Daily Record FINANCIAL NEWS &
FRIDAY, OCTOBER 28, 2016
Vol. 103, No. 250• oNe SectioN
35¢ www.jaxdailyrecord.com
Leggett seeks incentives for project
Board deadlocks on $1.95M from city for $33.9M investment North Jacksonville developer Steve Leggett wants to develop what is tentatively called River City Crossing with the assistance of up to $1.95 million in incentives from the city for infrastructure. The project’s $33.9 million in private capital investment would include $4.8 million for work that includes internal roadways that would be dedicated to the city, Leggett proposes. River City Crossing is a mixed-
Leggett
Switching paths from teaching to hospitality
use project comprising almost 163 acres at Owens Road and Max Leggett Parkway, bordered on the east by Hyatt Road. It is designed in two phases. The city assistance would apply only to uses that qualify as targeted industries, including office, office-medical, bank and warehouse/flex space. Most of that would be developed in the second phase. Leggett proposes almost 202,000 square feet for those uses,
creating 160 jobs. The property sits north of the River City Marketplace regional retail and entertainment center and is across Max Leggett Parkway from the new UF Health North campus.
The project is within the Jacksonville International Airport Community Redevelopment Area, which was created by City Council in 1990 to generate economic growth. However, the JIA CRA advisory board voted 2-2 Thursday on a motion to approve the incentives, meaning the motion didn’t carry. It now goes to council, which would meet as the JIA CRA board. MATHIS CONTINUED ON PAGE A-2
New Omni GM is a ‘Southern girl at heart’
Southworth
Public
Going for the world record at Main Library
Jacksonville Public Library Associate Kelli Heath read “The Bear Ate Your Sandwich” by Julia Sarcone-Roach to a group of children Thursday morning at the Main Library Downtown. The group was part of the Jumpstart Read for the Record campaign that attempts each year to set a world record for the number of people reading the same book in a 24-hour period. Results won’t be tabulated until the first week in November. The record was set in 2013, when 2,452,860 children and adults participated. Jumpstart is a national nonprofit that promotes early education for low-income populations in partnership with AmeriCorps.
Finding his niche in REO market
Re/Max agent ranks among country’s best By Kevin Hogencamp Contributing Writer Jacksonville Realtor Mark Jenks is an agreeable sort, with one fundamental exception. A high-producing real estate owned (REO) specialist who’s closed more than $2 billion in sales the last 20 years, Jenks doesn’t share certain trade secrets with competitors. In an interview at a Riverside coffee shop at the beginning of a busy workday, Jenks cited a recent example of another REO specialist asking him to recommend contractors for repair work. Jenks flat-out refused. “It’s business, nothing personal. Why would I give him that infor-
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mation?” the 53-year-old Australia native said. “That’s sort of where I draw the line on being overly friendly.” Holding certain information close to the vest is among the many tools Jenks has put into his knowledge chest over 30 years in the real estate business. So, is putting together a top-notch staff. And, this gem: Ensuring that a police officer leads the way into houses during evictions. “I’ve learned some things the hard way over the years,” he said, describing a scary encounter with a homeless squatter. “There’s rarely a dull moment in REO, that’s for sure,” he said. JENKS CONTINUED ON PAGE A-4
Photo by Kevin Hogencamp
If you’re a college football fan, there’s no better place to be this weekend and next than Jacksonville. Dawn Southworth is able to take that concept a few steps farther after making Jacksonville her home about a month ago. Born and raised in a small town in northern Kentucky, she’s the new general manager of the Omni Hotel. “I love SEC football. I’m a Southern girl at heart,” said Southworth. A veteran of 22 years in the hospitality industry, working in hotels came as somewhat of a surprise. Southworth enrolled in a small college in her home state intending to be a teacher. That changed when the school opened a lodge on campus for visiting parents that was run by Marriott Hotels. Her first job was as a server in the dining room, but Southworth made an impression on the manager. “He told me I should go into hospitality” and then the company helped her find the right school where she could study the business, Southworth said. While attending Johnson & Wales University, she worked part-time at a hotel in the room service department and at the front desk. SOUTHWORTH CONTINUED ON PAGE A-3
Photo by Max Marbut
By Max Marbut, Staff Writer
Mark Jenks, a Re/Max Specialists broker associate and owner of REO Jacksonville, spends much of his time in the field, often in low-income neighborhoods.
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