[0:23] >> let's go ahead and start the

[0:24] year. There's a tv see member

[0:27] meeting going on this morning.

[0:29] and there's a

[0:31] so there's some cast members

[0:32] and that maybe 2 or 3. And then

[0:34] there's a waterways commission

[0:36] and there's maybe one or 2 in

[0:38] there

[0:39] and then

[0:43] and everybody else where

[0:44] they're happy, they everybody

[0:45] was invited.

[0:48] and

[0:50] what I'd like to do is just

[0:53] introduce everybody who's up

[0:55] here and just start with this

[0:57] trimmer. I want to thank

[0:59] council member palou so far.

[1:02] he's the co

[1:05] he's the co

[1:09] he's he's jointly doing this

[1:11] notice. Meeting with me is

[1:12] that's what I'm saying and I

[1:14] appreciate you.

[1:19] >> signature of the council for

[1:21] the deaths.

[1:25] >> prime all ceo of gateway

[1:27] jacks, 100 north flores street

[1:29] downtown.

[1:31] >> and my name is matt carlucci

[1:32] on the city councilman at large

[1:34] group for

[1:35] the police district 7.

[1:38] okay. Thank you. And I see we

[1:40] have a lot of members from the

[1:42] dia out in the audience won't

[1:43] solve all of your hands.

[1:46] okay.

[1:49] and we've got members of the

[1:50] administration are here.

[1:51] we under shells hands

[1:55] and we have

[1:57] some council aides here,

[2:00] asian games.

[2:02] I know you're out there.

[2:03] okay.

[2:04] and we have our council office

[2:08] of general counsel is

[2:09] represented here in a council

[2:10] auditors

[2:11] who I always like to be here,

[2:13] council auditors and the gc.

[2:16] you can't live with them and

[2:17] you can't live without him

[2:18] sometimes.

[2:20] but I always lean h*** o*

[2:22] and always wind up ending to

[2:24] their will

[2:25] because they're most always

[2:26] 100% right.

[2:28] so I have some remarks and I

[2:32] will read my remarks because I

[2:33] want to make sure I see

[2:35] everything exactly the way I

[2:36] want to say them.

[2:38] and although we don't have

[2:41] my colleagues here, hopefully

[2:42] they'll get to just to the

[2:45] meeting somehow. I will

[2:46] probably send out my remarks to

[2:48] them and even if they hear or

[2:50] read them.

[2:52] but my remarks this morning,

[2:54] the purpose of this meeting is

[2:56] we'll be explained as I

[2:58] go through my remarks, I might

[2:59] take a little more than the

[3:02] average given time. But since I

[3:05] happen to have called this

[3:05] meeting, I think I can get away

[3:07] with it.

[3:09] are you okay with that? Can

[3:10] simply set of

[3:12] run with it, ok, they don't

[3:14] turn it over to you and then

[3:15] we'll

[3:17] turn it over the into the

[3:18] purposes, as will be explained.

[3:19] my remarks for this meetings

[3:21] about the in 7 publix and pearl

[3:25] square development here in

[3:27] jacksonville.

[3:30] and so the

[3:32] before I get into the in 7

[3:34] publix and pearl square

[3:37] remarks, I would like to share

[3:39] a few things that are on my

[3:40] heart this morning, perhaps on

[3:42] my mind as well.

[3:45] I want to apologize to the

[3:46] chairman of neighborhoods

[3:48] committee,

[3:50] chris miller, god blessing

[3:52] for my trying his patience the

[3:54] other day,

[3:55] which might have been somewhat

[3:56] on purpose. But that was not

[3:58] making it right.

[3:59] hello, john mooney,

[4:03] but writers patients the other

[4:04] day and I know I pushed the

[4:06] limits of my time at the end of

[4:08] the neighborhoods meeting for

[4:09] those of you might have been in

[4:10] attendance.

[4:14] I know

[4:17] I recognize the responsibility

[4:19] that he has to keep the meeting

[4:22] moving in, respecting

[4:25] and a respected physician

[4:26] holes. And most of all, I

[4:29] respect the rules that we

[4:31] operate under.

[4:32] so I want to get that said and

[4:35] say that sincerely

[4:38] and take full responsibility

[4:39] for and I do respect my

[4:41] colleague

[4:43] in his gavel,

[4:47] but also hope folks, including

[4:49] my colleagues.

[4:56] they understand that after so

[4:58] many years on this council

[5:00] and having seen so much of

[5:02] jackson's history unfold,

[5:04] sometimes it's difficult not to

[5:06] share everything. I'd like to

[5:08] share 3 minutes allotted.

[5:10] that's one reason I call this

[5:12] meeting today.

[5:13] there's so much to be said

[5:14] about how this project fits

[5:16] into jacksonville's history

[5:20] and where I believe it will

[5:21] take our city

[5:23] in the future.

[5:25] so with that said,

[5:27] I want to thank you all for

[5:28] being here. I want to thank the

[5:30] media for being here wherever

[5:32] they may be to the leave or

[5:34] they hear. Okay. Thank you for

[5:36] being here

[5:39] and for my

[5:40] council colleague who is the

[5:42] district councilman for

[5:43] participating.

[5:45] I call the meeting because as

[5:46] an at-large member, I also

[5:48] represent district 7 and I

[5:49] believe what is happening with

[5:51] the pearl square

[5:52] represents one of the most

[5:53] important opportunities for

[5:55] downtown jacksonville.

[5:57] perhaps one of the most

[5:58] important I've seen in my

[6:00] lifetime.

[6:02] some here I may be preaching to

[6:04] the choir. I get that.

[6:06] but to others, this narrative

[6:08] may answer some questions.

[6:10] particularly lot of my

[6:11] constituents who asked big

[6:13] questions about

[6:14] was this project so important.

[6:17] what is a needed sense and so

[6:18] forth

[6:20] and 7 and publix in particular

[6:24] is an important part of pearl

[6:26] square.

[6:28] it would bring 258 apartments

[6:30] in a full-time service, publix,

[6:32] grocery store or the pharmacy

[6:34] to downtown.

[6:36] it is also a part of a billion

[6:38] dollar plus investment that

[6:41] will transform 9 downtown

[6:43] blocks and help attract even

[6:45] more private development than

[6:47] just this group.

[6:49] what should not be lost on us

[6:51] in jacksonville? It's all very

[6:53] fortunate. We are to have a

[6:55] development group willing to

[6:56] invest more than a billion

[6:58] dollars in the heart of our

[6:59] central business district.

[7:02] I can't tell you how many prior

[7:03] mayors would have loved to have

[7:06] had that type of investment

[7:08] happening in our downtown

[7:11] investment. So the scale,

[7:13] we'll be transformational.

[7:16] no doubt that we all love our

[7:18] neighborhoods, right? We love

[7:19] our neighborhoods where we

[7:21] live.

[7:22] but as much as those

[7:23] neighborhoods mean to us,

[7:26] cities are known by their

[7:27] downtowns fight

[7:30] nodding of hands. Yeah.

[7:32] downtown's are known just

[7:34] cities are known by their

[7:35] downtowns in downtown's.

[7:38] downtown is jacksonville's own

[7:41] signature.

[7:43] yeah. I think about that.

[7:44] every time I travel out of town

[7:46] every time I travel out of

[7:48] town, I come home

[7:49] and then as I drive from the

[7:51] airport

[7:52] and cross the fuller warren

[7:53] bridge going back to my beloved

[7:56] neighborhood, san marco.

[7:58] I look out at the skyline of my

[8:00] hometown immediately

[8:03] and with our beautiful saint

[8:04] johns river

[8:06] flowing through the heart of

[8:07] our downtown. And I think,

[8:09] you know,

[8:10] we may not have the biggest

[8:11] skyline,

[8:13] but there are very few places.

