Which I learned about the Caden foundation. Caden is a two year little boy who needed a bone marrow transplant and they bring awareness to the cause and deliver build a bear to children with his condition. This is a yearly event that a make a must do!

It’s a pretty good venue for events, it has plenty of space and is easy to get to, but it can be dreary in the rooms since it has no windows (at least not where I am), the lighting is ugly, it’s freezing cold, and everything is just gray concrete where I am. The area outside, however, and in the hallways, is beautiful, and it is definitely worth at least passing by on a tour of the city. There is food there, too, which is nice. The bathrooms smell terrible, however, and there are no wastebaskets in the stalls of the women’s restrooms to dispose of pads/​tampons.

I’ve been to many events here and must say this is an excellent venue. It’s a very large building with plenty of room for the various events held here.
There is a private parking lot as well as other lots near by… Depending on the event, the parking may or may not be free… If you’re unsure just check the event web page for info…
They have a concession area inside with a few choices of food to munch on… It’s not the best food, but it’s not the worst. The prices are kinda high so plan accordingly…
I suggest purchasing tickets to your event in advance because the ticket window is inside the building right next to the entrance… It’s a pain to get in when there’s a huge line blocking the doors…
The building and area surrounding is kept clean…
Definitely worth a visit for one of the many great events held here…

I have been to numerous events here and I think the Prime Osborn is a beautiful place. It’s very spacious and open. You can still see the old ticket windows and wooden benches from days gone by when this was, once upon a time ago, a train station.
A private paved lot is available for parking on the west side of the building. Sometimes parking is free, other times it is not… it just depends on the event. There is also parking in dirt lots to the north and east of the building. Again, sometimes free, sometimes not. You can generally visit the web page for the event you will be attending to find out about parking fees.
The ticket windows they now have set up are just inside the doors making it very difficult to get in and out of the doors a lot of the time because of the line to get tickets. The line will often get extremely long and go out the door and down the sidewalk. Unless you plan on getting there when the doors open on the day of your event, I highly suggest you purchase tickets in advance so you can skip this process.
They do have a concession area here. The menu is limited and the food is pretty decent, but it is on the pricey side. Some of the items you’ll find are: Hamburgers, hot dogs, philly cheese steaks, personal pizzas, nachos, fries, and pretzels. There are not very many tables and chairs set up, so you may find yourself going down the corridor a little ways and sitting on one of the old train benches to have your lunch.
The convention center is always kept very clean during the events. Now that I think about it, I never actually see them cleaning… they must be ninjas! hehe Employees working the events are always super friendly and are more than willing to help you and to answer questions with a smile.
Credit cards are accepted for ticket purchases and at the concession area. If there is a fee for parking, make sure to bring cash.
I’m always happy when there is an event scheduled to be held here because I know it will always be an enjoyable experience in the Prime Osborn.

This review is not for the Prime Osborn Center itself, but instead for the Southern Women’s Show. With that being said…
The show offered a coupon online, so when I approached the window to pay I showed my coupon on my phone. I was told they only accept paper coupons… Really!?! In this day and age!!! To say the least, I was disappointed before I even stepped foot inside.
It was a packed house, tons of things to see! They advertised a ‘scavenger hunt’ as you walked in the door, but there was no direction as to where to get the clues or begin.
I carefully scooped the place out and then decided in which direction I would begin. I carefully walked down each and every isle. I found a lot of neat things and bought several of my ‘go to’ things to buy that I normally find at the Christmas made in the South show. The food vendors had a lot of food to sample, which I took advantage of! I signed up for tons of give-​a-​ways, just hoping that I actually win something other than just another spam email wanting me to purchase something.
All in all it was a good time! and I will do it again next year!

I liked this convention center. It wasn’t overly large, and coming from Orlando where our convention center takes up three zip codes this was a nice break. We didn’t have to walk for an hour to get to our show. In fact, we parked across the street in a dirt lot for FREE. We walked across the street and into the building for about a two minute walk before getting to our show.
I loved the former train depot thing and that they kept some of the old train relics; A train car outside, benches inside. The center itself is new and clean. There was a small café open outside of our hall. Besides ample parking the elevated train has a stop directly outside of the convention center. Nice!

Walking into the Convention Center, I can’t tell you how many times my friend asked…“Who names their kid Prime?” «Really?, Prime the 3^rd?» «Was he a Decepticon or something?»
I was working a small tradeshow at the Convention Center and that’s where my story begins…
Location, location, location… You’ll probably need a hotel. There are only two options within a mile and a half of the venue. You can stay at the Omni, or you can stay at this small hostel-​looking hotel, conveniently located next door to a barbershop that does HIV testing (am I the only one that finds that odd?). With every other lodging option located in Jacksonville’s REAL downtown, across the river, I’m going to stick with the Omni.
As you drive up, it’s a bit odd, there’s a small sign that says «Prime F Osborne III Convention Center», but the actual building reads «Jacksonville Terminal». Hey Jacksonville!, How about you properly brand your damn convention center? It’s all a little confusing for people like me, from out of town, but as you enter you realize that at the city has repurposed Jacksonville’s historic train station as a convention center. The Convention Center is well kept, but a 160,000 sq ft building stuffed with kitchy train depot crap doesn’t scream «Hey, this is a great place to hold your next conference!» to me.
No food or drink within a mile of the Convention Center either… WTH? Struggling to find a café or a coffee shop, the closest option is some dump at The Jacksonville Landing a mile down the street. The restaurant inside the Convention Center was closed during my show, and I was left there without a vending machine or even a water fountain.
So clearly you need a car, so let’s talk about parking. The Prime F Osborne III Convention Center has two lots. There is one in front of the Convention Center, it’s unpaved and will cost you $ 10…but if you pass by it, there is a much larger lot (this one is even paved) where you can park for free. Even better than that, it gets you closer to the door.

The Prime Osborn Convention Center is in a beautifully restored train station; one of the first in Jacksonville I believe. It’s a beautiful space that still has the old platform signs & benches many travelers probably waited on back when it was an operating station.
I’ve attended several different events here in high school for competition & as a recent first-​time home buyer, I went to the Home & Patio show with my husband. It’s just outside the center of downtown. If your a fan of historical buildings, Jacksonville has a few and this is among the tops for me.