The National Guard Armory Building in Springfield is one step closer to being acquired by its lessee for a planned redevelopment.
During Jan. 5 meetings, two Jacksonville City Council committees endorsed legislation to sell the 2.49-acre property in Springfield to Armory Redevelopment Associates LLC.
The legislation, Ordinance 2025-0876, is next scheduled before the Finance Committee on Jan. 6. If that committee advances the ordinance without further revisions, the armory would sell for $3.04 million with approval by the full Council.
Legislation to sell the property originally proposed a price of $2.55 million. After members of the Neighborhoods, Community Services, Public Health and Safety Committee raised concerns that the price was too low, Armory Redevelopment Associates agreed to raise the purchase price by $496,537.10, the amount of a grant it previously received from the city.
The Neighborhoods Committee voted 5-1 for the sale, with Council member Mike Gay voting no. The Rules Committee voted 7-0, with Gay switching his vote after the price change.
In 2019, the city selected REVA Development Corp. of Fort Lauderdale to redevelop the Armory into a mixed-use facility with art galleries and studios, co-working spaces, a food hall, performance space and a microbrewery.
REVA has not said they have changed those plans.
In 2020, Armory Redevelopment Associates, a subsidiary of REVA, began leasing the property at 851 N. Market St. in 2020.
In the lease, the city also provided an optional parcel for sale adjacent to the Armory at 928 N. Liberty St. to the LLC for $846,000. REVA planned to develop 100 workforce apartments on the Liberty Street property. The proposed residential development did not materialize and is no longer part of Armory Redevelopment Associates’ plan.
According to a 2022 city summary, the three-story Armory building needed asbestos, lead-based paint and mold abatement; HVAC, plumbing, electrical and telecommunications replacement; fire protection and sprinkler system installation; waterproofing; re-roofing; and framing and floor rehabilitation.
In 2022, costs of stabilization were estimated at $15 million, a number repeated by Randolph before the Neighborhoods Committee. REVA listed the full cost of the Armory redevelopment at $30 million in 2024.
In an October memo presented to the Mayor’s Budget Review Committee, the city’s Office of Economic Development said REVA has done roof repairs and other small improvements. The city issued a roofing permit for the building in 2024.
The 80,826-square-foot Armory has endured flooding over the years, including when Hurricane Irma left 12 to 16 inches of standing water in the structure during 2017.
REVA, a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization whose name is an acronym for Real Estate Ventures for the Arts, lists the total cost of the project at $30 million, including work to reduce flooding.
The Armory was vacant for 10 years before REVA’s takeover of the space.
Constructed in 1916, the Armory has served as property of both the city and the state of Florida since that time.
According to The Jaxson online magazine, the building served the military reserve force and was a destination for dances, cultural events, high school graduations and concerts. Armory’s facilities included a kitchen, mess hall, band room, billiard room, rifle range, swimming pool and bowling alley.
A full Council vote on Ordinance 2025-0876 is expected Jan. 13.