The Urban Land Institute’s breakfast program entitled “Back to the City: Rediscovering Urban Living,” held at The St. Joe Co., drew 100 guests in attendance. The program, which was the first one in a series of four programs, was the largest in ULI Jacksonville’s history.
“Because Jacksonville’s urban housing is growing at a rapid pace, we at ULI believed this to be an excellent time to assess where we are and where we should be going,” said attorney John Welch, co-chair of ULI Jacksonville’s Program Committee. “Our panelists outlined the challenges and opportunities of urban residential development in Jacksonville and gave program guests a look into what they see for Jacksonville’s future.”
The panel of industry professionals discussed Jacksonville’s urban housing market, subsidies and tax credits, and shared mistakes made and lessons learned during their careers in the industry.
Panelists included William R. Cesery Jr., president, William R. Cesery Co.; Michael Langton, managing partner, LB Jax Development LLC; Ed Mitchell, partner, Springfield Restoration Group; Hamilton Traylor, president, TriLegacy Group; and Kirk Wendland, executive director, Jacksonville Economic Development Commission.
Maxine McBride, president of Clockwork Marketing Services Inc., moderated the program.
During the Oct. 10 program, McBride asked what it would take for urban housing in Jacksonville to be viable. According to Wendland, at least 10,000 housing units are required for downtown Jacksonville to be a “truly” vibrant market. Wendland’s colleagues agreed the number of housing units downtown needs to increase in order to have a vibrant market, but that is not all. Downtown Jacksonville also needs a solid commercial infrastructure, they agreed.
The panel, although all involved in various downtown development projects, believe downtown Jacksonville needs to have more retail outlets, including a grocery store, pharmacy, and a variety of entertainment. Downtown Jacksonville needs to be a place where people will live, work and play, according to the panel.
However, in order for housing, retail and entertainment to come to downtown, there needs to be incentives, Langton commented. He stated incentive packages and creative financing have been beneficial in making deals downtown come to fruition in the past and will be an asset to future downtown growth.