Daily Record Financial News &
Wednesday, June 1, 2016
Vol. 103, No. 143 • Two Sections
35¢ www.jaxdailyrecord.com
DIA housing incentives in place Yet-funded programs part of economic development updates
When the city pursues a new project or business, it can use a range of taxpayer-financed incentives to help sweeten a deal or close a financial gap. There’s money for added jobs. Money for infrastructure improvements. Money for locating in areas not as desirable as others. The urban core has its own
range of incentives after the Downtown Investment Authority last year incorporated them into its business plan. They aren’t as widely known, but they’re on track this month to be codified under a sweeping update of the city’s overall incentives policy. Downtown’s options are a bit different. There are established programs that help improve retail facades or assist in historic building renovations.
But there’s also a keen focus on an aspect not found anywhere else: A concerted effort to boost Downtown’s residential numbers. There’s a down-payment assistance program, one that offers up to $20,000 for people purchasing a primary residence if they make under $66,000 annually. For renters, one program would supply a monthly $200 subsidy toward housing with up to $100 more if the person works Downtown and rents a unit within a
defined strategic housing area. On the developer side, Recaptured Enhanced Value grants —a common perk outside the urban core — offer property tax breaks for multifamily and affordable housing developments Downtown. “It’s about trying to build critical mass in Downtown,” said Aundra Wallace, DIA CEO. He brought the rental and down-payment assistance ideas with him from a previous stop
Bat boy’s work continues even after game ends
Travelers south of Downtown on Interstate 95 might soon be able to catch a glimpse of a giant vending machine that dispenses late-model used cars. The project would be the Carvana Car Vending Machine. Yes, that’s the company’s whose TV commercials feature the kimonoclad millennial and his friends singing and dancing about the car-buying experience as “that didn’t suck, in fact I liked it.” Carvana, founded in 2013 and based in Phoenix, announced in March it has launched into Jacksonville, one of 13 markets featuring free delivery of its cars that are bought online. The online auto retailer allows buyers to shop, finance, buy and trade in a car entirely online with delivery as soon as the next day. So far, it operates just one car-vending machine and that’s in Nashville. A zoning exception and administrative deviation request filed with the city indicates a proposed location in Jacksonville at 6951 Lenoir Ave. E. Here’s how it works, according to Popular Science at popsci.com and Carvana: The company’s vending machine holds Mathis continued on Page A-2
The life of a Jacksonville Suns bat boy isn’t always glamorous but it is fun. Above, 16-year-old Hank Whitehouse carries the empty drink jugs into the clubhouse at the end of a recent game. Read more about the bat boys on Page A-7.
Jazz fest reviews mixed from businesses
Photo by Max Marbut
Downtown Ambassador Program Manager Bill Wimmer was pressure washing the sidewalk along Adams Street on Tuesday morning. “Just cleaning up after the jazz festival,” he said.
Public
It was better than the past two years, but it could have been even better. That’s the review of the 2016 Jacksonville Jazz Festival from some of the businesses Downtown. The city moved the event from along East Bay Street and the Shipyards property back to the urban core along Adams, Laura and Main streets and the Jacksonville Landing. For some businesses, moving the festival back to the center of Downtown was a hit. For others, not so much. “We had beautiful weather, a packed courtyard and the restaurants were very happy,” said Samantha Ashcraft, Jacksonville Landing marketing and events director.
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“It was a lot better than last year,” she added. For Burrito Gallery, moving the Swingin’ Stage back to the corner of Adams and Main streets helped bring people to the restaurant and bar, said Assistant Manager Daegal Ellis. “It was fantastic — a very successful weekend,” he said. Burrito Gallery’s next-door neighbor, Indochine Downtown Thai restaurant, didn’t experience additional business from the festival. In fact, with parking unavailable near the restaurant, fewer people ate at Indochine, compared to other weekends, said co-owner Ladda Salter. “It’s not a big deal for us,” she said. “A lot of people come Downtown for the festival, but they don’t come to dine.” Jazz Festival continued on Page A-3
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Range from ‘fantastic’ to ‘the worst ever’ By Max Marbut Staff Writer
as head of the Detroit Land Bank Authority. The programs were wildly successful there, he said, and brought millennials and others into the urban core to the point where land values and the tax base significantly improved. Jacksonville’s Downtown, he said, is no different today than Detroit was prior to its boom. Just because the programs are now in place, though, doesn’t mean they have been utilized. DIA continued on Page A-4
Carvana offers a tower of cars
Photo by Fran Ruchalski
By David Chapman Staff Writer
The five-story Carvana car-vending machine in Nashville is its first. Another appears to be under consideration here.
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