[8:15] thank you. Match the beauty of

[8:17] our us.

[8:20] no doubt. I take great pride in

[8:21] that view.

[8:23] it welcomes me home every time

[8:25] he reminds me of what a special

[8:27] place and a special home

[8:28] jacksonville is

[8:30] what special downtown we

[8:32] already have

[8:35] and how that downtown is

[8:36] transforming

[8:38] for the greater before our

[8:39] eyes.

[8:41] and I got to tell you, frankly,

[8:43] I have never seen such an

[8:45] exciting time like this in my

[8:47] life

[8:48] in our downtown.

[8:51] I have great faith in the

[8:53] future.

[8:54] and I believe investments like

[8:55] pearl square for making that

[8:58] future a reality.

[9:00] and I have to tell you, there

[9:01] are more to come.

[9:03] they're going to be more to

[9:04] come. That are going to be so

[9:05] exciting.

[9:06] it's a great time to be a city

[9:08] council members. A great time

[9:09] to be a citizen to

[9:11] jacksonville.

[9:13] we should be celebrating

[9:15] in addition and importantly,

[9:18] there's an observation I would

[9:19] like to make

[9:21] and this is important for us to

[9:22] think about because as I go

[9:24] through social media

[9:28] in a neighborhood, social media

[9:30] where I live,

[9:33] this is some I like to I'd like

[9:35] to say, I think downtown's

[9:36] resurgence.

[9:38] it snuck up on a lot of our own

[9:40] citizens

[9:42] because for years

[9:43] they have heard about downtown

[9:46] struggles,

[9:47] thanking buildings, the

[9:49] challenges of tracking

[9:50] investment.

[9:52] but something important is

[9:53] happening downtown

[9:55] and we need to help our

[9:56] citizens see it and understand

[9:59] what it means to jacksonville's

[10:00] future.

[10:02] they're not just on negative

[10:03] people. It's just a couple of

[10:05] them. I think

[10:07] to a large degree

[10:09] more people now want to live

[10:10] downtown. We want to walk to

[10:12] restaurants, enjoy the

[10:13] riverfront

[10:14] and be a part of an active

[10:15] urban neighborhood.

[10:17] but a neighborhood needs more

[10:18] than apartment if these

[10:20] everyday services.

[10:22] that's why the public's is so

[10:24] important.

[10:26] the grocery store in a pharmacy

[10:27] make downtown living more

[10:29] practical

[10:30] and attractive.

[10:31] they helped turn a collection

[10:33] of buildings into a real

[10:34] neighborhood support nearby

[10:37] businesses and create the

[10:39] foundation for further growth.

[10:43] there's also important

[10:44] financial benefit

[10:46] downtown offers an

[10:47] extraordinary opportunity to

[10:49] create a new taxable value

[10:53] block by block

[10:55] that growth strengthens our tax

[10:58] base in creates additional

[10:59] revenue that can benefit our

[11:01] entire city.

[11:04] I often like to say no work and

[11:05] contribute to our tax base

[11:07] block by block more,

[11:09] then a vibrant downtown.

[11:11] so why are incentives needed if

[11:14] this is such a promising

[11:15] investment why they needed

[11:17] since met? I get asked all the

[11:18] time

[11:19] when I when I drive out of

[11:21] downtown jacksonville not get

[11:22] into the comfortable suburbs of

[11:25] jacksonville. What he'll need

[11:26] incentive is is such a great

[11:27] place. What you need it

[11:32] developing downtown is

[11:33] complicated.

[11:35] demolition aging utilities,

[11:38] there's you to if you take an

[11:39] x-ray machine

[11:41] and you get x ray underneath

[11:43] the ground of downtown,

[11:45] you would find a maze of pipes,

[11:49] the wires of

[11:53] enough stuff underneath there

[11:54] that if it was caught and you

[11:56] could need a sweater 100 times

[11:58] over

[12:00] demolition, aging utilities,

[12:02] infrastructure improvements in

[12:04] the challenges of working

[12:05] around existing buildings,

[12:08] redevelopment considerably more

[12:10] expensive than building on an

[12:13] just an undeveloped piece of

[12:14] land.

[12:16] those costs create a financing

[12:18] gap.

[12:20] even where the demand for the

[12:23] the finished project is there.

[12:26] and this is where I believe the

[12:28] public purpose comes in,

[12:30] that sometimes it's hard to

[12:32] understand

[12:33] as a regular citizen

[12:35] whose productive

[12:36] taking their kids to school to

[12:38] little league going to work,

[12:40] paying your taxes.

[12:42] they're not really paying

[12:44] attention to downtown that.

[12:45] we are down here and we have to

[12:46] understand

[12:50] public dollars are the

[12:51] requested not to simply help

[12:53] build one particular project,

[12:56] but to establish the energies,

[12:58] the activity and the vibrancy

[13:00] of our downtown.

[13:02] we need people living downtown

[13:06] businesses opening and

[13:08] investing in investment coming

[13:09] back into the heart of our

[13:11] city.

[13:14] when we do that successfully,

[13:16] we create new valuable

[13:19] properties that add to our tax

[13:20] base

[13:22] and generate revenue to help

[13:23] services

[13:24] throughout jacksonville

[13:27] and not just downtown

[13:29] and those services. Along with

[13:31] the struck a stronger tax base

[13:34] help improve quality of life

[13:37] for people throughout

[13:39] our entire city, all 870 some

[13:42] odd square miles.

[13:45] the benefits of a stronger

[13:47] downtown don't stop.

[13:48] and the downtown boundary

[13:50] they extend, as I said to the

[13:53] entire city.

[13:55] and that's why I believe

[13:56] responsible downtown

[13:57] development is important to all

[14:00] our citizens throughout

[14:02] jacksonville.

[14:04] and you know what? It's up to

[14:05] us

[14:07] to understand that we need to

[14:10] explain that to our citizens.

[14:13] we can't just assume they know

[14:15] we can't get

[14:20] they understand that.

[14:22] well, maybe just because we

[14:23] haven't explained it well

[14:24] enough.

[14:27] of course, we have a

[14:28] responsibility to make sure

[14:30] incentives are justified.

[14:33] a lot of people think we're

[14:34] just throwing out the money.

[14:38] you don't live. It just just go

[14:39] on the social media of your

[14:40] choosing.

[14:43] the private investment is

[14:44] substantial,

[14:46] but the public benefits warrant

[14:48] the cost.

[14:51] we must scrutinize the numbers

[14:54] to protect our taxpayers.

[14:56] and we when we explain the

[14:59] purposes

[15:01] and we're accountable for

[15:02] those,

[15:03] you know, we're doing

[15:05] we're helping bring the public

[15:07] along with this.

[15:10] make people feel like we're

[15:11] just ignoring them and leaving

[15:13] them behind

[15:14] in taking care of our own

[15:15] little pet projects.

[15:19] we've got to bring people along

[15:20] with us

[15:22] because jacksonville does best

[15:24] when we move together.

[15:26] and I know our mayor every time

[15:28] she goes to town meeting,

[15:30] she explains to us.

[15:32] but the mayor can only do so

[15:33] much. She has town meeting

[15:35] after town meeting after town

[15:37] meeting

[15:38] and I hear her explain these to

[15:39] the meetings that I go to.

[15:43] sometimes we go to town me

[15:44] think you're talking to the

[15:45] world.

[15:47] sometimes I feel like, you

[15:48] know, going out into the middle

[15:50] of james weldon johnson park

[15:52] with a megaphone, maybe all

[15:54] parra angie nixon's megaphone.

[15:57] it's a their jacksonville over

[16:00] do down here is really good.

[16:01] let me explain. But you know

[16:03] what?

