Jacksonville-based Corner Lot and an investment partner are proposing a $160 million hotel and conference center on a portion of the former Duval County Courthouse property along the Downtown Northbank, as shown in a newly released document from the Downtown Investment Authority.
The document identifies Corner Lot and Aspect Holdings LLC as the only respondents to a notice of disposition for a 0.8-acre portion of the 2.6-acre property at 330 E. Bay St. Disposition is a process by which city-owned property is transferred to the private sector for redevelopment.
The partnership proposal comprises two buildings, including a 14-story tower with a hotel and conference center, and restaurant and retail space facing Bay Street. The other building would include food and beverage uses on the ground floor topped by three floors of Class A office space.
In the 14-story tower, the second and third levels would include 17,000 square feet of conference space, including a divisible grand ballroom designed to accommodate events of up to 600 attendees.
Levels four through 14 would include 160 hotel rooms. Plans include pool decks on the fourth and fifth floors, plus a covered outdoor lounge, clubroom and fitness center on the fifth floor.
As part of the 54,397-square-foot office building, the proposal says an anchor tenant called “Project Caymus” will occupy about 5,000 square feet. That tenant’s space will include room for academic and administrative operations, professional development and continuing education programs, as well as culinary demonstration and teaching kitchen facilities.
The developers indicate they would seek a 20-year, 75% Recapture Enhanced Value Grant and a completion grant while working with the city to identify other funding sources, such as New Market Tax Credits and federal and state funding.
No amounts for the REV or completion grants are listed. A REV grant is a refund on ad valorem tax revenue generated by a new development or property enhancement.
In addition, the developers said that to obtain capital for the project, it would require 360 adjacent parking spaces.
“Sponsor will work with DIA and the City of Jacksonville Office of Public Parking on a comprehensive project parking solution that meets the underwriting and financial requirements, as well as other obligations,” the proposal reads.
Corner Lot is based in Jacksonville. Aspect is headquartered in Denver with offices in Jacksonville and Budapest, according to its website.
Bold Line Design is shown on renderings, and the proposal says PCL Construction will provide input on the project.
The DIA issued the disposition for the western one-third of the 330 E. Bay St. property, also known as Ford on Bay, in February.
In January, DIA CEO Colin Tarbert told the authority’s board that the DIA preferred steel-and-concrete construction on the property over a pedestal-style building in which wood framing tops a concrete parking garage or other base.
Tarbert said the DIA developed the idea for developing a portion of the lot after commissioning a massing study by Jacksonville-based engineering firm Haskell, which provided four options for the courthouse land and an adjacent city-owned lot to the west and immediately north of the Hyatt Regency Jacksonville Riverfront. Massing refers to general shapes, forms and sizes of buildings.
Tarbert told board members that splitting the lot into thirds made it more conducive for parking.
“If you split it 50-50, the parking garage basically is too narrow, or you have to turn it in a way that doesn’t really maximize the waterfront development,” he said.
Tarbert said the two-thirds portion of the lot is large enough to support a typical floor plate for a parking garage.
He said offering the one-third portion first was designed to “lower the barrier to entry to get something going on the site, build the market, build the excitement, and then still keeping the larger, more valuable site for future disposition.”
As for parking, Tarbert said options included the Hyatt and the city’s Yates garage less than two blocks away.
Requirements for developers of the site include a minimum of 10,000 square feet of riverfront restaurant or bar space; street-level retail, restaurant and entertainment space along Bay Street; and a commitment to using contractors or suppliers in the Jacksonville Small and Emerging Business program. The notice states that DIA is seeking a “qualified, experienced, and well-capitalized development partner” for the property.
The site has been vacant since 2019, when the courthouse was demolished. That building opened in 1958.
The property immediately north of the Hyatt was the site of the City Hall Annex that was imploded, also in 2019. The land has been vacant since.
In 2022, the DIA approved a $41 million incentives package for Atlanta-based developer Carter to build a 22-story mixed-use project at 330 E. Bay St. called The Hardwick.
In mid-2023, Carter sought an extension on its redevelopment agreement, citing a “frozen” capital market in addition to higher construction costs for its failure to launch. Former DIA CEO Lori Boyer said in early 2024 that the proposed development had fizzled, leading to plans to put the property back for disposition.
The incentives package included tax refunds, a completion grant and a discount on the property. Because the project never launched, the city did not pay out the incentive