Downtown Development Update: What's rising, what's delayed

[Tacachale]

So it's safe to say that First Baptist has stifled much of DT Jax growth?

That's the feeling (and likely reality) for many in the City that have been around for a long time.  Especially alleged they fought any kind of entertainment or night life that was contrary to their conservative (e.g. no alcoholic beverages, nothing remotely sexual, including dancing, or LGBGTQ, etc.) lifestyle.  Pretty much eliminated most non-office related possibilities.

IMO their biggest impact was buying up 11 blocks of Downtown, making most of it dead space and empty most of the time. Their political influence was real but the amount they actively held back downtown growth is overstated. The rumor was that they bought up liquor licenses so bars and restaurants couldn't get them, but it was just an urban legend. They were more a boogeyman for the bigger things and bad leadership that held us back.

First Baptist went into a tailspin several years ago, and sold off most of its property, with Gateway and its constituent investors picking up the blocks. I believe they just own 3 blocks of property now, and a lot of that is empty and likely to be sold in the coming years. One of the buildings had their high school, which never had many students and I'm pretty sure doesn't even exist anymore.

At any rate, the stuff coming on line in those blocks now is really a return to the kind of thing that was there before the church campus, with a lot more residential this time.

[Ken_FSU]

Putting this here as it doesn't fit nearly elsewhere:

I had no idea that WJCT had such a sweetheart deal with the city. 100-year lease, on city-owned land, for $1 per year. Extending through 2076. Was curious about the $30k lease subsidy in the 26/27 budget and read up on the deal.

Interesting to me that we talk a lot about DCPS keeping prime riverfront property off the tax rolls, or the jail being a missed opportunity, but we don't really discuss WJCT. Seems like it could be some pretty valuable land once Met Park is revamped and the stadium and Four Seasons projects wrap.

Think we'll ever try to negotiate a move off the river for WJCT?

[jaxlongtimer]

Putting this here as it doesn't fit nearly elsewhere:

I had no idea that WJCT had such a sweetheart deal with the city. 100-year lease, on city-owned land, for $1 per year. Extending through 2076. Was curious about the $30k lease subsidy in the 26/27 budget and read up on the deal.

Interesting to me that we talk a lot about DCPS keeping prime riverfront property off the tax rolls, or the jail being a missed opportunity, but we don't really discuss WJCT. Seems like it could be some pretty valuable land once Met Park is revamped and the stadium and Four Seasons projects wrap.

Think we'll ever try to negotiate a move off the river for WJCT?

In fairness, when WJCT built a state of the art station/studio there, they were almost entirely surrounded by industrial facilities, a declining Colosseum and Gator Bowl .  That area had near zero appeal for anything else.  WJCT also produced the Jazz Festival for many years at the pavilion stage in adjacent Metro park that was, as I recall, built out around the same time as WJCT moved there from its original digs on North Main Street.  They recorded the festival and it was nationally broadcast some years on PBS which promoted Jax to a nationwide audience.

With the loss of Federal and State funding, I don't see WJCT moving anywhere (just like MOSH shouldn't have been moved).  And, no way the City has the resources to spend, likely, tens of millions to move them out.  FYI, they rent out excess office space to a number of area nonprofits, not unlike the Jessie building downtown.

Lots of nonprofit (e.g. WJCT, YMCA, Episcopal High, Bishop Kenny, MOSH, etc.) and government buildings (e.g. school board, courthouse, city hall) have been built over the decades on riverfront land or near it because those areas were industrial, brownfields or unappealing otherwise in the day and the land was dirt cheap.  They shouldn't all be penalized for being the tip of the spear for the development that finally comes around today.

[Ken_FSU]

Putting this here as it doesn't fit nearly elsewhere:

I had no idea that WJCT had such a sweetheart deal with the city. 100-year lease, on city-owned land, for $1 per year. Extending through 2076. Was curious about the $30k lease subsidy in the 26/27 budget and read up on the deal.

Interesting to me that we talk a lot about DCPS keeping prime riverfront property off the tax rolls, or the jail being a missed opportunity, but we don't really discuss WJCT. Seems like it could be some pretty valuable land once Met Park is revamped and the stadium and Four Seasons projects wrap.

Think we'll ever try to negotiate a move off the river for WJCT?

In fairness, when WJCT built a state of the art station/studio there, they were almost entirely surrounded by industrial facilities, a declining Colosseum and Gator Bowl .  That area had near zero appeal for anything else.  WJCT also produced the Jazz Festival for many years at the pavilion stage in adjacent Metro park that was, as I recall, built out around the same time as WJCT moved there from its original digs on North Main Street.  They recorded the festival and it was nationally broadcast some years on PBS which promoted Jax to a nationwide audience.

With the loss of Federal and State funding, I don't see WJCT moving anywhere (just like MOSH shouldn't have been moved).  And, no way the City has the resources to spend, likely, tens of millions to move them out.  FYI, they rent out excess office space to a number of area nonprofits, not unlike the Jessie building downtown.

Lots of nonprofit (e.g. WJCT, YMCA, Episcopal High, Bishop Kenny, MOSH, etc.) and government buildings (e.g. school board, courthouse, city hall) have been built over the decades on riverfront land or near it because those areas were industrial, brownfields or unappealing otherwise in the day and the land was dirt cheap.  They shouldn't all be penalized for being the tip of the spear for the development that finally comes around today.

Really interesting context, historically and on the non-profit side! Thanks for sharing, JLT!

