A contested plan to replace the duPont YMCA Youth Development Campus in San Jose with an affordable housing development is off the table, and the Jacksonville City Council member whose district includes the site is exploring whether it can be turned into a public space.
Council member Joe Carlucci, whose District 5 includes San Jose, said Sept. 17 that JWB Real Estate Capital had dropped plans to develop on the campus at 7373 Old Kings Road S.
Carlucci said JWB had determined that the 10.25-acre site wasn’t financially feasible for affordable housing, apartments or town homes.
JWB had been seeking rezoning that would have allowed it to build up to 200 multifamily housing units on the property.
Development plans had drawn concerns from neighbors that it would create traffic congestion, increase crime in the area and erode nearby property values.
The YMCA campus has been closed since the pandemic. Carlucci said the YMCA still owns the site and remains interested in selling it.
He said he had asked the city Parks, Recreation and Community Services Department to hold discussions with the YMCA to see whether the site could be developed as a park or other public space.
Dominium, a developer and manager of affordable apartments, submitted a service availability request to JEA in June 2024 related to possible development of 270 units of affordable multifamily housing at the site.