WEDNESDAY June 12, 2019
Public legal notices begin on page 3
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Daily Record JACKSONVILLE
THE MATHIS REPORT
Revote for Hodges rezoning
CENTRAL FIRE STATIONRecord BUILDING SOLD Daily JACKSONVILLE
Planning Commission made a procedural error when it denied rezoning for property across from Windsor Commons shopping center.
Daily Record Daily Record JACKSONVILLE
BY SCOTT SAILER STAFF WRITER
JACKSONVILLE Photo by Monty Zickuhr
The Central Fire Station building Downtown is at 39 E. Adams St. near the Burrito Gallery and Indochine restaurants. It’s across the street from the Jessie Ball duPont Center for nonprofits.
Farley Grainger
KAREN BRUNE MATHIS EDITOR
Buyer says the historic building “lends itself to a number of uses.” After 5½ years of owning the 116-year-old Central Fire Station building, John VanPelt sold the historic Downtown property Friday for $700,000 to Iconic Real Estate Investments LLC. “We thought there was value there,” said Iconic Vice President Paul Grainger. VanPelt sold the two-story structure at Adams and Ocean streets to 39 Adams LLC, led by Jacksonville-based Iconic Real Estate Investments and its president, Farley Grainger. The property, at 39 E. Adams St.,
Paul Grainger
is assessed at $654,841. VanPelt paid $600,000 for it in January 2014 and lived there with his teenage son. Paul Grainger said Iconic is talking to tenants about the two-story, almost 10,000-square-foot structure but that it needs maintenance and upgrades. The fire station’s first floor is about 5,000 square feet of garage space, while the second floor, with views of Downtown, is about the same size for living quarters. “It lends itself to a number of uses,” Grainger said, such as offices, apartments or event space upstairs. Grainger wasn’t committed to any uses downstairs, either. “We will see where Downtown is as far as retail is concerned,” he said. Restaurants have been interested in the past. There is no time frame for development. “We could go very soon if we had someone interested, or we could wait and see,” Grainger said.
“We laid out a couple of scenarios in there and felt good about a number of different directions we could take,” he said. The fire station was one of the first structures built after the 1901 fire that destroyed Downtown. The Central Fire Station building was remodeled as a residence and was vacant for about four years before VanPelt, then with a 14-year-old son attending the nearby Episcopal School of Jacksonville, bought it and moved in. He also had a younger son, from a former wife, who would spend time there. Downtown was convenient because the base for VanPelt’s shop, where he restores and customizes cars and bikes, is on the Westside and the Episcopal School is east across the St. Johns River. VanPelt would drive daily to his Westside property and return Downtown at night. When his older son left for college, “it didn’t make sense anymore” to remain in the building. He said he listed the property on a Friday and received Iconic’s offer the next day at his asking price. “All’s well that ends well,” he said. VanPelt said Downtown living presents challenges, but he enjoyed his time. SEE MATHIS, PAGE 2
The Jacksonville Planning Commission will have another vote whether to recommend approval or denial of plans for the Hodges property at Butler Boulevard and Glen Kernan Parkway. Commission members voted 4-2 Thursday to recommend denial of the rezoning, Ordinance 2019-317. However, the recommendation was changed to deferral because of a procedural issue. There is a requirement that at least five votes, for or against, are required to move a recommendation to the City Council Land Use and Zoning Committee for review. The commission comprises nine members and three alternates. The commission is scheduled to vote again June 20 on the ordinance. It’s unclear when it could move on to council because of the council’s summer break. The owner seeks rezoning for a mixed-use planned unit development on 48.53 acres west of Hodges Boulevard between Butler Boulevard and Glen Kernan Parkway, across from Windsor Commons shopping center. The development could include up to 970 apartments along with commercial, retail, institutional and service establishments. Current zoning allows development of commercial space, including a shopping center and a big box store.
SSAILER@ JAXDAILYRECORD.COM (904) 356-2466
Angie’s Subs redesign clears hurdle Plans for a redesigned Angie’s Subs can move forward after the Jacksonville Beach Planning Commission unanimously approved owner Edward Malin’s proposal Monday night. Malin plans to tear down the structure and build a combined space at 1436 Beach Blvd. with the Jacksontucky Distillery, a barbecue restaurant and Angie’s Subs in a three-story space. When complete, Malin said it would be “a perfect complement to the Beaches,” and the bourbon distillery would become a tourist draw, much like the St. Augustine Distillery.
VOLUME 106, NO. 146 • ONE SECTION