Developers of a contested proposal to build homes across from the Stockton Street town center in Riverside have submitted civil engineering plans for the project to the city.
The plans show what appear to be five identically sized, single-family homes on a 0.23-acre lot between Myra and College streets, sandwiched between the strip of commercial buildings and the former John Gorrie Junior High School.
Prime AE Group Inc. submitted the plans on behalf of the property’s owner, John Gorrie Investment Group LLC. State records show the LLC is led by former Jacksonville Jaguars owners Delores and Wayne Weaver.
In 2009, the Weavers bought the long-vacant junior high at an auction and transformed it into The John Gorrie a Condominium, which opened in 2011.
In June, Jacksonville City Council approved rezoning Ordinance 2024-0539 allowing the construction of two-story homes on the northernmost portion of the property along Stockton Street.
The approval came over opposition from neighboring residents and businesses over parking, flooding and traffic safety. As approved by Council, the project included no off-street parking.
Business operators in the town center said the residences would leave fewer available parking spaces for their customers along Stockton Street. Parking space is already limited, they said.
At-Large Group 5 Council member Chris Miller, who lives in the neighborhood, said there are 35 regular spaces and two spaces for disabled individuals at the town center. There are 10 businesses in the area, he said, none of which have off-street parking.
The civil engineering plans show no parking on the 0.23-acre lot.
Another concern among business owners was that the project would take up to 20 spaces offline during construction of the houses. In an amendment to the ordinance, the developer agreed to commit to taking steps to reduce the effect of the construction, such as perhaps closing five spaces at a time while the houses are being built.
The rezoning approved by Council was to Planned Unit Development from a previous PUD that would have allowed for commercial development on 80% of the property. A representative for the Weavers, Greg Matovina, told Council members that the residential project would be much less dense, would generate less traffic and would have less impact on parking availability.
As proposed to Council, each of the five homes on the lot would include 1,685 square feet of conditioned space and feature a great room, kitchen, bedroom and bathroom on the first floor, and two bedrooms, two bathrooms, a laundry room and an office on the top floor.
Although the civil engineering plans identify the project as “Stockton Street Row,” the freestanding homes do not fit the definition of row homes, which are single-family residences that share side walls.