Daily Record Financial News &
Wednesday, August 17, 2016
Vol. 103, No. 198 • Two Sections
35¢ www.jaxdailyrecord.com
Hillwood files plans for large warehouse Building at Cecil to be 1 million square feet
A new level of office space
The Amenities Floor includes the reception desk, co-working space, private offices and a fully equipped kitchen.
‘People really saw the vision’ for flexible space
Photos by Max Marbut
By Karen Brune Mathis Managing Editor
By Max Marbut Staff Writer The new Level Office Downtown won’t officially open for more than three weeks, but about one-third of the first phase already is leased. “It has been terrific. People really saw the vision,” said Susan Moore, center manager. After more than $4 million in acquisition and renovation costs, two floors of the four-story former 4th Judicial Circuit Public Defender’s Office building at Forsyth and Market streets have been transformed into co-working space, private offices and office suites with amenities, including a refrigerator stocked with snacks, a coffee and espresso bar and local craft beer on tap. Conference rooms and event spaces are available for clients and the public. The concept is to provide office environments for entrepreneurs and startups that want short-term leases but also want topline amenities at an outstanding address, Moore said. Co-working space leases for $199 per month on a month-to-month basis. Private offices and suites start at $399 and $2,999 per month, respectively, with 12-month terms. All clients have 24-hour secured access
Susan Moore, center manager at the new Level Office at 25 N. Market St., along Forsyth Street Downtown. to the building at 25 N. Market St., along with high-speed direct-fiber internet and Wi-Fi. Private offices and suites include VOIP telephone service with a private number, mail service, company logo on display in the reception area and on-site management.
Clients may bring their own furniture or Level Office will provide desks and chairs as needed. Painting the walls and hanging art work to personalize the space is encouraged, Moore said. For those who want only the most basic services, a “virtual office” plan is offered. Level
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Hillwood Investment Properties submitted plans to the city for a 1-million-squarefoot distribution center at AllianceFlorida at Cecil Commerce Center, although there is no identity for the company that will use it. The warehouse-distribution facility is proposed on 86.05 acres at 13333 103rd St., which is Parcel C at the industrial park in West Jacksonville. If parking is any indication of employment or use, plans show 1,159 parking spaces. Prosser Inc. is the civil engineer and Terracon Consultants Inc. provided geotechnical engineering services, according to the application. Senior Vice President Dan Tatsch at Dallas-based Hillwood declined to comment this morning. Hillwood, the city’s master developer at Cecil Commerce Center, indicated in a first-quarter report to the city it was working with at least two prospects that would need up to 1 million square feet of space. One was further along. Hillwood submitted a proposal to a broker for the prospect and hired a civil engineering consultant to lay out a facility that would start at 850,000 square feet and be expandable to 1 million square feet. The plans just submitted are for a 1,016,080-square-foot industrial building comprising about 977,000 square feet of warehouse space and 40,000 square feet for offices. Hillwood also recently filed plans for a speculative building of 407,435 square feet that can be expanded by almost 100,000 square feet. That is planned on Parcel D1 on 35.43 acres at New World Avenue and Waterworks Street. The newest industrial facility would be larger than the footprint for Amazon. com’s new structure. The Seattle-based e-commerce retailer is building a fulfillment center of 855,000 square feet in North Jacksonville. However, Amazon.com’s multilevel center at 12900 Pecan Park Road will be about 2.4 million square feet total. Mathis continued on Page A-2
Democratic committee against Curry’s pension plan Photo by David Chapman
By David Chapman Staff Writer
State Sen. Audrey Gibson is flanked by former state Sen. Tony Hill and Duval County Democratic Party Chair Neil Henrichsen while discussing her opposition to the pension referendum. The party held a news conference near the Gateway Mall on Tuesday to announce the decision.
Public
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Mayor Lenny Curry has called the Aug. 30 pension reform referendum a bipartisan solution to a crippling city financial issue. The political group that isn’t aligned with Curry doesn’t agree. The Duval Democratic Executive Committee is urging Democrats and all residents of Duval County to vote down Curry’s pension plan, calling it “flawed public policy” that disproportionately impacts low- and middleincome residents while taking on
an extra $1.5 billion in debt. “This is something that should never have become a referendum,” said Neil Henrichsen, chair of the Duval County Democratic Party, during a Tuesday morning news conference. State Sen. Audrey Gibson and former state Sen. Tony Hill joined him on a vacant lot at Norwood Avenue and Broxton Street, surrounded by forlorn businesses and dilapidated public infrastructure. Areas like these, said Gibson, were forgotten when it came to the Better Jacksonville Plan half-
Published
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26,998
cent sales tax the pension tax seeks to replace starting in 2031. “Not one cent will come into your neighborhood,” said Gibson, who said a pension solution that included “shared sacrifice” was better. Such a plan could mean an increase in property taxes, she said, which isn’t regressive. Curry has staunchly opposed increasing property taxes for pension relief. There were calls for more discussion on the issue instead of a rush to the ballot box on the proposed plan. Democratic continued on Page A-3
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