[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.