Daily Record Financial News &
Wednesday, July 27, 2016
Vol. 103, No. 183 • Two Sections
35¢ www.jaxdailyrecord.com
Amazon.com makes it official Company confirms Jacksonville center that will bring 1,500 jobs
By Karen Brune Mathis Managing Editor Amazon.com announced this morning it will open a fulfillment center in North Jacksonville, creating more than 1,500 full-time jobs. JAXUSA Partnership President Jerry Mallot said in an Amazon. com news release the fulfillment center marks the single largest jobs announcement in Jacksonville’s history. “This project further supports our strategy of targeting outstand-
ing companies and solidifies Jacksonville as a region of wide open opportunity where anything is possible,” he said. The news release from the Seattle-based global e-commerce retailer did not say when the more than 800,000-square-foot fulfillment center would open, although city legislation for incentives said the jobs must be created by December 2019. The center is under development at 12900 Pecan Park Road, north of Interstate 295.
Akash Chauhan, vice president of Amazon’s North America Operations, said the company looked forward to continue building relationships in the community “to make Jacksonville home.” Amazon employees will pick, pack and ship small items, such as books, electronics and consumer goods and will work alongside innovative technologies to fulfill customer orders, the release said. Gov. Rick Scott and Mayor Lenny Curry also were quoted in the release.
“It is great news that Amazon continues to invest in Florida and create new jobs for our families. I look forward to their continued success in Jacksonville and across our state,” Scott said. Curry called the deal “a huge win for our city and citizens.” The company said full-time employees receive competitive hourly wages and a comprehensive benefits package. Amazon.com said job candidates can visit amazondelivers. jobs.
Last week, a developer bought more than 170 acres for development of the site. The $200 million project’s base footprint is 855,000 square feet and total size is almost 2.4 million square feet, according to plans. City and state incentives will provide $18.4 million in refunds, grants, training and road improvements. kmathis@jaxdailyrecord.com @MathisKb (904) 356-2466
Public
Melissa Ross chats with The Pratt Guys on First Coast Connect this month. The brothers, from left, Derek, Adam and Jason Pratt own a local outdoor living design business. Ross has been host of the show since its Aug. 1, 2009, debut.
Connecting with her audience
‘Goodbye to broadcasting’ wasn’t permanent By Fran Ruchalski Contributing Writer
A bust of Ron Burgundy from the movie “Anchorman” was a gift from her producer.
First Coast Connect is on 9-10 a.m. weekdays on WJCT 89.9 FM.
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Ten minutes before First Coast Connect’s debut in 2009, the show’s first guest hadn’t arrived. WJCT General Manager Michael Boylan had made a special request of Jacksonville Jaguars owner Wayne Weaver to be on the inaugural hourlong show. It was a way to get the program off with a bang and establish credibility. Host Melissa Ross frantically called Weaver’s secretary and found out he had forgotten about the show. Luckily, the Jaguars stadium is across the street from WJCT and Weaver made it in time. First Coast Connect was off and running. Ross wasn’t surprised at what happened. “We were starting from ground zero.” she said. “Nobody knew anything about it. It had no footprint in this market. Nothing.” Since then, First Coast Connect has become a staple in the area, focusing mostly on local issues, personalities and newsmakers. The show’s diversity was evident the Monday before the start of the Republican National Convention. Florida Rep. Lake Ray, R-Jacksonville, and Alex Sink, a former Democratic gubernatorial candidate, were on to talk about Donald Trump’s campaign. Three brothers who started the Pratt Guys out-
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I’ve gotten to know some wonderful people that are doing that kind of work. And that’s really gratifying.
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The Strand at Town Center will soon be coming out of the ground, bringing new retailers to town as well as some regulars. Hoar Construction LLC of Birmingham, Ala., is the contractor listed on the first set of seven permit applications that have a total construction cost of $10.7 million. Those permits cover seven buildings, totaling 115,560 square feet of retail space, along Town Center Parkway across from The Markets at Town Center. No tenants are listed on the permit applications or on the plans. The structures are for shell buildings ranging from 10,288 to 35,656 square of space. Based on a separate site plan, it appears one of the larger buildings will be for 2nd & Charles, a buyer and reseller of books, CDs and other media. The store is a division of Books-A-Million Inc., whose Preferred Growth Properties real estate subsidiary is developing the center. Books-A-Million and Preferred Growth Properties are based in Birmingham. A smaller building seems to be one that includes TD Ameritrade. Four of the structures appear to be for small shops, while the largest is for an unidentified anchor tenant that has been in lease negotiations. The architect is ArchitectureWorks LLP, also of Birmingham. Separately, Chuy’s Mexican Food has submitted construction plans to the city for a 312-seat, 7,692-square-foot restaurant near the seven buildings. Preferred Growth Properties also is developing The Crossing at Town Center. Chuy’s, 2nd & Charles, Cheddar’s Scratch Kitchen, Firebirds Wood Fired Grill, PGA Tour Superstore, Goo-Goo 3 Minute Express Wash and Wawa are among the new retailers expected to open at The Strand and The Crossing. No opening dates have been announced, although several retailers indicate they expect to start operating late next year. Mathis continued on Page A-4
Photos by Fran Ruchalski
Walls will soon be forming at The Strand
Melissa Ross, First Coast Connect host about listeners working to improve the city
door living design business chatted about their success and plans to broaden the company’s reach outside the region. And local sports guy, Cole Pepper, talked about the weekend’s sports results. First Coast Connect has received several local awards, but also has earned four Public Radio News Directors Inc. awards for “Best Call-In Program.” Ross came to the show as a 20-year veteran of the television news business. “Working in public radio is completely different from commercial media because public media is mission-driven. So the values are different,” she said. And she believes in those values. Workspace
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