[16:04] think about the people at the

[16:06] town center,

[16:08] the people way out and run

[16:10] the people on the west side,

[16:12] the people of the beaches,

[16:14] do they really?

[16:16] it's just message penetrating

[16:19] and that's why I hope that the

[16:21] media would be here. I we

[16:22] understood that if our cast

[16:24] members didn't show up, but I

[16:26] have to say, you know, all due

[16:28] respect to my council members,

[16:31] I'm not sure some of the

[16:32] council members really

[16:33] understand this that well,

[16:36] and I say that as a

[16:37] councilmember who in my first

[16:39] term,

[16:41] I really didn't understand

[16:42] that. Will

[16:44] it took

[16:46] it took

[16:48] preston haskell,

[16:51] jack diamond.

[16:52] it's mothers to get it through

[16:53] my thick skull.

[16:55] and then I began to understand,

[16:59] but we must scrutinize the

[17:01] numbers and protect our

[17:02] taxpayers.

[17:07] one thing also learn

[17:09] years and years and years ago

[17:11] in my first term,

[17:13] we must look to the long-term

[17:15] re to to the long-term return

[17:19] for jacksonville as a whole,

[17:21] not just the cost, what the

[17:23] incentive is today.

[17:26] and when it comes to a budget,

[17:29] we must look just beyond

[17:31] ourselves.

[17:33] we must look beyond our

[17:34] property tax bill

[17:37] because every dollar in a

[17:38] budget,

[17:40] there's a person

[17:42] that has affected.

[17:44] and that's why I wrote that

[17:45] editorial years or months ago,

[17:48] probably one years ago, 2

[17:49] months ago

[17:51] before we took it up, saying

[17:53] behind every dollar in a

[17:55] budget,

[17:56] there's somebody on the

[17:58] receiving end of that.

[18:00] maybe a senior citizen

[18:01] receiving a meals on wheels,

[18:04] maybe a veteran

[18:06] receiving a service or perhaps

[18:08] some recognition

[18:09] and a veterans day parade.

[18:12] the budget goes for so many

[18:13] things

[18:15] and it's so important.

[18:21] I'm almost done.

[18:23] they're me out. I don't get a

[18:24] chance to talk like this much

[18:26] and and and cut off and gavin

[18:28] overhead 5 times,

[18:31] 5, 6, 7, minutes ago.

[18:34] I'll let david bear line have a

[18:35] remarks, but you won't get the

[18:36] all to couples albany.

[18:42] here's the gist of it.

[18:44] whether amendment 3 passes or

[18:45] not,

[18:47] I don't care if it passes will

[18:49] deal with it. You know, just

[18:51] have to do that.

[18:54] but whether it passes or not,

[18:56] in effect it to next year,

[18:58] we'll deal with them.

[19:01] but I believe is the parent of

[19:03] that. We pass this legislation

[19:04] before us in november.

[19:07] is that important?

[19:10] and I will tell you if we let

[19:12] this opportunity

[19:14] this legislation

[19:16] and this opportunity slip by,

[19:19] we fail to pass this

[19:20] legislation,

[19:22] I believe it will become one of

[19:23] the

[19:24] one of our greatest regrets.

[19:29] it will be an opportunity that

[19:30] we must not let slip past us.

[19:35] I believe pearl square

[19:37] and then 7

[19:40] and the public's.

[19:42] we'll make a real difference

[19:43] for downtown,

[19:44] but not just for downtown.

[19:47] but for all the reasons I

[19:48] stated prior

[19:49] for our entire city,

[19:53] this is an opportunity to build

[19:55] on the progress

[19:56] that's already underway.

[19:59] we will pass this.

[20:02] not sure what kind of

[20:03] credibility we're going to

[20:04] continue to hold

[20:05] with this development team and

[20:07] certainly with development

[20:08] teams to come.

[20:18] this will be an opportunity to

[20:20] attract more residents or

[20:22] businesses and make our

[20:24] downtown the signature

[20:26] the jacksonville deserves.

[20:30] so lets ask the hard questions,

[20:32] understand the financial

[20:33] commitments and get this

[20:35] opportunity. The serious

[20:36] consideration that it warrants,

[20:40] we still can vote yes or no.

[20:43] but with that, I have invited

[20:45] the development team. Let him

[20:47] sit up here

[20:49] just so they can look,

[20:50] everybody in the eye

[20:55] give us the justification for

[20:56] the requested incentives.

[20:59] look forward to hearing their

[21:00] presentation.

[21:02] I want the council auditors to

[21:04] have your your ears, your eyes

[21:07] open so that if there's any

[21:09] questions that

[21:11] you may have that you might

[21:12] want to pass along to me,

[21:14] want to hear him

[21:15] and at last come

[21:17] and they know I'll do that.

[21:20] I did that the other day.

[21:23] I look forward to hearing their

[21:24] presentation explanation from

[21:26] city staff that they may have

[21:29] from our office of general

[21:30] counsel.

[21:31] any questions from

[21:34] any

[21:35] my council colleagues, this may

[21:36] be here

[21:38] gets here.

[21:40] and I want to hear from

[21:42] my brother from a different

[21:44] mother.

[21:45] he is italian

[21:47] councilmember palou. So I know

[21:48] I've taken a lot of time and

[21:49] apologized

[21:52] hope and I believe maybe those

[21:53] are words that were worth

[21:55] hearing.

[21:57] if you think they were unhappy

[21:59] and they weren't sure. Maybe

[22:01] feel-good saying appreciate it.

[22:03] thank you.

[22:06] >> thank you, chair. Thank you

[22:08] for letting me. Thank you for

[22:09] the kind words I'm gonna many

[22:10] of your sentiments. I think I

[22:12] can echo. I won't because I do

[22:16] have waterways at 11 and I do

[22:18] want to make sure that are

[22:19] smarter ways. I have a truck

[22:22] trying to make our meetings all

[22:24] that to say the as the district

[22:26] councilmember for the downtown

[22:27] area, which means a lot to me,

[22:29] by the way, for those of you

[22:30] don't know. I mean, I moved

[22:31] back home to jacksonville in

[22:32] 2015

[22:35] because I live in so many

[22:36] different cities

[22:37] and out in san diego, the

[22:38] watching the sealed in

[22:40] philadelphia, knowledge in

[22:40] norfolk, virginia, and I saw

[22:42] with these other places look

[22:44] like and how they utilize their

[22:45] natural environment. Obviously,

[22:47] san diego's right there on the

[22:49] waterfront as well there

[22:50] downtown. It's kind of the same

[22:52] size as ours. I looked around.

[22:53] I thought

[22:55] san diego could be

[22:55] jacksonville. The biggest

[22:57] differences climate right is

[22:59] no. There's no humidity out

[23:00] there. That's really about it,

[23:01] though, like I just never

[23:03] understood why we can get our

[23:05] act together in the same way.

[23:06] that means our places did and

[23:08] then living in these other

[23:09] cities like like philly and d c

[23:11] you saw how difficult it is to

[23:12] get some things done later on.

[23:13] dec really got their act

[23:14] together. It took a long time.

[23:16] but in philly, just everything

[23:18] is the infrastructure is aging.

[23:19] I think it's grandchild's

[23:21] outside. I think it's one

[23:22] that's going to I didn't board

[23:24] him. I hope.

[23:25] but but the point is to come

[23:27] back home to jacksonville and

[23:29] to want to be a part of sort of

[23:30] this movement to 2, to bring

[23:32] young people back to the city,

[23:33] to have people who who've seen

[23:36] how it is in other places and

[23:37] how we can invest, you know,

[23:39] similar resources and our

[23:40] downtown. It meant a lot to me.

