JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – The Downtown Investment Authority is expected to officially sign off on a $35 million plan to bring new high-rise apartments to the former site of The Jacksonville Landing.
The developer’s plan is to integrate with the new Riverfront Plaza, but there’s still more to it. Once the board signs off on this plan, the Jacksonville City Council will make the final decision to approve the package and an additional $27 million in public money.
If the tower is built, it would change the look of the city’s skyline. If the City Council agrees to provide the $27 million loan, it would be paid back over the course of 20 years, with an option for a 10-year extension.
The overall price tag for this project is an estimated $166 million.
The developer wants to build a 480-foot-tall tower with 332 apartments, 15,000 square feet of residential amenities, public outdoor terrace space plus, space for retail stores and restaurants.
News4JAX spoke with people downtown who had mixed feelings, including one woman who had hoped for something else in the space.
“Something that’s more family-oriented like they said that they were going to do,” resident Manda Washington said. “An aquarium -- just something more family-oriented needs to happen in downtown Jacksonville.”
“I really don’t know whether it’s good for the city or not,” resident Duma Shange said. “But low-cost housing is really good in the United States because there are so many homeless people and I see homeless people down in downtown Jacksonville. And so, I think that but considering where it’s located, I don’t think it’s going to be low cost.”
The deal says the developer has until next June to get a final design approved and start construction by September 2023.
