Daily Record Financial News &
Wednesday, September 30, 2015
Vol. 102, No. 228 • Two Sections
35¢ www.jaxdailyrecord.com
Hemming group’s 2nd year uncertain Officials want nonprofit to be self-sustaining
By Max Marbut Staff Writer
From warehouse to Union House
$55M project would bring 260 lofts, cater to creative class By David Chapman Staff Writer It’s a beige building in Northeast Downtown. Long, dotted with windows. Industrial in nature. Motorists stopped in a weekday traffic jam might peek to the west side of the Mathews Bridge entering Union Street and think the warehouse is abandoned. It’s not. The building is 95 percent occupied. Yet, if plans come to fruition, the Union Terminal Warehouse will be repurposed to cater to the creative class. Portland-based Reed Realty Advisors is under contract for the structure, with the idea of turning it into 260 live-work loft units “designed to facilitate a lifestyle of entrepreneurial creativity.” The sale price was $4 million, down from the listed $4.9 million. From the Union Terminal Warehouse would be borne “Union House.” Or, as it’s described in a conceptual plan filed with the city, “Jacksonville’s premier ecosystem for creative entre-
preneurs in design, food service, tech, renewable energy and the arts.” Event spaces, tenant-only collaboration rooms and glass storefronts. A “rooftop commons” with a track pool is mentioned, as are a market and test kitchen in the accompanying Ballard & Ballard Co. Building. Financials also outline a $55 million project relying heavily on federal New Market Tax Credits. About $21 million or so comes from that state and federal source, according to a conceptual plan provided to the city. Such tax credits are designed to spur private investment into low-income areas. Without them, said Reed Realty principal Bryan Pereboom, the project isn’t likely to happen. “It’s very competitive,” he said Tuesday. The site hits some marks with the program, though. The project would be a food desert remediation and impact a severely distressed area. It also has the support from the Downtown Investment Authority. Union House continued on Page A-4
Market, test kitchen The adjacent Ballard & Ballard Co. building would serve as a market and test kitchen for local concept restaurants and food companies, according to conceptual plans for the Union House project.
Rooftop amenities The roof of the Union House could accommodate a 1/4-mile track, pool and multi-use space that are accessible through the building’s freight elevators.
If you haven’t been in Hemming Park in the past 365 days, you haven’t been to Hemming Park. Today marks the one-year anniversary the park has been under the management of Friends of Hemming Park, a nonprofit contracted by the city to operate and program the 1.5 acres at City Hall’s front door. Whether the organization will log a second anniversary isn’t certain. That will likely be determined by how successful the group is in the area of increasing private funding and depending far less on financial support from the city. The organization’s 18-month, $1 million management contract A look back expires at the end of at Friends February. of Hemming According to the financial report sent Park’s first year. Aug. 31 to the city, the Page A-7 Friends to date have raised $318,000 from grants and donations. It is scheduled to receive its final payment for that contract Dec. 1. Friends officials have said the group would need taxpayer dollars, perhaps up to $500,000 a year, after the contract ends to continue managing the park. Several City Council members made it clear that wasn’t likely to happen. Friends Executive Director Vince Cavin said one of the goals for the second year is to increase the effort to raise money from private sources. He said he will soon take on a greater role in the community, becoming “the public face” of Hemming Park. He’ll be working with city officials and speaking at civic club meetings. He’s also planning to hire a development director who can raise funds for the continued operation of the park. Hemming continued on Page A-4
Inside
City Ridge Apartments along the Arlington Expressway were sold to a New Jersey group. Two more Arlington complexes also were sold.
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legal notices begin on page
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Photo from cityridgeapartments.com
Arlington apartment complexes sell for $50M Three Arlington-area apartment complexes were sold last week to a New Jersey investor for $50.6 million. Castle Hill Partners of Austin, Texas, sold the Caroline Square, City Ridge and the Club at Charter Pointe apartments to Jacksonville Partners LLC of Lakewood, N.J. The communities comprise 902 apartments, according to their leasing offices, meaning each sold for almost $56,100. That’s below the $83,750 average sales price for Northeast Flor-
ida apartments sold from January through June this year, according to Colliers International. Older units typically sell for less. The three complexes were built from 1972-75. Castle Hill bought them in 2011 in three separate deals for almost $19.3 million. BankUnited issued two mort-
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gages, totaling $20.85 million, to two of the limited liability companies set up by the New Jersey group to acquire the properties. KeyBank made a $12.3 million mortgage to the third on the City Ridge purchase. Last week’s deeds, recorded Monday with the Duval County Clerk of Court, comprise: • Caroline Square, at 5959 Fort Caroline Road, was sold by Castle Hill Partners, through CH-B Caroline Square LLC, to Caroline Square Realty LLC of New Jersey Mathis continued on Page A-2
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