[23:42] so when I became the council

[23:43] member that included downtown,

[23:45] it meant more to me than I than

[23:48] I think

[23:49] I expected even then. And while

[23:51] I campaigned many of my

[23:53] constituents and I think many

[23:54] people throughout the city said

[23:58] weiser downtown like this,

[24:00] why can't it be different?

[24:01] we need to invest. We want to

[24:02] make sure that that my kid

[24:03] wants to move back here for

[24:04] one. Make sure that my you

[24:05] know, my brother, my son,

[24:07] my by my niece, my grandchild

[24:09] moves back here. We need to

[24:10] make sure we have a downtown

[24:11] the tracks. That kind of talent

[24:13] on top of the fact that we need

[24:14] businesses for more fortune 500

[24:17] businesses, more those emerging

[24:18] industries to to want to locate

[24:20] and relocate somewhere. And I

[24:22] think downtown is a great way

[24:23] to do it. That's what I what

[24:24] what we've literally seen in

[24:26] art, frankly, competitor,

[24:27] cities, competitor, cities in

[24:29] the southeast being kind of

[24:30] tampa, orlando, saint pete,

[24:33] charlotte's to a degree atlanta

[24:36] and even like savannah and

[24:37] charleston and maybe even

[24:39] huntsville, alabama, frankly,

[24:41] like some of these other places

[24:42] are investing heavily in their

[24:44] downtowns and making sure that

[24:45] they become an attractive place

[24:47] for businesses to go to.

[24:48] and when businesses go to them,

[24:50] young talent stays there.

[24:52] when that young talent stays

[24:53] there, they raise their

[24:54] families. It is about building

[24:56] a new tax base. It is about

[24:58] this next generation of

[25:00] jacksonville resident. I don't

[25:01] like

[25:02] I you port the poor kids.

[25:04] I'm sorry. A sigh a grandfather

[25:06] brought you out there to talk

[25:08] about downtown development.

[25:11] but but the point is, is that

[25:13] the numbers need to make sense.

[25:15] we have a downtown investment

[25:16] authority that that looks at

[25:18] these things. For reason,

[25:21] we have sophisticated

[25:23] developers that I believe are

[25:25] doing the right work and

[25:26] showing us what the our ally

[25:28] is. The return on investment is

[25:29] is pretty dramatic for the city

[25:30] of jacksonville for the

[25:32] taxpayer. And so we're not

[25:33] making way were decisions.

[25:34] that was adorable. We're not

[25:36] making way. We're decisions.

[25:38] we're investing in the future

[25:39] of our city. And if you allow

[25:40] for these opportunities to slip

[25:42] by,

[25:44] they go somewhere else, right?

[25:46] if you compete with other major

[25:47] municipalities, you've got to

[25:49] properly compete. Otherwise we

[25:51] shouldn't be a city. We should

[25:52] just be the suburb of

[25:53] jacksonville. And we're not

[25:54] that we are the city of

[25:55] jacksonville and we need double

[25:57] down on that, especially with

[25:58] the amount of investment we

[25:59] just put into a lot of our

[26:00] public amenities in our

[26:01] downtown area, including james

[26:03] weldon. Johnson are about to

[26:04] build a brand new marquee park

[26:05] right outside of the city hall.

[26:07] and we have these marquee parks

[26:08] were on the riverfront as well

[26:09] as a beautiful riverfront.

[26:11] if you have a walk to bridges

[26:13] like it's just kind of nothing

[26:14] better as ghana. Somebody has

[26:16] lived in other cities. There's

[26:17] a reason I came back home.

[26:18] it's because there's something

[26:19] special about jacksonville and

[26:21] we need to invest in that.

[26:23] timing is everything in

[26:23] development. We have an

[26:25] opportunity before us and we

[26:26] can't allow it to slip through

[26:27] our fingers because that

[26:28] that means that other projects

[26:30] and tertiary effects don't get

[26:32] done. And then we have more and

[26:34] more people saying

[26:36] how do we miss another

[26:37] opportunity? How come

[26:38] jacksonville's not growing the

[26:39] way it should?

[26:41] we can't. We can't allow

[26:42] ourselves to to

[26:45] be this one step forward.

[26:46] 2 steps back. Like many people

[26:48] say that jacksonville,

[26:50] but I do want to pass it over

[26:52] to to the people. We all want

[26:53] to hear from to explain why

[26:57] this is a great project,

[26:58] but chair, I don't know if you

[26:59] want to do something next

[27:00] instead.

[27:01] >> what we have to be here.

[27:04] well, we have the meeting here

[27:05] real quick.

[27:06] >> I'd like to ask if there's

[27:08] anybody from the media that has

[27:09] the questions before I let the

[27:12] development team roll into

[27:14] other presentation. If you have

[27:16] the questions real quick,

[27:17] if you want to wait till after

[27:18] they get through and you can

[27:20] asked him questions now.

[27:21] but one of the things I wanted

[27:24] to do is get the

[27:25] information out so to see body

[27:28] with me,

[27:31] mr. Mearns and mr. Ball will

[27:34] turn it over to you. And thank

[27:37] you for being here for me.

[27:38] ready in the way that you've

[27:41] you've worked with our

[27:42] community and our council on

[27:44] this so years. Thank you.

[27:45] >> thank you, councilman.

[27:46] we really appreciate it

[27:48] and everyone for being here.

[27:49] so I am a proud resident of

[27:52] mandarin and one of the people

[27:54] that is really passionate about

[27:56] what's happening downtown.

[27:58] but I realized over the last

[28:00] several months and the coverage

[28:01] and the questions that have

[28:02] come up, that there really is a

[28:03] disconnect. And I think that

[28:05] part of that is I get to live

[28:06] and breathe this every day and

[28:08] live in the mine asia and in

[28:10] privy to all of these details

[28:12] about the big picture and

[28:14] what's coming. And I think when

[28:16] we're in these individual

[28:17] hearings, we don't really get

[28:18] an opportunity to tell that

[28:19] story

[28:20] and give everybody else the

[28:22] opportunity to really see what

[28:23] we know is in the works.

[28:26] so I want to kind of back up

[28:28] and talk about the fact that we

[28:30] started this journey back in

[28:32] 2023 when the first phase of

[28:35] pearl square came through dna

[28:38] and that first phase had a

[28:41] handful of blocks, 4 of them

[28:43] that al had mixed use

[28:45] components.

[28:46] but being able to get to where

[28:48] we are today,

[28:49] where we have been able with

[28:51] the investment the city has

[28:53] made

[28:54] to recruit a grocer to look at

[28:57] downtown jacksonville.

[28:59] that is something that when I

[29:01] started this job a decade ago

[29:02] was unthinkable.

[29:05] but that investment really did

[29:06] get the attention of the

[29:08] development community, the

[29:09] hospitality community, retail

[29:11] restaurants,

[29:13] this particular block

[29:16] really is the center of what

[29:19] we're trying to create in pearl

[29:20] square

[29:22] and 7. We all have these

[29:23] nomenclature that the bloc that

[29:25] we're talking about today is

[29:26] and 7

[29:28] came before de I in december of

[29:30] 25

[29:32] and went through the full

[29:33] underwriting process,

[29:35] determined that there was the

[29:37] appropriate return on

[29:38] investment to the city. And I

[29:39] know we're going to talk about

[29:40] that and I hope we do because

[29:42] that's really key to this

[29:44] project

[29:46] when through working with the

[29:48] city on the contract and got

[29:50] introduced in june of 26.

[29:53] so this project's been pending

[29:55] in the public forum

[29:57] since june.

[29:59] and when that was filed,

[30:01] we got a lot of questions from

[30:02] different council members,

[30:04] understanding the pressures the

[30:06] city's facing and wanting to

[30:09] look at how do we incentivize

[30:10] things and are there

[30:11] alternatives that aren't

[30:12] completion grants?

