Suddath Development Group announced June 15 that Johnson & Johnson has chosen the group’s Airport Commerce Center as the site for its distribution operations as part of the healthcare company’s $1 billion investment in Jacksonville.
Steve Suddath, principal shareholder of Suddath Development Group, said in a news release that Johnson & Johnson will establish “a state-of-the-art distribution center at our ACC site.”
Airport Commerce Center is Suddath Development Group’s industrial business park north of Jacksonville International Airport.
The property is west of Interstate 95 and Pecan Park Road, south of Gold Star Family Parkway. It sits west of the Jacksonville Port Authority North Jacksonville marine terminals.
Suddath Development Group, a subsidiary of Jacksonville-based The Suddath Cos., bought more than 200 acres for Airport Commerce Center.
Johnson & Johnson announced June 15 it will invest more than $1 billion in Jacksonville to strengthen its Vision operations.
The New Jersey-based healthcare company said it will scale its U.S.-based manufacturing, packaging and distribution capabilities as it builds the Jacksonville distribution center and invests in advanced manufacturing and packaging technologies to add capacity and meet demand for its ACUVUE-brand contact lenses.
The city previously confirmed that Johnson & Johnson Vision, which produces the ACUVUE disposable contact lenses at its Southside campus, will lease a 1 million-square-foot building at Airport Commerce Center.
Ed Randolph, city director of economic development, said in April that Johnson & Johnson was working with a developer to build up to a 1 million-square-foot packaging and distribution facility in Northwest Jacksonville.
Jacksonville City Council gave final approval April 28 for Johnson & Johnson Vision Care to receive $12 million in city incentives to construct the packaging and distribution facility and install new high-tech equipment at its Southside campus.
Under the agreement with the city, Johnson & Johnson committed to investing $50 million for construction of the facility plus $500 million for manufacturing equipment.
The incentives would be two Recapture Enhanced Value Grants. One is a five-year, 60% grant of up to $1.5 million for the construction of the facility. The other is a five-year, 40% grant of up to $10.5 million for the equipment.
A REV grant is a refund on ad valorem tax revenue generated by a new development or property enhancement. It can apply to real property and tangible personal property.
Airport Commerce Center was identified during the incentives review.
The draft Economic Development Agreement in Resolution 2026-285 introduced in April identified the site by its real estate number, which is Airport Commerce Center.
Johnson & Johnson joins NXTPoint Logistics, a subsidiary of The Suddath Cos., as anchor tenants at Airport Commerce Center.
Suddath Development Group will build a 550,000-square-foot distribution center for NXTPoint’s expansion in the region.
The news release said that upon completion, Airport Commerce Center will provide about 3 million square feet of industrial space, supporting large-scale logistics, distribution and advanced fulfillment operations.
It said Airport Commerce Center will include multiple logistics and distribution facilities designed for “modern supply chain operations.”
“SDG strategically selected the project’s location due to its proximity to Jacksonville International Airport, JAXPORT, three major railroads, and convenient access to I-95, I-295, and I-10,” said Evan Walton, vice president of real estate for Suddath Development Group in the news release.
“We look forward to identifying additional strategic customers to build out the remaining 1.3 million square feet available as companies continue to invest in our growing Northeast Florida market,” he said of Airport Commerce Center.
The release said the project represents “a significant private investment in Northeast Florida and reinforces Jacksonville’s position as a strategic logistics and commerce hub for the Southeast.”
Suddath Development Group is a real estate development company that has constructed and currently owns about 2 million square feet of industrial properties throughout the mid-Atlantic, Southeast and Southwest U.S.
The group develops and manages properties on behalf of The Suddath Cos. and its customers.
Assembling Airport Commerce Center
The Suddath Cos. said March 19 it closed on the Phase 3 land purchase at Airport Commerce Center in North Jacksonville, meaning it can start to develop a proposed 2.98 million-square-foot industrial park along Pecan Park Road near Jacksonville International Airport.
Since August 2025, Suddath has paid more than $20 million for 312 acres to create Airport Commerce Center.
The company said 200.7 acres of the 312 acres are uplands, meaning they sit above the wetlands and can be developed.
Steve Suddath said by email March 19 that the company bought 110 acres in Phase 3, of which 69.52 acres are uplands.
“That completes all three phases having been acquired,” Suddath said.
Walton said March 19 that Suddath paid $7.3 million for the Phase 3 property March 18, buying it from Tallahassee-based Subema LLC.
The deed, recorded March 22 with the Duval County Clerk of Court, shows Subema LLC sold the property March 18 to ACCPH3 LLC, a Suddath affiliate, for almost $7.41 million, which included a fee for harvesting timber.
Suddath bought the three phases through subsidiary Airport Commerce Center LLC.
“With the growth of the Jacksonville port and the expansion of the trade area between Savannah and Jacksonville and with what we’ve seen the last 10 years, we want to expand here,” Walton said.
“This is where the Suddath family has called home for over 100 years and we are very bullish on Jacksonville,” he said.