JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – Parking on Stockton Street in Riverside could get a lot more scarce if a developer backed by the former owner of the Jacksonville Jaguars gets its way.
The Jacksonville Planning Commission approved a zoning change last week that would allow five row-style houses to be built on a 0.23-acre lot across from the Stockton Street Town Center, which is home to popular local businesses like Zen Cog Bicycle Company, Bold Bean Coffee, Tiger Records and 13 Gypsies restaurant.
Documents submitted with the rezoning request show that John Gorrie Investments LLC is behind the project. State records list the managers of the LLC as Dolores Weaver and Wayne Weaver, the former owners of the Jacksonville Jaguars.
The plans include no extra parking for the two-story homes that would be built between the Stockton Street Town Center and the John Gorrie Condominiums.
The request reads: “The PUD is not providing on-site parking for the residential dwellings. There are approximately 16 public parking spaces in front of the PUD on Stockton Street.”
That part of the plan drew criticism during a recent commission meeting.
“I can tell you parking is a nightmare,” said Jonathan Kirk, owner of 13 Gypsies restaurant, according to the Jacksonville Daily Record. “Every business that’s on that strip is popular. There are times I can’t even park as a business owner.”
JDR reported that Kirk asked commissioners to consider how a parking shortage would affect clients of nearby Focus Physical Therapy.
“Can you imagine going there for physical therapy and you can’t park?” he said.
Scott Crawley of Focus Physical Therapy has been seeing patients in his office on Stockton Street for the last 20 years.
“Parking and safety is number one for our clients,” he said. “Parking has gotten a lot tighter. So when our patients come in for physical therapy you know we’d like for them to be able to park close, a lot of times they have to circle the block and they’re late for their appointments and there’s also safety issues when they park across the street.”
Cody Drummond has worked on the Riverside street for seven years and has also seen the parking struggles first-hand.
“I’ve definitely had people ‘Oh I had to park around the corner, I had to park in the alley, or it took me five minutes to find a parking spot,’” Drummond said. “If there’s going to be several homes being built on that very small strip over there, it would probably take up another 6-10 parking spaces.”
News4JAX did talk with a representative for the property owner and he said that Mrs. Weaver is excited to bring these developments to the neighborhood.
Greg Matovina, a representative for the property owner, said the parcel’s current zoning allows it to be used for commercial and residential purposes, according to the JDR, and said building single-family housing would affect parking less than a mixed-use commercial/residential structure.
The project is subject to review and approval by the Jacksonville Historic Preservation Commission and the Jacksonville City Council.