Plenty to do in Jacksonville this weekend

Jacksonville, FL — A lot is taking place in the Jacksonville area this weekend, from family fun to roadway changes you should keep in mind.

Through the weekend, the Jacksonville Jumbo Shrimp are in town, with a 7:05PM first pitch Friday, that will be capped with fireworks. Saturday’s game starts at 6:35PM, and Sunday will start at 3:05PM. Before Sunday’s game, families can play catch on the field, get player autographs, experience face painting, and more.

If you’re looking for a new four-legged addition to your family, First Coast No More Homeless Pets is hosting a Mega Pet Adoption event at the Jacksonville Fairgrounds. The event takes place Friday through Sunday, 10AM through 6PM each day. Adoption fees are just $20, and all pets are spayed/neutered, micro-chipped, vaccinated, and have a Jacksonville city license. There will be hundreds of dogs and cats at the event, from more than a dozen agencies and rescue groups across Northeast Florida and Southeast Georgia.

The Jacksonville Zoo and Gardens had been planning to hold its second Night at the Zoo event of the summer Friday night, but mid-Friday, they canceled the event because of inclement weather. Any tickets purchased for the event will be honored at the next Night at the Zoo event July 26th.

Friday and Saturday the City of Jacksonville is hosting screenings of “Avengers: Infinity Wars” around 8:30PM. This free showing is at Emmett Reed Park on W Sixth Street on Friday, and at Clanzel T. Brown Park on Moncrief Road on Saturday. These events are subject to the weather.

If you’re looking for work, Florida Blue is holding an open house Saturday morning from 9AM through 11AM, as they hire 255 full-time Member Care Specialists in Jacksonville, who would work nine months and have three months off in the summer. The open house is at their St. Johns Town Center location, 4855 Town Center Parkway.

Jacksonville Beach’s Seawalk Pavillion will host the Beaches Freedom Festival on Saturday with live music, food trucks, a hot dog eating contest, corn hole tournament, kid zone, and more. Music starts at noon, and continues through 10PM, with The Band Be Easy headlining. The event is free, but you can pay for a VIP Pass. There will also be a ceremony at 6PM to honor several military service members and veterans in our community, and the event itself supports several veteran and community non-profits.

Saturday at 7:30PM, the action is at Daily’s Place in Downtown Jacksonville, for All Elite Wrestling’s “Fight for the Fallen” event. The event features wrestling talent including Cody Rhodes, The Young Bucks, Hangman Page, and more. Proceeds at the gate benefit Jacksonville’s Victim Assistance Advisory Council, which coordinates aid for crime victims and their families.

If you’re on the road this weekend, there are a few projects that you’ll want to plan around.

Friday and Saturday from 10:30PM through 5:30AM, there will be a detour to accommodate improvements at the I-10/I-95 interchange. The I-95NB ramp to I-10WB will be closed, so if you’re heading north on I-95, you will need to take the Park Street exit and take a right on to Park, then turn left on Forest Street to get on to I-10WB. Truckers are advised to use the West Beltway to get to I-10 instead.

Beginning at 12:01AM Saturday, the First Coast Expressway will start collecting tolls from New World Avenue through Blanding Boulevard. The tolling is all electronic, so you're encouraged to use a SunPass, but you can toll-by-plate at a slightly higher rate.

From 7AM through 7PM Saturday and Sunday, there will be lane closures on the Shands Bridge, to allow crews to perform roadway maintenance. The FDOT says they will use flagging operations to keep traffic moving, but you should expect congestion.