by Bradley Parsons
Staff Writer
The City will limit development incentives for retail projects downtown to Bay, Laura and Park streets according to new guidelines approved Wednesday by the Downtown Development Authority.
The new “commercial corridors” created by the DDA board’s unanimous vote are in line with the Jacksonville Economic Development Commission’s desire to concentrate development of restaurants, bars and other service sector ventures. In the past the JEDC has approved such deals piecemeal. The new approach will encourage dense retail development that should benefit the developers and the areas around them, said JEDC Deputy Director Jeanne Miller.
“The idea is to focus this kind of development in an area and let the businesses feed off each other to create economic momentum,” said Miller. “The momentum created by that density then spins off in the community.”
The JEDC board will vote on the corridors at today’s general meeting.
As it overhauls its incentive policies, the JEDC is searching for the right approach to encourage retail development and small business in general. Retail is generally not a top priority for the commission because the businesses recycle dollars through a community. Money spent at a Jacksonville restaurant likely comes from Jacksonville residents.
On the other hand, the money earned in the finance or insurance industry imports dollars from outside Jacksonville. The JEDC’s primary focus will be to attract these so-called economic based jobs created by companies such as Fidelity and Washington Mutual. Still, the commission recognizes that some neighborhoods lack basic services — restaurants, drug stores and groceries — and wants to encourage appropriate development.
For instance, the Bay Street Commercial Corridor, identified as the City’s top priority for retail development, is viewed as the answer to downtown’s lack of nightlife. The corridors on Park Street and in the Central Business District running from Hemming Plaza to the Landing have already shown they can support retail and the City hopes to build on that momentum. Developers in those areas will have the best chance at City incentives.
Some on the board worried that the guidelines could tie the City’s hands if a developer pitched a desirable project outside of the corridors. Board member Jay Jabour, a retailer himself as owner of Karl’s Klothiers, said the City should be careful not to limit its options too rigidly.
“I worry that we’re restricting ourselves a little bit,” said Jabour. “What if a grocery store wanted to locate downtown in an area outside the border? I’d rather have a grocery store downtown no matter what.”
Miller said the JEDC would build flexibility into the process, allowing it to make exceptions. Jabour said he thought the City was on the right track trying to group together retail. His own success in areas such as San Marco Square has convinced him that retail loves company, he said.