City and Downtown Investment Authority officials can spend $32.9 million to buy three parking garages owned and operated by Metropolitan Parking Solutions should the 4th Judicial Circuit Court find the company in default of its 2004 city contract.
The Jacksonville City Council approved Ordinance 2021-0179 on April 27 to authorize short-term or fixed-rate debt funding and to allow the DIA to exercise its contract option to buy the MPS parking garages at the Duval County Courthouse and VyStar Veterans Memorial Arena.
The vote was 18-0.
The 17-year-old redevelopment agreement has cost the city millions.
When the garages were built, the city agreed to make the payments in the form of development loans to cover MPS operating losses and to ensure a 6.75% annual return on the company’s $3 million required investment.
The JAX Chamber board of directors endorsed Mayor Lenny Curry and the Jacksonville Transportation Authority’s proposal to increase and extend Duval County’s local option gas tax to pay for nearly $1 billion in infrastructure projects.
In a news release April 22, the Northeast Florida business membership group announced its board voted unanimously to support the gas tax legislation filed this week by City Council President Tommy Hazouri at Curry’s request.
The release also reaffirmed the chamber’s support for JTA’s plan to expand and modernize the Downtown Skyway that the authority calls the Ultimate Urban Circulator.
JTA officials propose spending nearly $372 million in gas tax money to fund the $415.96 million U2C project.
02:17 PM EST Share The 6-cent increase at the pump would fund nearly $1 billion in city and JTA infrastructure projects, including $372 million for the Downtown Skyway.
Mayor Lenny Curry filed legislation with City Council to partner with the Jacksonville Transportation Authority to extend and double Duval County’s local option gas tax to pay for nearly $1 billion in infrastructure projects.
During a Council workshop April 21, President Tommy Hazouri said he and the Curry administration will file a bill concurrently that would use money freed by added gas tax revenue to spend about $100 million over two years to remove aging septic tanks and connect underserved neighborhoods to city sewers.
05:10 AM EST Share The parties are seeking resolution as City Council prepares to vote on $32.9 million to purchase three parking garages.
The Downtown Investment Authority’s and the city’s legal fight with Metropolitan Parking Solutions over the company’s 2004 redevelopment agreement for three parking garages is headed to mediation in the 4th Judicial Circuit Court.
Attorneys for the three parties are scheduled for a Zoom videoconference at 9:30 a.m. May 5 to begin mediation in the case, according to records filed Feb. 18 with the Duval County Clerk of Courts.
MPS filed a lawsuit in September alleging the city and DIA were in breach of contract and in default when the city withheld portions of several development loan payments owed to the company for parking garages at the Duval County Courthouse and VyStar Veterans Memorial Arena owned and operated by MPS.
06:00 PM EST Share The city-owned utility says it will contract a personnel search firm to find three top roles and made internal shifts and one new hire.
JEA CEO Jay Stowe announced Feb. 17 he is restructuring the municipal electric and water utility’s corporate leadership team and launching a search for three top roles.
According to the news release, JEA will hire an executive search firm to help find the utility’s next chief operating officer, chief financial officer and chief external affairs officer by July 31.
This is the first major senior leadership shake-up since July 2020 when interim JEA CEO Paul McElroy fired the nine remaining executives who served under fired CEO Aaron Zahn’s team.