MONDAY May 24, 2021
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THE MATHIS REPORT
T-UDaily propertyRecord under contract JACKSONVILLE
Atlanta developer Jeff Fuqua plans to buy the site and transform it into a $250 million mixed-use project.
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KAREN BRUNE MATHIS EDITOR
Atlanta-based developer Jeff Fuqua, with experience building grocery-anchored centers in Brooklyn and Riverside, has a contract to buy the former Florida Times-Union property to create a $250 million retail, office, restaurant and apartment project. “All of those things have a lot of runway in the Riverside area,” Fuqua said May 20. He said the project would be called One Riverside Avenue to reflect its address. It likely will include a grocery store as well as make use of the riverfront site with waterfront amenities. He did not know the square footage of the eventual Fuqua project. Plans are tied to the uncovering and restoration of McCoys Creek, which runs through and beneath the property. The Augusta, Georgia-based Morris family, which owns the site, and Fuqua are working with the city on that project. Downtown Investment Authority CEO Lori Boyer told the DIA board May 19 that the agency is working with the Morris property’s potential buyer on McCoys Creek restoration designs so it fits with the group’s development plans.
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UNCOVERING MCCOYS Plans to develop the former Florida Times-Union site at 1 Riverside Ave. coincide with the restoration of McCoys Creek, which runs under the parking lot at the property. Outdated renderings from the Morris family show a potential look after the creek is uncovered.
File images
The creek also is an entry point for the proposed 30-mile Emerald Trail that would encircle Downtown and connect neighborhoods with parks, green space and waterways. The 18.8-acre Morris site comprises 12 acres of upland. Fuqua said the rest is submerged land available for the water amenities. The St. Johns River current at the site is not conducive for a marina, he said. “We are working on a great master plan that centers around the McCoys Creek restoration,”
Fuqua said. He said development would be quick. “We will be under construction this year,” he said. The creek restoration would be concurrent with that. Fuqua did not provide a completion date but said it would be in stages. He said the DIA and other city reviewers would receive plans in the next month or so. The property fronts the St. Johns River and Northbank Riverwalk at the western side of the Acosta Bridge. It is within the
Downtown Overlay Zone, raising the option of incentives to assist in the redevelopment. Fuqua declined to discuss the extent of incentives or how much he would pay for the property. Duval County property records show an assessed value of $15.12 million. Fuqua said the site was big enough for “a pretty large project.” “There are not many tracts this large in this area,” he said. The site’s location in Brooklyn, near Riverside and Downtown
and across the bridge from San Marco “in our opinion makes it the best site in town.” Steve Diebenow, a partner with the Driver, McAfee, Hawthorne & Diebenow PLLC law firm, represents Fuqua. He confirmed the property is under contract and referred questions to Fuqua. Fuqua’s neighborhood experience includes a partnership with Jacksonville-based Regency Centers Corp. to develop the Brooklyn Station on Riverside SEE MATHIS, PAGE 2
Permits issued for Wells Fargo Center upgrades The city issued permits May 17 and 18 for renovations to the Wells Fargo Center lobby and the building’s first-floor Atrium Cafe & Grill as part of a $12.5 million project to update the 46-year-old tower. Dav-Lin Interior Contractors Inc. is the contractor for the $1.935 million project that comprises $1.74 million for the lobby and $194,013 for the cafe. Larry Chapman, managing director of landlord Miami-based Banyan Street Capital, said the timing for the work depends on when the contractor can assemble the materials on the site. No timeline has been established and the cafe may remain open during the work.
VOLUME 108, NO. 133 • ONE SECTION