A Cheap Solution To Jax's Convention Center Problem?

[FlaBoy]

Alright Ennis,

Still like your mock up with what the DIA is apparently putting out there?

Would love to set the standard of what should be expected out of a convention center before we see these proposals.

Project requirements include at least 200,000 square feet of public exhibit space, at least a 40,000-square-foot ballroom, at least 45 meeting rooms, the hotel and other space.

A feasibility analysis shows the total construction cost of a 200,000 square foot exhibit hall at $250-$430 million.

The parking garage would be at least 400 spaces and convention center parking would need at least 1,300 spaces.

https://www.jaxdailyrecord.com/article/dia-to-seek-proposals-for-downtown-riverfront-convention-center

Where do they fit the parking? On the JEA Generator site for the 400 space parking garage?

Could they tack on Berkman II to this somehow?

[KenFSU]

Reminder that bids are unsealed tomorrow at 2:00 PM.

Lots of buzz about interested parties, not sure how many will actually materialize.

My money's on Hyatt winning this thing.

[jagsonville]

Reminder that bids are unsealed tomorrow at 2:00 PM.

Lots of buzz about interested parties, not sure how many will actually materialize.

My money's on Hyatt winning this thing.

I hope the Hyatt wins too. They seem to have the money with how much they just spent on purchasing the hotel and the most vested interest.

[vicupstate]

Any word on the bids ??

[itsfantastic1]

Any word on the bids ??

According to Biz Journals, 2 Texas companies (Preston Hollow & Jacobs Engineering Group) and 1 local (Rimrock Devlin). Plans will not be available to the public for 30 days.

https://www.bizjournals.com/jacksonville/news/2018/08/01/two-texas-companies-local-firm-bid-for-convention.html

[Kiva]

Apparently, it is good to repeat yourself. A feasibility report commissioned in 2014 noted that Jacksonville was not on the radar as a convention destination. "Over 80 percent of the meeting and event planners that were interviewed felt that Jacksonville was 'not on the radar' as a large meeting or convention destination," the report said.
From https://www.bizjournals.com/jacksonville/news/2018/08/01/two-texas-companies-local-firm-bid-for-convention.html

[KenFSU]

Apparently, it is good to repeat yourself. A feasibility report commissioned in 2014 noted that Jacksonville was not on the radar as a convention destination. "Over 80 percent of the meeting and event planners that were interviewed felt that Jacksonville was 'not on the radar' as a large meeting or convention destination," the report said.
From https://www.bizjournals.com/jacksonville/news/2018/08/01/two-texas-companies-local-firm-bid-for-convention.html

^The full study was much more nuanced than this single line, however. The crux of the study was that 1) the Prime Osborne was actively hurting Jacksonville's reputation as a convention city, with over 80% of meeting planners who held an event there reporting that they wouldn't be returning to Jacksonville, and 2) a new convention center built into 2014 Downtown Jacksonville wouldn't work; however, a new convention center built in conjunction with other downtown redevelopment, such as restaurants, hotels, entertainment, and retail could provide a real spark for downtown redevelopment and for Jacksonville as a convention destination.

If we truly believe that projects like Lot J, the Berkman, the Trio, Atkins JEA concept, the District, Boyer's nodes, the Emerald Necklace, are going to materialize, then now is the time to be having these conversations about how to solve the convention center problem. Now is the time that major meeting planners are booking conventions for 2020 and 2021.

And if we don't, Curry needs to put that $8 million for demolition in a desk drawer somewhere until there's an actual need to knock down the old Courthouse and Annex.

Will be interesting to see if the proposals leak within that 30 day window.

My money is still on Hyatt.

I think they're playing their cards close to their chest and seeing what types of proposals come in.

Remember, whoever the city picks, Hyatt has the right to match.

[Charles Hunter]

Which of the bidding developers are linked to Hyatt?  Or, is Hyatt going to wait and see what the proposal are, then exercise there their "match" option?


[edited to fix typo]

[Steve]

And here we go with the Crazy:

https://www.bizjournals.com/jacksonville/news/2018/08/02/jaguars-unveil-plans-for-a-convention-center-hotel.html?ana=e_jac_bn_breakingnews&u=11189397374e6a451121b1b0bac0c5&t=1533219518&j=83051111

500,000 square feet and a 300 room hotel....not sure that math adds up.

[itsfantastic1]

Surprise, surprise... Shad Khan jumps into the convention fray by releasing renderings of his Shipyards/Lot J convention center prior to any Courthouse renderings being released, most likely to sway opinion unfavorably for those 3. I personally love the idea of a"Stadium District" with Lot J and the Shipyards, but I think downtown and the city in general, would be served better by the central location of the courthouse/annex building.

Shad's plan just feeds his development and shifts the center from an isolated western location to an isolated eastern location (in context to the CBD and current development)

[jaxnyc79]

I'm a much bigger fan of the convention center near the stadium.  We've had this discussion in the threads in the past.  I understand and appreciate that the old Adams Mark, now Hyatt, would want to benefit from Convention Space, but I just feel a large block building ruins the potential milieu of the core CBD, which I hope will soon be filled with a diversity of dense uses and structures along the length of Bay Street that sits in the CBD.  With the stadium, arena, and amphitheater already there, let's just make the Stadium Complex the "Mass Assembly District." 

Any chance the courthouse property can be a riverfront square with commercial (mid-rise office, retail, food) uses on the perimeter, like a smaller version of the link below?

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pra%C3%A7a_do_Com%C3%A9rcio#/media/File:Lisbon_main_square_(36622604910).jpg

[thelakelander]

Lol Jax can't support a 500k square foot convention center. This comes across like fool's gold released at a time to sway public opinion. Also, talk about taking a suburban autocentric approach to downtown development. Have we not learned anything over the last 40 years about spreading ourselves too thin to create pedestrian scale synergy?

We're actively using tax dollars to create nodes of development that directly compete with the downtown core. Short of an amphitheater, I don't think there's been one new use suggested at Lot J or Metropolitan Park that does not compete and potentially siphon opportunity for human scale synergy away from the Northbank. Vystar, JEA, the Landing and now a convention center. What's next, city hall and Hemming Park?!

[Charles Hunter]

I have a problem with Khan's timing - right after bids are accepted for the Court House site.  If he is serious, it would have been better to come forward before the CH bids were due - or even started - and propose serious negotiations with the City.  Not just release pretty drawings with no evidence of money to bring them to fruition.

[itsfantastic1]

I particularly find it interesting that Rimrock is involved with both the courthouse site and the shipyards site. I wonder if one got the "A" team and the other got the "B" team or if they just repurposed the same design in the both locations or if Rimrock prefers one alternative and tanked the other.

[jaxnyc79]

Not saying the result needs to be 500k, but it's not unreasonable to put a sprawling assembly hall outside of the CBD, but still proximal to it.