Weeks after launching plans to establish an Irish pub next door to their music and dance venue, the owners of Decca Live are seeking to expand their offerings along Bay Street in Downtown Jacksonville.
Decca Live-affiliated 323 E. Bay Street LLC and Illyria Properties 6 LLC applied to the Downtown Investment Authority for public incentives to build-out the Besa Bakery and Tea Room Speakeasy at 301 E. Bay St. next to Cinco de Mayo Mexican restaurant.
Citing the partners’ business plan, a DIA staff report describes the concept as a “modern European style bakery by day and an elevated dessert and cocktail lounge by night…with a refined, full-display bakery counter and a cozy Tea Room Speakeasy. Besa provides an all-day culinary experience from early morning espresso and pastries to late-night pizza, cocktails and desserts.”
Incentives sought
The partners are seeking $215,000 in city incentives, comprising a $200,000 forgivable loan under the DIA’s Retail Enhancement Program Targeted Retail Activation: Food and Beverage Establishments Grant (FAB-REP), and a $15,000 forgivable loan under the Sidewalk Enhancement Grant Program.
The request for Besa Bakery and Tea Room Speakeasy is scheduled before the DIA Retail Enhancement and Property Disposition Committee on June 12. The committee meets at 9:30 a.m. in the Don Davis Room of City Hall, 117 W. Duval St.
The staff report for the project lists menu items such as an array of croissants starting at $4.95, cannoli at $6.95 for two, tiramisu for $8.95, and pizzas from $13.95 to $16.95.
The establishment will occupy a 3,590-square-foot space on the ground floor of the Churchwell Lofts building, named for a proprietor who used it to sell dry goods, shoes and notions beginning in the 1920s. The building was constructed in 1905.
Total bakery build-out costs are listed at $550,000 in a DIA term sheet on the project.
Both the FAB-REP and sidewalk enhancement incentives will be structured as forgivable, no-interest loans amortizing at 20% annually for five years providing that the establishment remains in operation continually during that time.
Keane’s Irish Pub
The new project by the Decca Live owners comes after the DIA board approved a $200,000 incentive May 21 to support the proposed Keane’s Irish Pub at 315 E. Bay St., which is between Decca Live and 301 E. Bay St. in the former The Justice Pub space.
The Keane’s Irish Pub incentive was requested by co-applicants 323 E Bay Street LLC and Bay Street Warehousing LLC. Property records show Bay Street Warehousing LLC is the owner of the three-story building at 315 E. Bay St.
The three-story Decca Live music and dance venue opened in January at 323 E. Bay St. after a $3.31 million renovation of the two-story, circa-1904 building.
The establishment includes a ground-floor performance stage and dance floor and a wraparound second-floor balcony. Both floors feature bars, as does the rooftop.
In July 2022, the Jacksonville City Council approved a $1.53 million incentives package for the project.