[30:14] so we pushed pause on phase 2

[30:18] and worked for the last several

[30:19] months with the council members

[30:21] with the administration with d

[30:23] I a

[30:24] to really dig in to the phase 2

[30:26] projects and see what's on the

[30:28] table globally. How can we

[30:30] address them? Where are there

[30:32] ways to do things that maybe

[30:33] weren't completion grants?

[30:37] we've been able to do a lot

[30:39] with what we still have in

[30:40] terms of looking at alternate

[30:42] funding for the investor hotel,

[30:45] for example, which was

[30:46] originally proposed as

[30:48] completion grants and went back

[30:50] through underwriting and back 3

[30:52] d I a and is now proposed is a

[30:54] loan that will fully paid back

[30:56] the city with interest over

[30:58] time.

[31:00] but when we looked at this

[31:02] specific block,

[31:05] it really didn't work to

[31:06] underwrite a different way.

[31:08] and we went through more than

[31:09] 12 different permutations to

[31:12] try to look at options. But

[31:14] what is before the city today

[31:16] after all of that exercise over

[31:18] 7 months was determined to

[31:21] really get the most bang for

[31:22] the buck on the investment and

[31:25] make sense for the city.

[31:27] but again, I live in the

[31:28] minutiae

[31:29] and we don't get to tell the

[31:31] story. So I want to pause there

[31:33] and give brian the opportunity

[31:35] to really speak big picture

[31:37] because you have to look at

[31:38] this block in context and what

[31:41] it unlocks.

[31:44] >> thank you, cindy, and thank

[31:46] you to both of the council

[31:48] members for for having us here

[31:50] today. We really appreciate it.

[31:55] >> you hear a lot of

[31:56] nomenclature when we're talking

[31:57] about our blocks and aidan 4 in

[32:00] 11

[32:01] and they all are going to have

[32:03] names at some point, I promise.

[32:06] but but in 7 is just one block

[32:09] of many in pearl square and

[32:12] then also with an gateway jax's

[32:15] larger portfolio and within a

[32:17] very large downtown 4 square

[32:21] miles. I believe something like

[32:22] that.

[32:24] and and what we're doing in

[32:26] pearl square not only impacts

[32:29] that immediate area, the

[32:31] project itself in that

[32:32] immediate area impacts all of

[32:34] downtown. It impacts the city

[32:36] impact spring, the adjoining

[32:38] neighborhoods, springfield

[32:40] being, you know, being the

[32:41] immediate one just to the

[32:42] north, is it out east? And

[32:46] then, of course, all of the

[32:46] neighborhoods that are within

[32:47] downtown, including with on

[32:49] cathedral heights and others.

[32:53] so this is not just a request

[32:55] that we're making.

[32:57] you know, I for one block.

[32:59] it's really for downtown and

[33:01] the entire city.

[33:03] I'd like to start really

[33:05] quickly just by giving some

[33:06] high-level information on what

[33:09] prospere is. It is 9 city

[33:11] blocks. It is over a billion

[33:14] dollars worth of investment

[33:19] within that billion dollars.

[33:21] there have been there have been

[33:24] request and granted requests

[33:26] from the city

[33:27] as participating in a few of

[33:29] them, not all of them. But if

[33:31] you have them

[33:32] about 7% of the total

[33:34] development costs

[33:36] and this project would not be

[33:38] possible without that

[33:40] investment and may not seem

[33:42] like a lot when you're talking

[33:43] about a billion dollars and

[33:44] it's 7%, but that 7% is

[33:46] incredibly meaningful.

[33:49] it moves the needle. First of

[33:51] all shows investors. It shows

[33:54] banks. It shows the people that

[33:55] actually to finance these

[33:57] projects to make them happen.

[33:59] it shows them that there is

[34:01] confidence from the city.

[34:03] it shows that the city is

[34:05] backstopping are dot back

[34:06] something but providing the

[34:08] ability for the for the

[34:10] development to happen. But I do

[34:12] want to make one point very

[34:13] clear because I think this this

[34:16] does get lost once a while.

[34:17] we have not received a dime of

[34:20] any of that city investment and

[34:22] we want until we actually start

[34:25] building and completing

[34:26] buildings. The first one,

[34:27] which will be done here in

[34:28] about 3 weeks as I was telling

[34:29] time, the cap councilmember

[34:32] van der veer formally and 11.

[34:33] so there's your name. But but

[34:36] that that's very important

[34:38] because we did when we first

[34:40] approached the city with this

[34:42] big idea and the da and a

[34:45] number of years ago, it was

[34:47] important to us to make sure

[34:49] that we could be trust in that

[34:51] the city was able to trust us,

[34:52] not just on one project but

[34:54] over time.

[34:55] and so what we're putting our

[34:58] money where our mouth is and

[35:00] then the city, when they have a

[35:02] completed project that is on

[35:04] the tax rolls that is

[35:05] generating revenue back to the

[35:07] city

[35:08] provides these these

[35:10] incentives.

[35:12] so what is pearl square?

[35:13] pearl square very simply at a

[35:15] high level. It's 9 blocks.

[35:17] it is 2 million square feet of

[35:19] density. What does that mean?

[35:21] it means over 1250 new

[35:23] residential units. It likely

[35:26] will grow to about 1500 and

[35:28] that means something about like

[35:29] 25 new are 2500 to 3,000 new

[35:33] residents that are going to be

[35:34] living 2 blocks away from city

[35:37] hall.

[35:38] it will an entirely change the

[35:41] dynamic of this area of

[35:42] downtown. And that's just on 9

[35:45] blocks of the 26 city blocks

[35:47] that gateway jax has not to

[35:49] mention the other blocs that kp

[35:50] text does not control that

[35:51] could develop into additional

[35:53] residential.

[35:54] the really the the opportunity

[35:56] in downtown for people living

[35:58] walking, working and shopping

[36:00] is is off the charts.

[36:03] there is 200,000 square feet of

[36:05] retail that is either built

[36:07] under construction or planned

[36:09] 200,000 square feet of retail

[36:11] might seem amorphous. But what

[36:13] that means is I 35,000 square

[36:16] feet of that is the public.

[36:17] so that means that 100 that

[36:20] publix is a small, relatively

[36:22] portion of the amount of retail

[36:23] that we're delivering. It means

[36:25] 20 new restaurants. It means a

[36:29] soft goods and means services.

[36:31] cindy loves over. There's going

[36:33] to be a nail salon delivering

[36:35] and the first project and means

[36:38] places where you can you can

[36:39] go. You can meet up. You can

[36:40] work out.

[36:42] it's what we're doing is really

[36:44] building community. And that is

[36:45] centered around the retail in

[36:47] the public space.

[36:49] in 100,000 square feet of

[36:51] office. There hasn't been a

[36:52] brand new office building built

[36:54] outside of what the jaguars did

[36:56] near the stadium and 40 years.

[37:00] and the office stock downtown

[37:02] is aging. And that is really at

[37:05] that prevents new companies

[37:06] from wanting to come downtown

[37:07] and fast and downtown.

[37:10] so we're building an office

[37:11] building. A plan to build more

[37:12] eventually were building at

[37:14] least one hotel, if not too

[37:17] likely over 200 keys when we're

[37:19] when we're finished, hotel

[37:20] married, which we've announced

[37:22] before, which is a a mary,

[37:24] a tribute collection of 100 and

[37:27] the former ambassador say about

[37:30] 110 keys alone. And that's just

[37:32] the first phase of what we hope

[37:34] will be many faces of at that

[37:35] hotel and then others in the

[37:37] future and mentioned the open

[37:39] space, an acre of open space,

[37:41] private open space that we're

[37:42] providing to the city and of

[37:44] course, parking spaces. We will

[37:45] have over 2500 parking spaces

[37:48] to make sure everybody has a

[37:49] spot. But you may

[37:51] how many people

[37:54] the people here.

