Daily Record Financial News &
THURSDAY, DECEMBER 1, 2016
Vol. 104, No. 013 • oNe SectioN
35¢ www.jaxdailyrecord.com
Downtown Riverplace Tower sells for $53.4M
Hoping to demolish‘aging relic
Lingerfelt CommonWealth Partners LLC said Wednesday it sold the 50-year-old Riverplace Tower on the Downtown Southbank for $53.4 million. It did not identify the date of the sale or the buyer, and the sale has not been recorded with the Duval County Clerk of Courts. Senior Vice President John Mason said he could not comment beyond the news release because of confidentiality provisions. Richmond, Va.-based Lingerfelt CommonWealth bought the tower Oct. 30, 2014, for $29 million. That means it sold it at almost double the price in about two years. Lingerfelt CommonWealth bought and owned the property through CFLC Replace LLC, which comprises the company and Fortress Investment Group LLC of New York. A Fortress spokesman said Wednesday the group typically does not comment on transactions. The 28-story building, at 1301 Riverplace Blvd., is 441,000 square feet. At that size, the tower sold for $121 per square foot. Its 2017 assessed value in progress is $27 million, according to the Duval County RIVERPLACE CONTINUED ON PAGE 4
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Mayor Lenny Curry is seeking $50 million to demolish a stretch of elevated roadway from the Hart Bridge, above, that allows motorists access to Downtown. Curry, at right, said the reconfiguration would let motorists enter and exit the Hart Bridge from Bay Street and eliminate safety hazards on the current roadway.
Photos by David Chapman
By Karen Brune Mathis Managing Editor
By David Chapman Staff Writer Last year, it was about building bridges for pension reform. This year, it’s about knocking down parts of a bridge itself. Mayor Lenny Curry made a pitch Wednesday to members of the Duval County Legislative Delegation to secure money to knock down the nearly 50-yearold, elevated portion of the Hart Bridge expressway that leads to the heart of Downtown.
He called the ramp an “aging relic.” Curry later said he is seeking $50 million for the project that would be handled by the Florida Department of Transportation. He said it was premature to discuss any potential city funding for the project. The road would be reconfigured so motorists would enter Downtown from Bay Street near EverBank Field. Currently, the elevated roadway takes them to Adams or Duval Streets. Curry said the idea has been discussed internally for about a month. An FDOT spokeswoman in a message
Wednesday said the city has discussed the early concept with the department and it is evaluating the request. There are several reasons Curry wants to demolish the stretch of roadway. His priorities for the project, he said, are traffic flow and safety. The roadway has no breakdown lanes, nor does it have dedicated room for pedestrians or bicyclists. It also only flows west on the river-side of Bay Street. The initial use of the stretch was to allow a roadway to co-exist with shipyards along the St. Johns River. RAMP CONTINUED ON PAGE 4
File photo
Curry seeking $50M to replace ramp off Hart Bridge
Riverplace Tower
City changing plan for Downtown riverfront
By Max Marbut Staff Writer The city will reconsider its intent to revitalize Downtown along East Bay Street by adding more publicly owned real estate to its scope and nullifying a redevelopment proposal from Jacksonville Jaguars owner Shad Khan that was approved 19 months ago but never acted upon. At the request of the mayor’s office, the Downtown Investment Authority is scheduled to consider a new request for proposals for redevelopment of not only the Shipyards property, but other urban riverfront property owned by the city.
Public
Chief Administrative Officer Sam Mousa on Nov. 22 asked authority CEO Aundra Wallace to expand the real estate inventory in the RFP, title it “Notice of disposition/redevelopment of city-owned riverfront property” and to drop the phrase “known as the Shipyards site.” Mayor Lenny Curry said Wednesday he wants to see improvements around EverBank Field, and East Bay Street from Metropolitan Park to the Plaza at Berkman condominiums. Mousa’s email did not say which properties he was referring to. The DIA board of directors in April 2015 authorized Wallace to begin contract negotiations with Iguana Investments Florida
legal NoticeS begiN oN Page
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Mousa
LLC, owned by Khan, after the company was selected from three respondents to redevelop the site. Iguana’s plan included up to 600 residential units with a mari-
na, office space, a hotel and community football fields representing a private investment of $428 million to $663 million. Questions immediately arose about the city’s contributions to the project, including improvements to East Bay Street and mitigation of environmental issues that would be needed before any construction could begin. When there was no contract eight months later, Wallace said negotiations had not stalled, but that Khan’s Downtown redevelopment focus had changed to the amphitheater project at the stadium, which is underway. The mayor’s office said Wednesday the final environmental report on the site has not
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been issued and the cost to remediate environmental issues is not known. Wallace said the negotiations with Iguana will be closed and that all city property Downtown will be “under consideration” in the new request. He is in discussions with the mayor’s office concerning the specific scope of the new solicitation and will have a draft ready for the board when it meets Dec. 14. “It’s a major asset and we want to take advantage of as much of the market conditions as we can,” Wallace said. mmarbut@jaxdailyrecord.com (904) 356-2466
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