To provide for a $6 million traffic-calming project on Gator Bowl Boulevard, the Downtown Investment Authority board voted Aug. 20 in support of an amended agreement between the city and the developer of the Four Seasons Hotel and Residences.
The board voted 9-0 to recommend approval of the amendments, in which the city would increase a Recapture Enhanced Value Grant for the hotel by up to $6 million to reimburse Iguana Investments Florida LLC for the street improvements.
A DIA staff memo says Iguana has undertaken the project, which is designed to increase safety for motorists and pedestrians.
According to DIA documents, Iguana obtained a $3 million commitment from the state of Florida for the first phase of the traffic-calming project. Because the work involves city property, the city REV Grant would cover the entire $6 million cost of the first phase if the state fails to follow through on its commitment.
The REV Grant would be reduced if the state provides all or some of the money it has committed.
With approval from the Jacksonville City Council, the new agreement would increase the city’s $50.581 million grant to $56.581 million.
A REV Grant is a refund on ad valorem tax revenue generated by a new development or property enhancement.
To substantiate the higher REV Grant, Iguana’s minimum capital investment would rise from $334.552 million to $373.962 million. Its minimum direct investment would climb from $281.947 million to $321.357 million. That higher investment is expected to materialize due to rising costs of construction, changes in design of the hotel and other factors.
Details of the traffic-calming project were not presented at the DIA meeting.
The higher investment by Iguana was needed to satisfy requirements of the DIA’s REV Grant program, which is based on a formula that includes the amount of private funding a developer is bringing to a project.
In addition, the amendment extends the required completion date for the project by one year, to June 30, 2027. The deadline for completion of the adjacent marina, bulkhead improvements, Riverwalk improvements and construction of a marina support building would be extended two months, to Aug. 30, 2026.
In January 2023, Council approved a revised $129.75 million incentives deal with Iguana for what is now the Four Seasons Hotel and Residences and One Shipyard Place.
Iguana requested to amend the deal, first approved in October 2021, to increase the cap on the agreement’s property tax refunds. The developer said the project’s estimated cost had risen about 20.75%, from $321 million estimated in 2021 to nearly $387.6 million.
The amendments bumped the city’s payment for the Four Seasons project from $114.4 million to $129.75 million, a 13.42% increase.