The fate of incentives for a Downtown Publix has yet to be decided, but developer Gateway Jax is moving ahead with plans to demolish the former First Baptist Church main auditorium to make way for it.
The city issued a demolition permit for 119 W. Beaver St., where Gateway Jax plans a mixed-use, 14-story tower that would include apartments and the grocery store. PCL Construction LLC is the contractor for the demolition, as listed in the permit.
During a May 19 tour of Gateway Jax’s projects, CEO Bryan Moll said the Publix was critical to the success of the developers’ more than $750 million Pearl Square district. Without a full-service grocery store, he said, “it would be much more difficult, if not impossible, to do what we’re doing at this scale.”
In December 2025, the Downtown Investment Authority board voted unanimously to recommend that Jacksonville City Council approve a $49.66 million incentive package for the project, including a $28.25 million completion grant.
The proposed incentives have run into friction at the Council level, with some members contending the city can’t afford to commit to more public assistance to Downtown revitalization projects.
Incoming Council President Nick Howland and Council member Will Lahnen, the presumptive next chair of the Council Finance Committee, are among those who have raised concerns about the Publix incentives.
Much of the Council discussion has involved completion grants, which unlike tax rebates involve payments from the city’s operating fund. Some Council members have pushed the city to curtail or shut off completion grants, saying they threaten to push the city budget into deficit.
The Florida Legislature’s approval of a statewide vote in November to lower property taxes could intensify opposition to incentives, particularly completion grants. City Council auditors have estimated that the city could lose more than $300 million in revenue annually by fiscal year 2029 with passage of the ballot issue, a constitutional amendment that would increase Florida’s homestead exemption on property taxes from $50,000 to $150,000 in fiscal year 2028 and $250,000 in fiscal year 2029.
Moll said during the May tour that Gateway Jax was talking to Council members about the incentive package, including possible alternatives to completion grants.
Gateway Jax is a partnership between Moll, JWB Real Estate Capital and DLP Capital.
However it is funded, Moll said, the Publix development must occur for Gateway to realize its vision of investing $2 billion in Downtown. He said the project would support growth of Downtown’s residential population and help attract retail that will propel further development.
“The most important thing we’re doing is this site,” he said.
Total development cost of the project is listed at $148 million in a DIA resolution that includes the incentives. The cost to demolish the auditorium is listed at $1.6 million in the city permit.
The Daily Record reported that Corner Lot and JWB Real Estate Capital bought the 103,016-square-foot auditorium built in 1995 and the adjoining parking garage as a joint venture in 2022. The developers spent $750,000 to prepare the auditorium to house exhibits and community events, renaming it the NoCo Center.
Traveling exhibits ““Beyond Van Gogh: The Immersive Experience” and “Beyond King Tut” were displayed at the center.