[37:55] >> it's probably a few but many

[37:57] people here have seen the old

[38:00] ambassador which is now the

[38:01] maryville.

[38:07] it is how many people have not

[38:08] seen it.

[38:11] jans. Joe, I think you see that

[38:14] joe back there. Okay. All

[38:16] right. How many people have not

[38:17] seen it? I want to say,

[38:20] well, ok, if there was a it was

[38:22] mostly of folks that were in

[38:25] the know like most of these

[38:26] folks are known to be a lot of

[38:28] hands raise that. That is

[38:31] that is a beautiful, historic

[38:32] hotel.

[38:34] and it's been on the listing of

[38:37] historic buildings to be

[38:39] restored for a long time.

[38:40] so go ahead.

[38:42] actually, I do kind of want to

[38:43] check their as well noted to

[38:44] that. And by the way of former

[38:45] developer couldn't get that

[38:47] project done, right?

[38:48] >> multiple development deals

[38:50] have been approved by city

[38:51] council and the development

[38:52] deals did not get done. His

[38:54] developers do not have the

[38:54] sophistication that we've seen

[38:56] at a gateway, right. The fact

[38:57] that you're doing a new

[38:58] construction that's completed

[38:59] in 3 weeks is

[39:02] exactly what the downtown needs

[39:04] and certain that if you don't

[39:05] mind and then the fact you

[39:07] bring up all the retailers and

[39:08] many coming here,

[39:09] all I heard was how in the 80's

[39:12] in the 90's, when all the

[39:14] downtown department store is

[39:16] left

[39:17] and when to reach the square

[39:19] mall and now eventually town

[39:20] center, how that really

[39:22] eviscerated kind of what the

[39:24] downtown feel was and obviously

[39:25] feel like a ghost town here by

[39:27] investing in these retail

[39:29] operators in new office,

[39:31] we're literally creating

[39:33] that's exactly what we need to

[39:34] bring more foot traffic and

[39:36] more people in our downtown.

[39:37] so so and that invest. I mean,

[39:40] the top of the fact you

[39:42] consistently talk about future

[39:43] phases,

[39:44] the city, the city is not here

[39:46] to say that we're we're

[39:48] financing. Every darn funny is

[39:50] in fact, we won't need to once

[39:51] phase one is complete. And once

[39:53] people start seeing the value

[39:55] of this, the taxable income and

[39:56] maybe you can speak to that.

[39:57] but yeah, I can. And and I am

[40:00] you know, I'm I'm here to say

[40:01] this will be the last

[40:03] completion grant that we will

[40:05] be asking for from the general

[40:08] fund in the city. This is we

[40:10] really believe this is such an

[40:12] you don't move or that it will

[40:14] help sustain and

[40:16] self-sustaining future

[40:17] development,

[40:19] you know, doesn't doesn't

[40:20] necessarily mean that the there

[40:21] won't be a need for red grants

[40:23] or something like that in the

[40:25] future. But we really believe

[40:27] that this this completion grant

[40:30] is is the key to unlocking

[40:33] future development, not just

[40:34] for gateway jacks, but for

[40:36] other developers and to help

[40:38] sustain.

[40:39] >> if I were john month for a

[40:41] second great there, since

[40:42] you've said those words,

[40:43] which are important and I hope

[40:45] folks have heard because that

[40:46] is a commitment that we have

[40:47] made to the city that we really

[40:49] do believe that this one is

[40:51] what will get us over the line.

[40:53] but I I get a lot of questions

[40:55] and I see it covered. So I

[40:57] think it's one of the things

[40:58] that people need to hear and

[40:59] understand

[41:00] is we've already given all of

[41:02] these completion grants out.

[41:04] why isn't that enough? Why

[41:05] hasn't that done it? Why are we

[41:07] done?

[41:08] and that's important question

[41:09] to ask because we have made

[41:10] strategic investments in the

[41:12] first phase because of the

[41:14] first 4 blocks and there's been

[41:16] some others downtown that have

[41:17] been very strategic and

[41:18] important.

[41:21] what I think gets lost in that

[41:23] narrative is the fact that,

[41:24] yes, we have awarded those

[41:27] completion grants

[41:29] but their completion grants and

[41:31] nothing is paid out until

[41:32] buildings are done. None of

[41:33] these buildings

[41:35] are done. We do not have

[41:38] anything that is online

[41:41] and stabilized. That tells the

[41:44] development community

[41:45] investors, lenders what is

[41:48] possible in jacksonville.

[41:50] and that's really kind of the

[41:52] purgatory that we're in right

[41:53] now is

[41:55] thank god with the credibility

[41:58] that brian and his team bring

[41:59] to the table. They've been able

[42:00] to recruit some investors and

[42:02] lenders that historically would

[42:04] not look at downtown

[42:05] jacksonville because the

[42:07] numbers that we can show on a

[42:08] pro forma don't justify the

[42:11] investment

[42:12] and we still don't have

[42:14] anything in operation that

[42:16] shows them that they've made a

[42:18] good bet on jacksonville.

[42:20] it's going to take getting

[42:21] these first things out of the

[42:22] ground and people living in

[42:23] them and seeing how they live

[42:25] and operate

[42:26] before. That's proven not so

[42:28] we're almost there, but we're

[42:31] still in that period where we

[42:33] really need the city investment

[42:36] to get other folks to come to

[42:37] the table to take the risk on

[42:39] downtown jacksonville.

[42:43] >> but I for I should have

[42:44] mentioned earlier, just some of

[42:45] the some of the names that

[42:46] we've announced for for new

[42:48] retail collette, which is an

[42:50] italian restaurant by steve

[42:52] palmer is based out of

[42:54] charleston. You feeling of the

[42:56] 2 italians appear and that's

[42:58] why star. Yeah, that's got

[43:02] yeah. You did. Actually has got

[43:03] a really great the

[43:05] old-fashioned spaghetti.

[43:06] none of us like cancels getting

[43:08] want to have it on this on top

[43:11] of the past. All. Yeah.

[43:13] I caught of the time restaurant

[43:14] bar such which is based out of

[43:16] saint augustine. It's a

[43:17] michelin bib gourmand winner

[43:19] and saint augustine. They're

[43:20] going to open their second

[43:21] location one and a half blocks

[43:23] from where we're at right now.

[43:25] >> go greek, which is a a

[43:27] breakfast in yogurt, great pace

[43:28] place buckner's beer garden,

[43:31] which will be opening in

[43:33] november. So only a couple

[43:35] couple weeks away.

[43:36] pop-up bagels, which is already

[43:39] open. I believe that the town

[43:40] center, there's a location and

[43:42] it's one of the best bagels

[43:43] I've ever had. You can only

[43:44] order 3 at a time. So be

[43:46] prepared to have a lot of

[43:47] vehicles, jets at pla these.

[43:49] they're going to be opening

[43:51] very soon. They're building out

[43:52] right now and then pro pro

[43:53] street nails. And there are

[43:55] also in advanced negotiations

[43:57] with a mexican restaurant to go

[44:01] alongside of all that retail.

[44:03] in addition to that, that's one

[44:04] building that's one building

[44:06] out of 9 and all those tenants

[44:08] are going into one building.

[44:10] there are some buildings to

[44:11] have even more retail. Some of

[44:13] the retail that we're building

[44:15] will be more soft goods

[44:16] oriented. See, can think of

[44:17] furniture stores, places to go

[44:19] get clothing,

[44:22] athletic, wear that type of

[44:23] thing. So I if you know,

[44:26] there was a mention of

[44:27] department stores earlier and

[44:28] that's one of my favorite

[44:29] stories to hear about the

[44:30] department's or is that we're

[44:31] downtown. The world of shopping

[44:33] has changed a lot. There aren't

[44:34] necessarily traditional

[44:36] department stores anymore.

