The Jacksonville Land Use & Zoning Committee unanimously recommended approval Dec. 1 for residential and mixed-use developments including Melcon Farm in Mandarin and the Jacksonville Aviation Authority’s JAX Commerce Center.
The committee advanced the Melcon Farm single-family development 7-0, and approved a revised written description and site plan.
Melcon Farm is 16.79 acres at O’Connor Road, between Cattail Drive South and Hagan Grant Lane. Developer Michael Danhour wants the property rezoned from residential rural-acre to planned unit development through Ordinance 2020-0307.
In response to traffic and density concerns from neighbors, Danhour reduced the number of single-family lots from 38 to 33. The lot size is now 90 feet wide, up from 80 feet.
Committee members said they understood the complaints from neighbors about the size and density of the development, but felt the developer made sufficient changes to the plans.
“There’s a lament on the part of many folks out there that Mandarin and the city of Jacksonville isn’t what it used to be. It isn’t what it used to be, and it isn’t going to be what it used to be,” said LUZ Chair Michael Boylan.
“This is a growing city,” said Boylan, who represents District 6, the heart of Mandarin.
“We are in the infill process in Mandarin, there’s no doubt about it.”
The committee also unanimously recommended rezoning for the JAX Commerce Center near Jacksonville International Airport.
JAA wants to rezone the 2,014 acres for a planned unit development to include commercial, flex industrial, hotel and specialty entertainment.
While there are no immediate plans to build, the rezoning prepares the land for appropriate future development.
Land use amendments and rezoning recommendations
The LUZ committee also unanimously recommended approval for: