by David Chapman
Staff Writer
A City Council committee approved two fast-tracked ordinances Tuesday that would provide Qualified Target Industry Tax Refunds to two companies for creating up to 130 jobs.
The Finance Committee approved the refunds for C2C Solutions Inc., a subsidiary of Blue Cross Blue Shield of Florida, and for Ringtail Technologies LLC. The ordinances were sent to the full Council, which meets Tuesday.
C2C Solutions would receive a tax refund of $165,000 for creating 55 jobs. The company provides health care sector support and administrative services in handling payment resolution disputes and proposes to lease additional office space at 532 Riverside Ave.
The state would pay $132,000 of the refund with the City contributing $33,000. The 55 jobs would have an average wage of $45,834 and benefits of $14,678. The average salary is 115 percent of the average private-sector wage in Florida as of Jan. 1.
Ringtail Technologies would receive a total tax refund of $375,000 for creating 75 jobs. Ringtail, based in Belize, is a small technology company that deals in wireless communications technology.
The company proposes to lease 23,000 square feet of space at the former Haydon Burns Library, now called The Library, at 122 N. Ocean St., which is a Brownfield site.
Ringtail proposes to make the location its worldwide headquarters.
The tax refund would include the state’s contribution of $330,000, which includes a $150,000 Brownfield bonus.
The City has elected to be exempt from a Brownfield bonus match and its tax refund share would not exceed $45,000. Like the C2C jobs, Ringtail’s positions would have an average salary of $45,834.
The QTI refund program requires companies within targeted industries to create jobs and pay their taxes before receiving refunds. The City contributes 20 percent of the tax refund while the state contributes 80 percent.
The ordinances were first introduced to full council a week ago and are eligible for fast-tracking through just one committee due to the QTI provisions.
Before both ordinances were unanimously approved, several council members questioned Joe Whitaker, Jacksonville Economic Development Commission business recruitment and retention coordinator, about several aspects of the QTIs and the program in general.
Council member John Crescimbeni asked about oversight regarding whether such jobs are filled by new employees and not just transfers from other subsidiaries within the parent company. Whitaker said the state monitors such movement over the distribution period and sends JEDC officials an annual report.
On the QTI tax refund program, Council member Doyle Carter asked if Whitaker could provide an annual report of all QTI tax refund-assisted jobs. Carter said such a list would be beneficial when asked about the projects by constituents.
Whitaker questioned whether some of the information could be included, such as Social Security numbers, and was asked to consult with the General Counsel’s Office about providing a list.
Also during Tuesday’s meeting:
• The committee approved an ordinance for a new lease agreement with Il C Kim, owner of Victoria’s Café on the ground floor of the Ed Ball Building. The five-year agreement, with one renewal option of five years, for the 1,875-square-foot restaurant will reduce the rent from $40,163 a year ($21.42 a square foot) to $34,688 ($18.50 a square foot) and includes an annual 2 percent escalation, a more competitive rate requested by the tenant.
• The committee approved an ordinance to reallocate $58,453 from Project SOS to the Lutheran Social Services Second Harvest North Florida Food Bank to provide food to organizations serving homeless and low-income people and families. Project SOS changed the scope of its services and withdrew its funding request, which freed up the money to go elsewhere, said the Council Auditor’s office.
• The ordinance that would establish a moratorium on fair share contract assessment collections paid by developers was deferred.
• The community center at 5130 Soutel Drive is a step closer to being renamed “Legends Community Center” after the Council approved an ordinance for its renaming. The City plans a grand-opening ceremony for Legends Center at 2:30 p.m. May 12.
356-2466