By Sean McManus
Staff Writer
There are some pretty funny and legally intimidating words defined in a small lexicon founded as a addendum to a brochure published a few years ago by the Jacksonville Economic Development Commission called “A Guide to Understanding Economic Incentives.”
One is “Clawbacks,” the process whereby a company that does not comply with contractual obligations is required to refund all or a portion of the incentive that was granted or reduce the amount of incentive due.
Another good one is the “Façade Loan Program,” which provides low interest loans to help businesses improve the exterior of their building.
Then of course, there’s “Brownfields” — abandoned or idle properties, usually found in inner cities, where environmental contamination arising from previous industrial use makes redevelopment more complicated.
Now, whether you needed these words defined or not, their presence speaks to the weight that the JEDC, created by executive order in 1996 for the purposes of streamlining the 12 agencies that work to attract business to Jacksonville, places on educating the public on the idea of economic incentives.
The brochure also notes, without irony, that it was Mississippi which was the first state to offer economic incentives. But now, it continues, “incentives have become more widespread” and are currently offered in all 50 states.
“But incentives are really such a small part of everything that we do,” said Heather Surface, chief of communications for the JEDC. “That’s the part the media is always reporting about but, in reality, there’s so much more.”
Surface said that because only the City Council can allocate city funds, the JEDC is the first line of defense — making recommendations on which projects to fund and how best to entice business to Jacksonville.
The total budget for the JEDC for fiscal year 2001/2002 was $10,242,415. That includes the budget for the new Cecil Commerce Center. The proposed budget for next fiscal year — to be approved by City Council — is $10,569,740.
The dozen agencies that were consolidated under the larger umbrella of the JEDC are the Cecil Field Development Office, Downtown Development Authority, Film and Television Advisory Commission, International Relations and Marketing Development Commission, Jacksonville Economic Development Company, Jacksonville Enterprise Zone Development Agency, Jacksonville International Airport/Community Redevelopment Agency, Northwest Jacksonville Area Economic Development Advisory Committee, Research and Development Authority, Sister Cities Association, Inc., Small Business Advisory Commission and the Sports and Entertainment Board.
“But most of where we focus our attention is on small business,” said Surface. “That’s really the core of our work, not throwing money at large corporations.” And the JEDC partners with other government agencies and non-profit community groups such as the Chamber of Commerce, First Coast Manufacturers Association, Jacksonville & the Beaches Convention and Visitors Bureau, FRESHMinistries, Duval County Schools, Jacksonville Port Authority, JEA and the Jacksonville Transportation Authority to market Jacksonville to the rest of the world and serve as advisors to the JEDC for specific projects.
The JEDC is made of up of seven commissioners appointed by the Mayor John Delaney.
The current lineup:
• Rev. Frederick Newbill, pastor of the First Timothy Baptist Church.
• M.C. “Ceree” Harden III, president of the Harden & Associates insurance company.
• Susan Hartley, president of Sunbelt Coffee & Water.
• James Citrano, managing director of CB Richard Ellis, a commercial real estate firm.
• Lewis C. Siplin, CEO of Siplin Enterprises, Inc., a company with various business holdings.
There are two vacancies and one will be filled as soon as the City Council approves the mayor’s nomination of Tom Petway, chairman of Zurich Insurance Services and perhaps better known as a Jaguars’ co-owner.
Delaney has yet to nominate a person for the seventh position.
There are 13 ex officio advisors to the commission and this list includes civic leaders as well as heads of government agencies such as the JEA and the port, transportation and airport authorities. This list also includes two City Council members, and those places currently are held by Matt Carlucci and Alberta Hipps.
The Commission receives added support from technical support advisors who are representatives of numerous city departments, local colleges and universities and tourism offices.
According to Surface, the actual representatives from those various agencies vary depending on the timing and nature of the meeting.
According to the JEDC website, more than 16,000 jobs have been created or retained as a result of the work of the JEDC. In addition, half of the $900 million in private capital investment the JEDC has fueled in Jacksonville has come from companies which had an existing presence here. National and international companies such as Bombardier Capital, Chase Manhattan Mortgage, Medronic Xomed Surgical Products and Atlantic Marine are touted.
“The idea is to get these companies on the tax rolls,” said Surface, who also noted that a big part of the JEDC’s job is to expedite the permitting process so business can begin to make money.
And members of the JEDC travel a lot — whether it be to Hollywood to conventions to sell Jacksonville to film producers or to sports symposiums to market Jacksonville as an arena town. George Banks, who runs the international arm of the JEDC, travels all over the world to recruit international business. “This stuff doesn’t happen by accident,” Surface said.