[44:37] but the types of things that

[44:40] were in those departments

[44:41] stories that we're downtown

[44:42] will be coming back to

[44:44] downtown.

[44:46] but they're doing it because of

[44:47] the belief that publix is going

[44:49] to get built there

[44:51] and they would not be

[44:52] interested in coming downtown

[44:54] without that.

[44:59] >> really quick, if it is it,

[45:00] okay, if we talk about the

[45:02] incentive return on investment,

[45:04] yes, really quick ok to do

[45:05] that? I'm just going to that

[45:07] through some some numbers.

[45:10] I've we have mentioned this a

[45:13] couple of times. I cannot

[45:14] recall fun mentioned in a

[45:15] public venue or not, but

[45:18] we the da typically under

[45:21] rights deals when it goes to

[45:22] its board and then eventually

[45:23] the city council,

[45:25] those the underwriting for

[45:27] those projects, I think almost

[45:29] always, if not always, is

[45:31] isolated to the weather request

[45:34] is being asked

[45:36] and just the property tax and

[45:38] just the property tax

[45:40] based on that, the da has

[45:43] projected just just this.

[45:45] the walk alone with the

[45:47] public's will pay back the

[45:48] city. 1.1 to 1.0, 4, 5, times.

[45:54] >> we commissioned we did a a a

[45:58] very large search of very

[46:02] highly respective respected

[46:04] studies that have been done

[46:06] throughout the united states

[46:07] over about the past 10 years on

[46:09] how grocery stores impact

[46:11] property values in urban

[46:14] walkable areas.

[46:15] and there was a general finding

[46:19] probably not coincidentally,

[46:21] because the it's the numbers

[46:22] are saying the same thing that

[46:24] there is an increase within

[46:26] half a mile, which is generally

[46:27] considered to be a a

[46:30] comfortable walking distance

[46:33] and increase in property values

[46:35] between 4 and 7% with the

[46:38] addition of a grocery store.

[46:41] and so that's not an increase

[46:42] in the amount of escalation

[46:44] that is just over a baseline.

[46:46] a grocery store like a publix

[46:49] opens up and property values,

[46:51] taxable, property values

[46:53] increased. 47 1%.

[46:56] if you were to add that up over

[46:58] 30 years

[47:00] in downtown, which currently

[47:02] has a base of 900 million

[47:04] dollars of taxable value or

[47:05] about 16 million dollars a year

[47:07] that is tax. That is property

[47:10] tax per year.

[47:11] there would be an increase

[47:13] every 30 years of 335 million

[47:17] dollars that would go back to

[47:18] the city because of the opening

[47:20] of this grocery store.

[47:22] if you escalate that,

[47:24] that turns into about

[47:25] 500 million and that is across

[47:28] the board property taxes in

[47:29] downtown. That includes an

[47:31] additional school tax. Have the

[47:32] numbers here. 11 million

[47:34] dollars a year in new public

[47:37] revenue alone. 7.3 million for

[47:39] duval county public schools.

[47:41] 3.6 million for the city county

[47:43] city and county. That is also

[47:46] not arrived grants. So that

[47:47] does not include the ref grants

[47:49] that have been that have been

[47:50] issued. And if I could just

[47:51] interject for a quick second or

[47:52] for those that are kind of

[47:54] crunch numbers in their head,

[47:55] I mean, we have a lot of people

[47:57] in this city and this state

[47:59] that are always concerned about

[48:01] property taxes if the millage

[48:02] rate goes up.

[48:04] >> if you are a city council

[48:06] member, if you are someone

[48:08] looking at this from a of

[48:09] financial perspective,

[48:12] investing in downtown and

[48:13] seeing these values go up to

[48:14] the level you're explaining

[48:16] helps ensure that taxes stay

[48:17] low mileage rate stays low

[48:19] within duval county

[48:20] and there are times where

[48:21] consolidation can be a real.

[48:25] >> for overall.

[48:27] >> you know, downtown

[48:28] development and what's in the

[48:30] best interest of the taxpayer.

[48:31] but in this case, it's a it's a

[48:33] hugely from my perspective.

[48:36] and I think I think others do

[48:37] you see it that way, that if

[48:39] downtown really gets to the

[48:40] level that they can and I

[48:41] believe will in the years to

[48:43] come, the amount of revenue

[48:44] that it's going to bring the

[48:45] city coffers to help make sure

[48:47] that we don't have to

[48:48] had additional taxes later on

[48:50] in the north side of the west

[48:51] side of the beach is is it's a

[48:53] home run. Thank you. And it

[48:55] into 2 quick quick things.

[48:59] >> and then I will turn it over

[49:01] back to the chair.

[49:03] >> but

[49:04] >> the first first one is

[49:06] these, you know, don't take it

[49:07] from from me. So to speak on

[49:09] these numbers. We had one of

[49:11] the leading economists for the

[49:12] university of north florida

[49:13] review our work

[49:15] and he confirmed it. And we

[49:16] have we have a written

[49:18] confirmation of that that we'd

[49:20] be happy to share.

[49:26] we'll get it right. A great

[49:27] comments that we got it.

[49:30] doctor gallo, dr. Gallop,

[49:32] thank you.

[49:35] but dave, is it? You know,

[49:36] he certified in the studies

[49:38] were from cambridge. There are

[49:40] some some well respected real

[49:43] estate consulting groups that

[49:44] did the sets of thing. So it's,

[49:46] you know, it's from a broadside

[49:47] cross section of of I of data.

[49:50] the cambridge study in

[49:51] particular is a little dance.

[49:53] you're looking for some fun

[49:54] weekend reading. But but,

[49:57] you know, so again, don't take

[49:58] our word for it. And the other

[49:59] thing I would just say that

[50:00] kind of rounded out on the

[50:01] investment side of things is,

[50:03] you know, we do believe

[50:06] that regard because almost all

[50:09] this doesn't include

[50:11] springfield. This is this is

[50:12] all of the cia tax ball area

[50:14] and the northbank within a

[50:15] half-mile.

[50:16] >> the site's essentially

[50:18] everything south to the river.

[50:19] and I'm glad you brought up

[50:21] springfield because so many of

[50:22] my residents and constituents

[50:23] who live there are equally as

[50:25] excited about having a publix

[50:26] and a pharmacy so close as well

[50:28] as the different retail

[50:29] opportunities and options that

[50:30] you are discussing to mention

[50:32] it could help from main street

[50:34] springfield to allow for them

[50:36] to continue to develop their

[50:37] retail and commercial corridor.

[50:39] I do have this after an have to

[50:40] go to my next waterways

[50:41] commission meeting. But I will

[50:43] say this is not, you know,

[50:44] a clown car, random developer

[50:46] who showed up and is just

[50:48] putting their hand out. You're

[50:49] hearing the amount of effort

[50:50] and work that kate was put into

[50:51] this to help make sure that

[50:53] it's appropriate for the

[50:54] taxpayer for the city of

[50:55] jacksonville. This is an

[50:56] investment in our future and

[50:58] I'm very excited for for for

[50:59] this future. I know that in the

[51:02] years to come, this people are

[51:03] gonna look back at me like I

[51:05] can't imagine why anyone cared

[51:06] about this. That's genuinely

[51:08] what I believe. People want

[51:10] this kind of stuff downtown and

[51:11] it's it's coming if we allow it

[51:13] and vote accordingly. Thank

[51:15] you, chair and thanks for all

[51:17] right, jeremy, thank you for

[51:19] being here, sir.

