Brooks Rehabilitation patients and their families who aren’t from the area should have their own dedicated place to stay by year-end or early 2017.
Brooks intends to start site work in April and construction in May on a $4 million, 40-bed extended-stay housing facility along Beach Boulevard, across the street from its rehabilitation hospital. The total investment is $6 million.
The two-story project should be completed about seven months after construction starts. Fickling Construction Inc. is the contractor. Pond & Co. is the architect and McVeigh & Magnum Engineering Inc. is the engineer.
Twenty-two percent of Brooks Rehabilitation’s patients come from outside the Jacksonville area, according to the health-care organization. CEO Doug Baer said the majority of those have suffered from a traumatic injury or illness.
“They are under an enormous amount of stress and are now traveling to an unfamiliar city for care,” Baer said in a statement. “Providing a temporary family housing option is our way of making their journey a little easier.”
The building will feature fully furnished accessible units, a large community kitchen, laundry room, business center, small gym and an open floor plan with views of a large dining space.
Brooks said the building is being designed to promote interaction among the families experiencing similar circumstances to create a support system.
The housing will be available for a maximum 30-day stay. The lodging fee will be on a sliding scale based on a family’s ability to pay. Being next to the Brooks campus, the patients and their families will have immediate access to the facility’s programs and services. “It will also allow family members and caregivers to fully participate in their loved ones’ recovery process,” said a statement from Brooks.
The facility has filed plans with the city and the St. Johns River Water Management District for the 28,000-square-foot extended-stay building in a first phase and two medical office buildings totaling 50,000 square feet in a second phase.
Brooks Rehabilitation proposes the project at 6207 Beach Blvd. on almost 6.5 acres it owns at northeast Beach Boulevard and Hickman Road. The site is vacant.
The proposed project, east of University Boulevard, would be developed directly across Beach Boulevard from the Brooks University Crossing 111-bed skilled nursing and rehabilitation center under construction. That project is at 6210 Beach Blvd.
That center is under construction next to the Brooks Rehabilitation Hospital campus at 3599 University Blvd. S.
A mobility-fee application shows that owner Genesis Health Inc., which does business as Brooks Rehabilitation, wants to build the extended-stay housing facility on the west side of the site.
Plans show a second phase to comprise future medical offices of 38,000 and 12,000 square feet of space. Brooks Rehabilitation said those are part of a conceptual plan for future possibilities and there is no plan for development beyond the family housing center.
The site comprises seven parcels that were cleared of buildings, such as the Uncle John’s Pancake House that some might remember.
Southeastern Grocers partners with City Refrigeration
Jacksonville-based Southeastern Grocers LLC has created a new structure for its maintenance team and partnered with Scotland-based City Refrigeration Holdings, which provides facilities management services.
City Refrigeration Holdings (UK) Ltd. has established U.S. headquarters in Jacksonville at 8211 Cypress Plaza Drive in Cypress Point Business Park. It provides maintenance and engineering, technical procurement and support, and cleaning and sanitation services.
The company was announced Thursday as Project Star, the formerly unidentified international company that wants to set up its North America headquarters in Jacksonville.
Gerry Phimister, CEO for City, said in a news release the company has been in discussions with Jacksonville and JAX Chamber officials since mid-2015.
JAX Chamber President Daniel Davis said the deal was finalized when a Jacksonville delegation met with City Refrigeration officials in Europe last fall.
In December, City was awarded a five-year contract with an additional five-year option with Southeastern Grocers to provide full facilities management services to the company’s stores.
Southeastern Grocers is the parent company of the Bi-Lo, Harveys and Winn-Dixie banners and operates about 750 stores in seven Southeastern states.
Southeastern Grocers said the partnership created a new structure for its maintenance team “that retains the talent, expertise and experience of our current associates in the business.”
The company said the success of a pilot program “has confirmed our choice to partner with City and take advantage of the new tools and capabilities they can offer.”
City Council approved a deal Tuesday to provide $230,600 in taxpayer incentives to the code-named company to create 51 jobs, paying an average $67,000, by year-end 2017. The state would provide another $122,400 in incentives.
The Project Star documents said the company wanted to create about 100 jobs total by the end of next year.
The news release Thursday said the partnership with Southeastern Grocers will employ more than 365 U.S. technical and administrative personnel.
City also said it plans more U.S. expansion. It said conversations with other American retailers confirmed an interest in City’s approach.
The company says its “multi-skilling” programs include cross-training engineers and technicians, while maintaining tight quality controls. It plans to build strong relationships with local vendors.
City Refrigeration is a global facilities management company with more than 25 years of experience. It employs more than 12,500 people worldwide with offices in the U.S., United Kingdom, Australia and Malaysia. Its U.S. corporate website is crhus.com.
RaceTrac, Daily’s moving ahead on sites
RaceTrac Petroleum Inc. is looking at a site along Philips Highway at Freedom Crossing Trail, while First Coast Energy is seeking approvals for its proposed Daily’s project along San Jose Boulevard at Sunbeam Road.
Atlanta-based RaceTrac wants to build a 5,500-square-foot convenience store, with 18 fueling positions. The city determined the project’s mobility fee would be $128,095.
The mobility-fee application indicates it would be on 1.71 acres of an almost 4.5-acre site, south of Baymeadows Road.
The property is owned by Freedom Corners Corp., which is part of Fort Family Investments. The Fort office said the land is under contract with RaceTrac but did not have more details.
RaceTrac operates 15 locations in the Jacksonville area.
Jacksonville-based First Coast Energy applied for a mobility fee calculation for the 5,700-square-foot Daily’s store and 20 fueling positions it proposes at 9545 San Jose Blvd. The city calculated the fee at $147,195.
First Coast Energy owns the almost 5-acre property and wants to build the Daily’s on what is now a parking lot in front of a shopping center anchored by Bailey’s Health & Fitness. The existing structures would remain on the property.
First Coast energy General Counsel Keith Daw said City Council approved its Planned Unit Development amendment Tuesday, so it is moving ahead with permitting but there are no definite construction timelines yet.
Urgent Care opening at Bartram Village
First Stop Urgent Care, with two locations Downtown and at Jacksonville Beach, plans to open at 12547 Bartram Park Blvd. in Bartram Village.
The city is reviewing a permit application for Jenkins Construction Inc. II to build-out 2,475 square feet of space for First Stop Urgent Care at a construction cost of $210,000.
First Stop Urgent Care takes appointments and walk-ins for the immediate care of cold, flu, allergy, minor injuries or illnesses, health checkups, physicals, immunizations or occupational health needs, such as employee drug screens.
For information, visit firststop-urgentcare.com.
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