Murray Hill, the 113-year-old neighborhood west of Riverside and Avondale, attracted another investor.
Jacksonville-based apartment developer Vestcor Inc. paid $2.1 million Wednesday for 3.69 acres at 840 Edgewood Ave. S., anchored by a two-story, multitenant Bank of America building.
Vestcor proposes a $25 million mixed-use project at the site. It bought the land through VC Murray Hill LLC.
It bought the property, at Edgewood Avenue, Talbot Avenue and Kerle and College streets, from EWE Warehouse Investments XIII LLC.
The Jacksonville Planning Commission approved a zoning exception Aug. 22 for the mixed-use development that includes apartments.
TVC Development Inc., part of Vestcor, sought the exception to redevelop the former Bank of America property and parking lot.
Plans call for the demolition of two existing bank buildings and construction of a four-story structure with 11,000 square feet of ground-floor retail and 117 apartment units comprising 16 studio, 59 one-bedroom and 42 two-bedroom units.
A companion application sought an administrative deviation to reduce the required off-street parking from 248 to 196 spaces and to remove the requirement for loading spaces.
The apartments are workforce housing, reserved for people making 80% to 140% of the average median income, capped at $69,600 annually.
Murray Hill has been undergoing renewal as property values rise and retailers, restaurants and taprooms move in.
Vestcor representative Steve Diebenow, a partner with the Driver, McAfee, Hawthorne & Diebenow law firm, told a community meeting in August that Vestcor chose the parcel because it’s in an area that’s close to many services.
“It’s an ideal multifamily site,” Diebenow said. “It will bring life to this block. It will bring activity to the street and activity to the neighborhood.”
The proposed project’s construction would be partially funded by workforce housing tax credits for developers to build affordable units for workers who earn at or below 60% of the average median income.
Diebenow said the studio units would rent for $772, one-bedrooms for $827 and two-bedroom units for $993.
“To us, it looks like a great location in a growing area,” TVC President Ryan Hoover said in July.
