9th and Main: Now (finally) Available

[Bill Hoff]

Fyi: http://jaxdailyrecord.com/showstory.php?Story_id=547186

After many years, COJ is finally accepting bid's for the property commonly known as 9th & Main. It's a great space.

A bit of history on the property:
http://m.jacksonville.com/news/premium-news/2013-06-14/story/jacksonvilles-investments-restaurants-not-likely-be-fully#showInfo=http://m.wap.jacksonville.com/news/premium-news/2013-06-14/story/jacksonvilles-investments-restaurants-not-likely-be-fully?fmt=www

[Steve]

^Hopefully this is the start of sales of more city-owned property. There is no point for COJ to own property like this.

[strider]

Is this the same old RFP issue or are they actually trying to sell it like the commercial property it is.  In the past, RFP's put too many restrictions and then had minimums that prevented even the most desirable types of places from getting it. Hopefully the City has learned that what is best is for the property to change hands regardless of whom gets it.

[Bill Hoff]

Yes, it's a RFP. I have a hunch this administration is more serious about seeing this sale through.

[strider]

The problem with RFP's in this type of sales is that they often deal with use when it should not matter.  Zoning will take care of use. Sell the building and get it back to productive use.

[MusicMan]

I've showed it and in the not too distant past brought them an offer. They have not taken care of it yet still want top dollar.

It's an unbelievable space. In the hands of a successful  entrepreneur like John Valentino it would be amazing.

[Gunnar]

I've showed it and in the not too distant past brought them an offer. They have not taken care of it yet still want top dollar.

Isn't that the same issue for many dt properties - city owned, or not ? The current asking price is often a multiple of what the buildings last sold for, before many years of neglect

[ChriswUfGator]

The city always wants at or above market for properties that have substantial deferred maintenance, and then either doesn't understand or doesn't care why they don't sell. If this RFP is going to be treated the same as previously, the result is unlikely to be any different. It's now an older renovation that would be needing a redo even if it had actually been in continuous use and maintained. But it hasn't seen a lick of maintenance other than sporadically cutting the overgrowth and boarding up broken windows in 10 years. You're looking at all new HVAC units (assuming they haven't been pilfered by now - highly likely), plus whatever else. The only thing of value in there is Stephen Dare's 1-ton Hobart mixer, only because it was 7' high and too heavy to steal without a forklift. Most of the rest is gone. I was in there for some reason or another years ago, it's a shell with a roof that has maybe 6-8 more years of useable life left, needing $150k worth of electrical, plumbing, and HVAC. They can put out however many more RFP's they want, and unless they're willing to come off their previous numbers, it won't move.

The last time we went through a round of 3 or 4 of these, the highest offer was $130k, the city wanted something like $600k. Good luck with that.

[Tacachale]

Some of the people looking at the building in the Daily Record don't inspire much confidence in turning this building around--Krumpin 4 Change, and a family friendly "dessert lounge"?

Yeah, it doesn't seem likely that that a place that big, in that area, and needing that much work will survive without a really good revenue stream. Nothing against either krumping or dessert, but...

[Captain Zissou]

I'm pretty excited about Krumpin 4 Change?  My only question: are we talking about buskers krumping 4 pocket change, or societal change brought about by spastic dancing?

[ChriswUfGator]

Ok I think this officially makes me old but what is krumping?

[Gunnar]

Ok I think this officially makes me old but what is krumping?

I sure hope it's not that definition:

http://www.urbandictionary.com/define.php?term=krumping&defid=6454108

[Tacachale]

lol it's this:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Krumping

[MusicMan]

The HVAC on the rooftop is long gone.

To put the condition into perspective, when I showed it to Bobby Kapuchansky of Carmine's Pizza in Riverside (2 years ago)  there was food in the walk in cooler that had been there for at least 5 years. Just sitting there, encapsulated in mold and mildew. In other words, when the City took possession they never even bothered to clean out the building. To this day they have not spent the few hundred dollars it would take to do a basic clean up of the interior.

You can be sure a fair offer ($200,000-300,000) will probably not go anywhere.

[Gunnar]

So a realistic price would probably be land value minus demolition and disposal costs for the current building ?

Note: I'm absolutely not saying that the building should be demolished, just that if the cost to rehab a building is > the cost to build new then it has a negative value which should be taken into consideration as far as pricing goes.