[51:22] >> final thing. I don't know if

[51:24] that's alright. I think that if

[51:26] it's am

[51:27] if amendment 3 does pass,

[51:29] this type of property tax

[51:32] becomes all the more important.

[51:33] it is a commercial talk

[51:35] commercial property tax,

[51:37] not residential. So I know

[51:39] there's been some some comments

[51:41] from council members about,

[51:43] well, let's wait and see what

[51:44] happens with amendment 3.

[51:46] we think it's even more

[51:47] important if amendment 3 passes

[51:50] that this get approved.

[51:52] >> thank you for being here.

[51:54] appreciate it. And following

[51:57] other, you've got a meeting

[51:58] after this column have a few

[52:01] comments and what he's done.

[52:04] I'm like, well, that's it.

[52:05] the comments from the public

[52:07] and I'll stay here till the end

[52:09] of that. But also want to make

[52:11] time for anybody from the media

[52:12] that they like to ask questions

[52:14] because that way the word is

[52:16] out to the public. So go ahead,

[52:19] sir.

[52:20] >> thank you for being here.

[52:21] thank you, mr. Chairman for

[52:23] pulling together this important

[52:24] public dialogue for the record,

[52:26] colin tiber ceo, the downtown

[52:28] investment authority. And I

[52:30] think from day one, I've been

[52:31] here just over a year in this

[52:34] role, I think from from dale on

[52:37] and 7 has been the priority for

[52:39] downtown in terms of driving.

[52:41] what I see is future

[52:43] investment.

[52:46] I think I concur with

[52:47] everything that has been said

[52:48] here before. Dia has done the

[52:51] underwriting review for this.

[52:53] so we go through and in great

[52:54] detail. We've actually brought

[52:56] this to our board twice.

[52:58] and each time it was a

[53:00] approved.

[53:02] and so this project really is

[53:04] the kind of the linchpin of

[53:06] what we are working with

[53:07] gateway to do, which is created

[53:09] downtown neighborhood. I've

[53:11] seen it in my 20 years and

[53:13] working in on the public side

[53:16] on urban revitalization that

[53:19] the downtown of the past is not

[53:21] coming back office is not going

[53:23] to drive the future of

[53:25] downtown. It's really going to

[53:26] be residential and residents

[53:28] need a place to shop just like

[53:30] any other neighborhood. And so

[53:33] the grocery anchored

[53:34] development is key to unlocking

[53:37] all of that. And so we

[53:38] certainly saw that from a

[53:39] downtown investment authority

[53:40] standpoint. We think it's a

[53:42] very prudent investment that is

[53:45] going to raise the value of the

[53:47] real estate across the whole

[53:49] downtown.

[53:52] we also rated very we're 8

[53:55] under 8 these very

[53:56] conservatively in terms of

[53:57] public benefit. So while we had

[53:58] to have our a way of doing it,

[54:01] that doesn't mean that we

[54:02] disagree with the developers

[54:04] comments here. I think those

[54:05] are those are very fair and

[54:07] accurate. We just have a way of

[54:08] doing it.

[54:10] I also want to underscore the

[54:12] points that have been made here

[54:13] from my vantage point coming at

[54:16] this from an economic

[54:18] development standpoint. You

[54:18] know, our goal is not to give

[54:20] away public money. And our goal

[54:22] is to direct very strategic

[54:24] investments that had a return

[54:25] on investment for the public.

[54:27] and I think the chairman said

[54:30] it

[54:32] very simply earlier that

[54:33] downtown

[54:35] is the best opportunity to

[54:37] generate that economic impact

[54:39] per block.

[54:41] it's one of the few areas in

[54:43] duval county in the city of

[54:44] jacksonville where we welcome

[54:46] in want density. We welcome

[54:49] population increase. We want to

[54:50] see residents. We want to see

[54:52] traffic. Those are all really

[54:54] good things for us. And we have

[54:57] an underperforming downtown,

[55:00] as I say, to underperforming,

[55:01] know, waterfront asset that,

[55:03] you know, as we see developers

[55:04] are coming in. But us as a

[55:06] public entity representing the

[55:08] the public side of this,

[55:10] you know, we we need to

[55:11] capitalize on what we have,

[55:13] which is an amazing asset

[55:14] that's not producing the

[55:15] revenue that it should. And as

[55:17] these projects come online and

[55:19] as da moves forward with our

[55:20] plans and vision for downtown

[55:23] with with everyone, it will

[55:25] become the economic engine of

[55:28] duval county. And it should be

[55:30] and it's not right now and it

[55:31] absolutely can be. And if you

[55:33] look at any other city, we

[55:34] mentioned a bunch earlier

[55:36] there. Downtown is the economic

[55:37] engine. It's outperforming the

[55:39] rest of the area. It's

[55:40] supporting the neighborhoods in

[55:42] terms of tax revenue and job

[55:45] creation, et cetera. And so we

[55:47] are on the way of doing that.

[55:49] but I think was also remarks by

[55:51] mr are like we're also at the

[55:52] beginning phase of that.

[55:55] but

[55:56] unlike a year ago, I got here

[55:58] now I can walk out the door and

[55:59] you can see the vision. I was

[56:01] reading the rain yesterday and

[56:03] prop 2 in seeing the buildings

[56:05] at the finish level that they

[56:06] are.

[56:07] I think if you we're a downer

[56:09] in terms of downtown

[56:10] revitalization now you can come

[56:12] down down and see if you're

[56:13] not, you know, architecture

[56:14] developer and you'll quickly

[56:15] understand the impact that this

[56:19] is going to have for for many,

[56:21] many years. So with that,

[56:23] I'm happy to answer any

[56:23] questions from the chair.

[56:24] but

[56:26] question inside the

[56:28] >> to you.

[56:31] it's just that

[56:35] lane's little bit of the laura

[56:37] street trio. I know a lot of

[56:39] activity going on there.

[56:42] any the doing so

[56:45] ration work there.

[56:49] it was like something that

[56:52] could you see anything coming

[56:54] in the eye that you next year?

[56:57] >> hope so. We actually have

[56:59] the first kind of formal

[57:01] meeting with the development

[57:03] ownership today to learn a

[57:05] little bit more about what

[57:06] they're planning for the trio.

[57:09] I think the meeting or is that

[57:10] just the just the the meeting,

[57:13] just

[57:14] an internal phone call with

[57:15] with them. So, yeah, just with

[57:17] just with the staff to learn a

[57:18] little bit more is beginning.

[57:23] I think given

[57:25] this developers approach in

[57:27] terms of not just buying one

[57:29] building but similar to what

[57:31] gateways done as you know,

[57:33] but connecticut is are the

[57:35] covid is becoming the covid

[57:37] that covid behind it because

[57:39] the guys, let's say it

[57:40] incorrectly. But the barnett

[57:41] building which they're making

[57:42] investments in already and then

[57:44] they book carlisle 11 e and the

[57:47] tree. So very similar in the

[57:49] sense that they're placing a

[57:51] very large bet on downtown

[57:54] jacksonville. And I think that

[57:57] will help them improve their

[57:59] investment in terms of the

[58:00] trio, which will be a very

[58:01] expensive, complicated project.

[58:03] obviously, that's another one

[58:04] has been sitting around for

[58:05] decades. That hasn't been done

[58:06] a very optimistic that the new

[58:08] ownership will have the vision

[58:09] and the capabilities to pull it

[58:10] off. I'm sure there will be

[58:12] some need from from the and the

[58:14] city to help do that. But I

[58:17] think that would be a another

[58:19] very strong investment for

[58:20] downtown.

[58:22] we will make it.

[58:24] it's going to happen in the red

[58:26] today to meet with them.

[58:29] >> so thank you for being here.

[58:30] thank you. Appreciate creating

[58:32] it.

Noticed Meeting CM Carlucci and Peluso on Gateway N7

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