by Bradley Parsons
Staff Writer
It cost the Police and Fire Pension Fund $15,000 to put an aluminum patch on the gaping hole in the Marble Bank Building’s skylight. The prior neglect under City management is going to cost millions.
Fund Administrator John Keane said it will cost about $2 million to repair six years worth of water damage to the building. The Marble Bank is the centerpiece of downtown’s Laura Street Trio, three historic buildings on the corner of Laura and Forsyth streets.
The building was intact when the City took ownership in 1999, said Keane. Now water damage has eaten away much of the building’s roof and ornate plaster crown molding. Shortly after the Fund took over ownership last year, its first order of business was pumping 10 feet of water out of the basement.
“If this building had been properly secured, it would be a matter of walking in, flipping a light switch and clearing away the dust,” said Keane.
Instead, the Fund’s plan to renovate the Marble Bank and adjacent Bisbee Building carries a $12 million price tag. A significant portion of that money will go to shore up the buildings and remove hazardous materials such as asbestos, lead paint and toxic mold. That work should be done by early 2007, readying the buildings for development.
The Fund is seeking $5 million in City incentives to help with plans to turn the buildings into a mixed-use development. Keane has been in talks with the Jacksonville Economic Development Commission about an incentive package, he said.
During its tenure as landlord, even the City’s own planning agencies criticized its neglect of the buildings. Former Downtown Development Authority chairman David Auchter was one of several voices on the DDA that warned the City two years ago that the buildings were deteriorating rapidly.
Following that criticism, the City strung a tarp over the shattered skylight, but that move backfired. Strong winds ripped the tarp away and blew it into the roof’s gutters. There it clogged drainage holes, forcing more water into the bank lobby.
But Keane said the City is in position to help reclaim those buildings and make them a part of surging development in the surrounding blocks. The Marble Bank is one block away from Vestcor developments The Carling and 11 E and across the street from the Barnett Tower, which is now targeted for development by Orlando developer Cameron Kuhn.
To complement that development, the Fund now plans to build a parking garage of at least 300 spaces on the site of the old Center Theatre. The West Adams Street parcel is across the street from The Carling.
The Fund might double the garage’s size to accommodate 600 cars if enough demand comes from surrounding developments, said Keane. That would extend the garage to the vacant lot on the corner of Laura and West Adams streets.
The Fund will take bids for the project in 90 days. Keane said the garage will charge market-based rates.