by Sean McManus
Staff Writer
Mayor John Delaney told about 150 commercial realtors — and those who like to do business with commercial realtors — at the National Association of Industrial and Office Properties’ April luncheon at the Adam’s Mark Hotel Thursday that the National Football League is pleased with the city’s efforts to host the 2005 Super Bowl.
During a question and answer session following his speech on the Better Jacksonville Plan, Delaney told the group the NFL has said the city is ahead of schedule in preparation for the game — compared to other cities who have hosted the event — and that the last hurdle will be an entertainment zone for out-of-town visitors.
Delaney added that he may have underestimated the game’s business value to Jacksonville. Cities that host a Super Bowl tend to play up that fact.
“From a branding standpoint alone,” he said, “every city in the state leads every meeting with it.”
During his speech, Delaney defended incentives to a group of people that has, in the past, been leery of how equitable the City is when distributing incentive funds. Delaney cited Gainesville as an example when, in 1904, it offered free water as an incentive to land the University of Florida when it was competing with Lake City and Live Oak.
Delaney also reminded the crowd that the Plan provided needed economic fuel when the country was in a recession, keeping Jacksonville’s job growth rates well above national averages in the last few years. And putting another positive spin on the latest economic downturn, Delaney also said that initiating the beginning stages of the Plan during a recession kept interest rates low and drove down labor costs. He also noted the ever-decreasing property tax rate.
“We have cut our property tax rate by 10 percent over seven years, no other major city in the nation did that.” And at the same time, he said, the City hasn’t dropped any services.
Delaney responded to questions after the speech, one being what he plans on doing after he leaves office. He replied that he’s unsure of his future plans at this point, noting that he still has “14 months, 11 days and 24 minutes” left in office.
Another question concerned the four major buildings — baseball park, arena, county courthouse and library — constructed as part of the Plan. Delaney assured the audience that the City selected designs which would be lasting and “not faddish” and that lots of money had been spent to ensure quality.
Richard Toomey of Commercial Jacksonville, a Cushman & Wakefield alliance, was one who is pleased with the Plan.
“It just makes Jacksonville more attractive to companies who want to buy real estate,” said Toomey. “And the Better Jacksonville Plan is doing that.”