TUESDAY December 17, 2019
Public legal notices begin on page 3
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JEA board member to call for vote on firing CEO Zahn
THE MATHIS REPORT
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JACKSONVILLE
KAREN BRUNE MATHIS EDITOR
Becknell buys 171 acres at Westlake Industrial Park
Colliers brokers Guy and Seda Preston said the sale closed for $9 million.
ward with new leadership.” In an emailed statement, Zahn said he will not fight a board decision to fire him. “I serve at the pleasure of the Board of JEA. I understand and respect Board member Henry Brown’s decision and will abide by any decision of the Board,” Zahn wrote. In a statement sent by a city spokesperson, Mayor Lenny Curry said he will support any JEA board decision about Zahn’s employment. “The JEA Board of Directors consists of dedicated community leaders who volunteer their time and expertise. Each
Guy Preston and Seda Preston with Colliers International announced Dec. 16 they brokered the sale of 171 acres, entitled for 1.5 million square feet of development rights, to Becknell Industrial for $9 million. The sale of the property in Westlake Industrial Park closed Dec. 12, they said. Colliers represents Norfolk Southern, the owner of Westlake Industrial Park, in selling land tracts within the park. The Prestons said Colliers was instrumental in supporting the underwriting process of Becknell Industrial. The announcement said that before the purchase, Becknell invested due diligence to allow it to move quickly to clear and mass grade the site in the first quarter and pursue full permitting of a 477,000-square-foot facility expandable to 1.1 million square feet. The Prestons said it is Becknell’s third land acquisition in the park. Becknell has developed a 185,000-square-foot distribution facility and is planning an additional 161,000-square-foot
SEE ZAHN, PAGE 2
SEE MATHIS, PAGE 2
Photo by Mike Mendenhall
JEA Managing Director and CEO Aaron Zahn, center, reads his papers during a hearing Dec. 16 at City Hall about the utility’s Long-Term Performance Unit Plan that would have allowed employees to invest in the utility. Zahn has asked the JEA board to abandon the plan.
The CEO, embroiled in controversy over the potential sale of the utility, says he won’t fight the decision. BY MIKE MENDENHALL STAFF WRITER
JEA board member Henry Brown intends to call for the firing of utility Managing Director and CEO Aaron Zahn
at the board’s Dec. 17 meeting. Brown told Zahn in a conversation Dec. 15 that he intends to make a motion for the termination at Brown the beginning of the meeting in accordance with section 3.1.5 of Zahn’s employment agreement. Brown referred to the conversation in a letter he sent to Zahn dated Dec. 15. “I have not reached this decision lightly,” Brown wrote. “However, I believe that it is in the best interest of JEA and the City of Jacksonville for us to move for-
Planet Swim closes on loan for Nocatee center Planet Swim closed Dec. 11 on a $5 million loan to build an aquatics and tennis facility in Nocatee. North Avenue Capital, a commercial lender based in St. Johns County, announced the closing of the Department of Agriculture Rural Development loan in a news release. The Planet Swim site is on Davis Park Road between the entrance to Davis Park and Ponte Vedra High School. The loan will be used to construct a 50-meter Olympic-size outdoor pool, an indoor teaching pool, seven clay tennis courts, spectator seating, locker room accommodations and more.
VOLUME 107, NO. 22 • ONE SECTION