[jaxlongtimer]

^ Ken, glad to assist.  I should also add that some TV, commercial, movie, recording and other media projects done in Jax have used WJCT's sound stage and other facilities for their productions.  Like many things, more there than meets the eye  .

[Steve]

When it comes to WJCT, I don't see them moving unless some developer REALLY wants the property. I think we're a ways off for that.

[acme54321]

Laura Trio going up for auction August 5th

https://www.jaxdailyrecord.com/news/2026/jul/22/foreclosure-auction-of-laura-street-trio-set-for-aug-5/

The next step toward a change of ownership of the Laura Street Trio is set to occur Aug. 5 with a court-ordered auction of the historic buildings in Downtown Jacksonville.

On July 8, the Duval County Clerk of the Courts filed notice of the sale, which stems from a foreclosure suit filed by the city of Jacksonville in November 2024 against Laura Trio LLC and Red Oak Capital Fund II LLC.

The city alleged Laura Trio LLC, which is affiliated with Trio owner SouthEast Development Group, owed $827,500 in fines for municipal code violations.

[Josh]

^ Ken, glad to assist.  I should also had that some TV, commercial, movie, recording and other media projects done in Jax have used WJCT's sound stage and other facilities for their productions.  Like many things, more there than meets the eye  .

Pippi Longstocking!

[Ken_FSU]

^ Ken, glad to assist.  I should also had that some TV, commercial, movie, recording and other media projects done in Jax have used WJCT's sound stage and other facilities for their productions.  Like many things, more there than meets the eye  .

Pippi Longstocking!

Today I learned that Tony Khan uses WJCT's studios to film television shows for Ring of Honor wrestling (AEW's minor league).

[Ken_FSU]

Re: Downtown office occupancy. Hate to say it, but I don't think it's a coincidence that Bank of America is scaling down their downtown footprint and forfeiting naming rights from the BOFA Tower at the same time they're investing $200 million into their Southside campus. Not sure what their exact headcount is downtown right now, but I'd be really worried about losing what remains when the lease comes up for renewal in 2028.

[jaxlongtimer]

Re: Downtown office occupancy. Hate to say it, but I don't think it's a coincidence that Bank of America is scaling down their downtown footprint and forfeiting naming rights from the BOFA Tower at the same time they're investing $200 million into their Southside campus. Not sure what their exact headcount is downtown right now, but I'd be really worried about losing what remains when the lease comes up for renewal in 2028.

From my conversations with bankers, most want an office of some sort downtown, mostly for local commercial bankers and wealth managers.  BofA wealth management is now mostly under the Merrill Lynch banner and they have consolidated that office with the bankers.  This said, all of it is a fraction of the employees and spaces that were once filled with lower level and supporting functions and other services.  Those have been either moved to the suburbs (like BofA) and/or consolidated in other cities (like Wells Fargo).  Locally HQ'd Everbank and Vystar are all that are left.

Losing bankers is a big hit to Downtown.  I think the next run out from Downtown could be the legal community.  When the new courthouse was built, City leaders were convinced law firms would surround it and reinvigorate that corner of Downtown.  Never happened.  And, today, most legal actions/filings/transactions can/are done electronically.  I bet most non-trial, non-criminal lawyers haven't been in the Courthouse in years so why stay Downtown?

Without lawyers, bankers and insurance (that mostly left years ago), government entities are the last significant holdouts. 

This is why residential, retail and tourism are the best opportunities to save Downtown.  Creating an ecosystem that caters to all 3 of these is critical.  As I have noted many times, this includes enlarged and more green spaces and playing more to the riverfront, upgraded security, improved streetscapes (more shade trees, wider, cleaner and better maintained sidewalks, public art, wayfinding maps and signage, etc.), zoning specific features such as requiring increased street facing activities, urban core mass transit (that is mostly nonexistent today as still can't live or visit without a car), historic preservation to add character, major support of Downtown cultural institutions and activities (not just events in the somewhat detached stadium district), weekend street closures to encourage walkability, and far better promotion locally and elsewhere of how to spend a full day or more "enjoying" Downtown. 

For the cost of several recent large incentive packages to developers, most of the above could be done and incentives would no longer be necessary while the greater public interests would be better served.

[Jax_Developer]

Downtown's need office & big business to thrive... otherwise downtown just becomes an expensive place to live. That all wraps back around to a city needing big business to sustain Top of the Market Lease Rates/Prices. Even the most Residential focused downtowns have substantially more big business than Jacksonville does.

Jacksonville would have that big business too, but consolidation and buyouts have largely reversed that & BOA moving to the suburbs is the ultimate representation of that. There's no need for the same staffing needs, as an HQ, at a branch location intentionally operated to run under the national average.

Barnett Bank sold for $15.5B in 1997... just think about that number in today's context. That is, by far, larger than any Fortune 500 locally in 2026, inflation adjusted of course.

[acme54321]

Barnett Bank sold for $15.5B in 1997... just think about that number in today's context. That is, by far, larger than any Fortune 500 locally in 2026, inflation adjusted of course.

Is it?  CSX?  FIS?

[Jax_Developer]

Barnett Bank sold for $15.5B in 1997... just think about that number in today's context. That is, by far, larger than any Fortune 500 locally in 2026, inflation adjusted of course.

Is it?  CSX?  FIS?

Look up the value of Barnett bank compared to the major banks at the time & you'll have your answer. CSX is the last man standing really..

[jcjohnpaint]

So BOA moved a large portion of employees to a 10 story box in Southside. What would have made them happy to stay DT, and not consider leaving? Sorry for the ignorance, I don't come from real estate.