McCoys Landing

Description

McCoy’s Landing is a proposed multifamily rental development to be located at 91 S. Myrtle Avenue, Jacksonville, FL. It will involve the razing of the 52,000 sf Duval Container warehouse building. The razed area will be replaced by a single new structure.

This project would apply for the Multifamily Rev Grant through the Downtown Investment Authority (DIA) that provides around a 20-year, 75% tax rebate on the city portion of the tax bill, as long as certain development, affordability and design elements are met. We intend to meet the criteria to achieve the 75% threshold. In Jacksonville, “affordable” is considered 120% of AMI, which would be our resident population, anyway. The property would be redeveloped as a high density multi-family project with exterior design approval by the DDRB and a Redevelopment Agreement through the DIA. The DDRB is similar to a typical Planning Commission and has the authority to approve detailed site plans and exterior design. The City Council only comes in on financial incentive decisions such as the Rev Grant if certain DIA thresholds are exceeded.

The site is located in the LaVilla District of downtown Jax. Other large apartment projects and even recent retail and entertainment has entered the burgeoning District and adjacent Brooklyn District. It is approximately one mile to the St. John’s River, with its water recreation and beauty. The top floors would have an unabated view of the River. FIS (Fidelity Insurance) is adding hundreds of jobs to their HQ in the district. Other downtown employers include Vystar Credit Union, Bank of America, Florida Blue, CSX and major health providers, MD Anderson and Ascension/St. Vincent’s. It is an easy, short drive to other large area employers like Citibank, Southeastern Grocers (Winn-Dixie), UF Health, Mayo Clinic, Amazon, and the Naval Air Station/Jax & Mayport and its 35,000 jobs. I-95 is next to the site that connects to all area interstates and is one of the heaviest traveled interstates in the US with it running from the Northeast US to the tip of the southeast coast of Florida.

Upon completion, the project will offer a total of 275 elegant multifamily units in a 7-story building (5 stories of wood frame over a 2-story basement garage). The new building will have a plaza on top of the garage getting west sun that will include a pool, grill area and outdoor kitchen. A glass-enclosed fitness room and community room will be on the deck. Other amenities include a cyber café, a game room, package services, a bike storage/bike-washing area and a pet-washing area. The site is just north of the to be restored McCoy’s Creek, which will connect to and be a part of  the Emerald Trail The Downtown Park Assessment and Plan (the “Plan”) has programmed a future McCoy’s Creek kayak launch at this part of the creek which will ultimately connect to the St. Johns River. A biking/walking path is also proposed to connect with the other portions of the Emerald Trail to the St. Johns River, other areas of downtown and to the west. A potential passive and/or active park is identified in the Plan north of McCoy’s Creek and south of the property to further activate this area of LaVilla and McCoy’s Creek.

The nature and timing of the entitlements required are as follows: roughly 7 months 7-15-23 to get DDRB Conceptual Plan approval and 9-15-23 to get Final Site Plan Approval and DIA Tax Abatement.

The units will have balconies/patios, high-end appliances, 9-10 foot ceilings, in-unit washer/dryers, ceiling fans, and central heat/air conditioning.  The construction will extend the economic viability of the building and will complement the surrounding neighborhood. Air-filtering systems, large outdoor area(s), stringent sanitation practices and testing, if necessary, and touchless technology will be in place to address any pathogen crisis.

The units will be offered at approximately the following rental rates:

Studio:    $1,400

1BR:        $1,800

2BR:        $2,200

These rents are at rents that are achievable based on the high incomes of the workers in the area and in keeping with the comparable luxury rents in the area. The latest reports have shown 20% rent increase year over year, down from 25%. The overall vacancy in the submarket is roughly 5%. There is a rental housing shortage in the area. Employment increases continue at a strong pace. In-migration from all over the country has been very strong.

Project costs will total approximately $97 million dollars, to be made possible by the equity generated from owner and a permanent/construction loan from the private lender/investor. Operating expenses will be reduced to enable quality returns through the tax abatement. The project developer is Garrison L. Hassenflu. Mr. Hassenflu is Managing Member of MW Development Enterprises, LLC, the development entity. He is also President of Garrison Management Company, the property’s property manager. These companies along with other affiliated companies make up the umbrella entity, Garrison and MW Companies (www.garrisoncompanies.com). He has over twenty five years of experience in development, having developed over $140,000,000 in affordable and mixed income living units totaling over 1400 units in 6 states. Currently, he has a portfolio of 400 units, having sold many of his developments. His work has received national acclaim from the National Housing and Rehab Association.

The project will be constructed by a highly qualified, local GC and designed by G4 Design, Jacksonville.

We expect a November 1, 2023, construction start with a September 1, 2025, completion. We anticipate absorption of 30 units per month, which is comparable to other sub-market lease-ups.