by Liz Daube
Staff Writer
The Main Library got a step closer to getting its long-awaited cafe when the City Council Economic, Community & International Development Committee approved an amended rental agreement 4-0 on Wednesday.
Steve Hicks of Shelby’s Coffee Shoppe won the bid for the unfinished space in the Downtown library’s ground floor in July 2005. City officials have been discussing the proposed cafe lease for over a year, and recently questions have targeted the $260,000 slated from the Better Jacksonville Plan to help Hicks with building start-up costs. The money would go toward the interior space, adding air conditioning, plumbing, furniture and other permanent fixtures.
Hicks, whose mother owns Shelby’s in Neptune Beach, said some Council members have called the proposed lease a “sweet deal” and a “subsidy.” He counters that the City openly set the money aside to develop the spot that currently consists of a concrete floor.
“They didn’t want to do it (build out the space) and then have me rip it out,” said Hicks. “Most people rent finished spaces ... All they (City officials) are doing is reimbursing the operator for those (design-build) costs.”
Hicks estimates his start-up costs will total $500,000 or more, and he said he’s already spent $30,000 on an architect and attorney.
Some of the Council members who have raised questions about the cafe agreement were absent from the ECID meeting. Council member Ronnie Fussell could not be reached due to illness, according to his assistant. Council member Suzanne Jenkins said she missed the meeting due to a personal emergency.
“It’s a better lease than it was before,” she said after the meeting.
Several terms of the lease were amended. Additions include: a security deposit, an agreement to pay for damage to furniture and other permanent fixtures beyond normal wear and tear, separate utility and common area maintenance fees and a monthly rent increase (from $3,200 to $3,400).
Jenkins said she was still concerned about the cafe’s ability to serve lunch items in addition to coffee and snacks. The $260,000 still provided in the agreement isn’t fair, Jenkins said, although she’s pleased some adjustments were made.
“They came back with a better deal for the City,” she said. “But we (the City and library cafe) are competing with them (other Downtown restaurants) and we’re giving an unfair advantage to their competition. I can’t go back and look my constituents in the eye.”
Bill Scheu, an attorney and chair of the library’s board of trustees, said he was confused when the lease came up for approval because the board hadn’t approved it . After examining the situation, Scheu said the board decided to support the cafe lease.
“It really has to do with keeping faith with your community and with Mr. Hicks. This has drug on for more than a year,” said Scheu. “If we had to go back and do it again, we might revise a lot of it. But the library really needs this, and the community really needs this.”
If City Council approves the cafe deal at Tuesday’s meeting, Hicks said he can start construction for the cafe in about a month and open by February.