Two unnamed Jacksonville companies, aiming to add jobs in exchange for state and local incentives, received final approval from City Council on Tuesday.
Incentives for projects Velocity and Avalanche, as they’re listed in public documents, were approved through fast-tracked legislation filed with the city on April 11.
The resolutions only required a two-reading passage through council.
Avalanche, described as an IT firm providing services for the healthcare industry, is seeking state and city incentives of $1.875 million.
The bulk of those incentives will come from the state through the Qualified Target Industry Tax Refund Program and a Florida Flex Training Grant.
The state would provide $1.2 million in QTI money, with the city picking up the other $300,000. The funds would be paid out over a five-year period, beginning in 2020.
The Florida Flex Training grant provides an additional $375,000.
In exchange, Avalanche pledges to create 250 new positions in Jacksonville. That’s in addition to 300 employees it currently has.
Jacksonville-based Availity, a health care IT company, seems to match the description of Avalanche.
Earlier this month, Availity, which currently operates in Southeast Jacksonville, announced plans to relocate within the city by the end of 2018 to accommodate growth.
When asked if Availity had applied for incentives, Molly Miles, the company’s vice president of marketing, said she couldn’t comment.
Meanwhile, not much is known about Project Velocity outside of the financial details of the incentives agreement.
Velocity, listed in public documents as building products manufacturer, has proposed adding another 20 positions to its Jacksonville workforce in exchange for a $2.21 million Recaptured Value grant from the city.
The unnamed company would invest $54 million into its Jacksonville plant.
Representatives from the Office of Economic Development and the JAX Chamber declined to comment on the dealings, citing confidentiality with both companies.
Several council members also declined to comment, with one saying “they only tell us what we need to know, and nothing more.”
Don Capener, dean of the Davis College of Business at Jacksonville University, said the secrecy in deals is not unusual.
“We live in a competitive business climate where confidentiality can mean the difference between a deal getting done and not,” he said.
Since the financial dealings were disclosed in public documents, Capener said the secrecy surrounding names and addresses shouldn’t worry taxpayers, although he does understand possible frustration.
“Certainly, the perspective is the city is making multimillion-dollar decisions with these companies, and therefore should be more transparent,” he added.
Capener said another reason for the secrecy is deals between municipalities and businesses can fall through when details leak to the public.
“It’s a disadvantage for both parties,” he said. “It gives your competitors, whether that’s another city or another business, an idea of what your future plans are.”
In the legislative fact sheet filed with the city, Velocity said it was actively looking at expanding in two other U.S. cities where it currently has operations.
That’s another common tactic Capener said, adding, “That’s enough for a city to keep quiet.”
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