Developer Toney Sleiman said Monday he expects to know by the end of November which movie theater will open in the second phase of Atlantic North, a Sleiman Enterprises shopping center at northwest Atlantic and Kernan boulevards.
He declined to identify the theaters in negotiations.
Atlantic North Phase II is designed with the theater, 320,000 square feet of additional retail buildings and six outparcels along with another 9.19-acre development parcel.
Abess Boulevard is shown as being extended from the first phase to connect at Atlantic Boulevard with a proposed traffic light at the intersection.
Sleiman said he has retail tenants in negotiation but cannot disclose those.
“We've got a lot of good stuff coming,” he said.
The property is west of Marketplace Drive, which now is the western access to the first phase of Atlantic North.
Atlantic North is anchored by Belk, Earth Fare, Academy Sports + Outdoors and LA Fitness. Outparcels include those occupied so far by 7-Eleven, MedExpress Urgent Care and multitenant buildings.
Sleiman said he also was negotiating with a couple of big-box tenants that want to lease space, including next to LA Fitness.
Atlantic North LLC, led by Sleiman Enterprises, seeks to rezone about 73 acres for the second phase from one planned unit development to another.
The written description for the Villages at Kernan West PUD says the property currently is developed on its western end by the new Audi dealership and a CarMax expansion, with both sites sold to those owners.
The remaining 54.29 acres of the original PUD remain undeveloped. Sleiman wants to add acreage of the easterly PUD into the new PUD.
“When these PUD's were being developed the original site plans contemplated a movie theatre in the western end of this development and a gasoline filling station on the eastern portion nearest to the interchange,” says the written description.
“However, market forces have changed and a movie theatre is desirous of locating closer to the existing retail development of the easterly PUD,” it said.
The description says that filling stations were contemplated only near the Kernan and Atlantic interchange, but new users are seeking greater access “afforded by the connection of Abess Boulevard Extension into Marketplace Drive.”
It says the improved access prompted demand from filling stations to locate in the western portion of the development.
The description says work would start pending market conditions.
“Approval of the additional uses should help to increase occupancy in the center quickly as there is demand for these retail users in the community,” it says.
Ordinance 2018-701 seeks to rezone the property to permit commercial and multifamily resident uses.
The written description also notes there is almost 1 million square feet of commercial development on the four quarters of the interchange.
The ordinance is scheduled for Jacksonville Planning Commission review Nov. 8. The first City Council hearing is Nov. 27 and the council's Land Use and Zoning Committee has it on the Dec. 4 agenda.
No second council reading was scheduled.
The rezoning application seeks to permit uses included in the master development plan that are west of Marketplace Drive into areas in the original easterly portion.
