by Bailey White
Staff Writer
The Hutchinson-Suddath building at 315-319 E. Bay St. is set to be renovated into lofts for commercial and office use in a project that will cost about $1.3 million.
Now, the building’s owners are seeking financial assistance from the City’s Historic Preservation Trust Fund, a request scheduled to go before the Jacksonville Economic Development Commission at its meeting Thursday.
“We could receive up to $365,950,” said Julia Suddath, a co-owner of the property. “It’s been approved by the Downtown Development Authority, and if approved by the JEDC, will next go before the City Council.”
Suddath said construction will start once the funding is approved.
“We’ve got everything all lined up,” she said. “Our contractors are Auld & White, and we’re working with Tom Fisher and Larry Wilson of Rink, Reynolds, Diamond, Fisher, Wilson, P.A.”
In the meantime, Suddath will continue fielding calls from prospective tenants who have seen the “Lofts Available” sign hanging outside the building.
“We have had a good amount of interest,” she said. “And lot of it is from people interested in the lofts for residential use.”
But, Suddath said, they’ve ruled out the possibility of residential use because of a lack of parking in the area.
“I think the ideal tenants are professionals — photographers, graphic designers or attorneys — who’ll use the space for offices,” she said. “And the available ground floor space is perfect for a restaurant. We want it to be something that offers some kind of nightlife, like the London Bridge Pub.”
“The project fits into some of our strategic goals to bring properties that have been vacant and buildings that have historic significance to downtown, back online,” said Al Battle, managing director of the Downtown Development Authority. “In addition to that, it’s right in the heart of the area set aside for the Bay Street Town Center. Bringing the building back into productive use will further the efforts to revitalize the Bay Street area.”
The four-story Hutchinson-Suddath building was constructed in 1910 for the Hutchinson Shoe Company. In 1931, the Suddath Moving and Storage Co. bought the building, using it as offices and a records storage company. The building is now owned by Bay Street Warehousing, LLC, of which Suddath is a stockholder.
“It’s a unique space,” she said. “The lobby is being designed by Larry Wilson and it’s going to be really beautiful. He’s pulled in the roughness of a warehouse and the elegance of a lobby, and it’s very impressive.”