MONDAY April 8, 2019
Public legal notices begin on page 3
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Daily Record JACKSONVILLE
DEVELOPMENT
Vestcor pushing into Brooklyn
Daily Record JACKSONVILLE
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An early Vestcor Companies design concept for the Lofts at Brooklyn, a 133-unit apartment community along Spruce Street between Jackson and Stonewall streets.
JACKSONVILLE
Construction to start this summer on the Lofts at Brooklyn apartments.
BY DAVID CAWTON STAFF WRITER
With three projects developed or nearing completion in LaVilla, The Vestcor Companies is shifting its focus to neighboring Brooklyn, where it plans to build workforce and affordable housing. Ryan Hoover, president of Vestcor’s TVC Development Inc., said construction of the 133-unit Lofts at Brooklyn could begin by mid-
summer. “We’re moving full speed ahead,” said Hoover. “We’re in the design stages right Hoover now and we’ll head to the DDRB in May,” he said referring to the Downtown Development Review Board. The DDRB oversees building
design standards for Downtown, LaVilla, Brooklyn and property on the Southbank. Hoover provided a rendering of the project, which features the same aesthetic as the previous projects. “This is an early design,” said Hoover. “As always, we’ll be looking for feedback from the DDRB when we present to them, so expect some changes,” he said. Hoover said Vestcor will seek
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conceptual design approval in May, and final approval from the board in June or July. This is Vestcor’s first project in Brooklyn. The company spent the past three years building affordable and mixed-income projects in LaVilla. The Lofts at Brooklyn received the backing of the Florida Housing Finance Corp. which awarded SEE VESTCOR, PAGE 2
THE MATHIS REPORT
City issues permit for Cra-Z-Art building in North Jacksonville
KAREN BRUNE MATHIS EDITOR
Cra-Z-Art is closer to opening a Jacksonville manufacturing and distribution center in North Jacksonville. The city issued a permit Thursday for Evans General Contractors, of Alpharetta, Georgia, to build the structure at 10501 Cold Storage Road in Imeson Park at a cost of $11.74 million. The permit allows construction of the 300,000-square-
foot shell Imeson 300 building, meaning that interior work will be permitted separately. The permit approved Thursday also allows construction of parking, utilities, roads and landscaping. The clearing and grading permit was approved in October. VanTrust Real Estate LLC is developing Imeson Park. VanTrust agreed to sell the completed Imeson 300 building to
The Silverman Group of Basking Ridge, New Jersey, which is leasing it to Cra-Z-Art. Cra-Z-Art sells activity, art and school supplies, toys and stationery products. It will relocate and consolidate manufacturing and distribution from the Midwest and New Jersey. It is a division of Randolph, New Jersey-based LaRose Industries LLC.
City Council approved incentives in November for the project, known then as Project Buckeye. Cra-Z-Art proposes to hire 21 full-time production supervisors, management staff and warehouse personnel in Jacksonville by year-end 2021 at an average $53,298 annually. KMATHIS@JAXDAILYRECORD.COM (904) 356-2466
Gator Bowl Sports chairman named Adecco Group executive Rich Thompson is the 2019 chairman of Gator Bowl Sports. Thompson will preside over the TaxSlayer Gator Bowl and the JaxSports Council and JaxSports Charities. Thompson and his family moved to Jacksonville in 2013 from Zurich, where he worked at Adecco’s international headquarters. He was a kicker for the University of Wisconsin football team and earned first-team All-Big Ten honors in 1992. “I look forward to utilizing my background in athletics and business acumen to contribute to the continued success of Gator Bowl Sports,” Thompson said in a news release.
VOLUME 106, NO. 100 • ONE SECTION