Northeast
Florida’s Northeast is a region on the move. Positioned along I-95 just south of the Georgia state line, its signature city — Jacksonville — continues to grow, adding 82,000 residents just since 2010. At 840 square miles, it is the biggest city by area in the continental U.S. and one of only a handful nationwide where city and county governments function as one. Driving growth in this region are three Fortune 500 companies and the national or divisional headquarters of more than 80 other firms, all of which enjoy the benefits of a multimodal network of exceptional land-sea-air connections coupled with a skilled and vibrant workforce.
Logistics and Distribution
Florida’s Northeast is loaded with logistical advantages: two deep-water ports, three railroads, two commercial airports, a space port and three interstate highways — I-95, I-10 and I-75 — that put this region within an eight-hour drive of more than 61 million people. It’s no wonder that business owners needing seamless connections and ready access to their suppliers and customers are drawn here.
One of the first to arrive was Carl Suddath. In 1919, he founded a moving company with a cart and two mules, intending to simply haul goods around town for the rich and famous who came to Jacksonville to play. In 2019, the business he birthed — now called The Suddath Companies — is North America’s largest commercial mover with 30 locations worldwide and 3 million square feet of warehouse space throughout the U.S. and Europe. And it is still headquartered in Jacksonville, where its neighbors include some of the biggest names in logistics and distribution.
Amazon operates four facilities here: two fulfillment centers, one for large items, the other for small; a sortation center; and a facility where packages are sorted for last-mile delivery to customers. UPS has invested $196 million in the expansion of its distribution center at Jacksonville’s Westside Industrial Park from 532,000 to 908,000 square feet. And coming soon: a new 1-million-sq.-ft. warehouse and distribution center to serve Wayfair customers throughout the Southeast. The online mega-retailer of furniture and home goods expects to employ 250 when its facility in Alliance Florida at Cecil Commerce Center opens in 2021.
Also helping to grow Northeast’s logistics and distribution sector:
• WinSupply, an Ohio distributor of construction and industrial supplies and equipment, building a regional distribution center at Westside Industrial Park in Jacksonville.
• Sysco International Food Group expanding its Jacksonville warehouse from about 200,000 to 312,000 square feet.
• Cosmetics retailer Ulta Beauty with plans to open an e-commerce distribution facility in northwest Jacksonville in 2020.
Meanwhile, JAXPORT continues to break records. In fiscal year 2018, the port moved nearly 1.3 million containers, a 23% increase over 2017, and the third consecutive year the port has set container records. The Puerto Rico trade route registered the largest gain (37%) in cargo shipments with 737,000 container units shipped between Jacksonville and San Juan, a large portion of which were for disaster relief. Asian-based cargo trade increased by 12% with 429,000 container units moved. At nearly 10.5 million tons, general cargo volumes were up too — by 12% over 2017. In April 2019, JAXPORT welcomed the 11,923-TEU ZIM vessel Kota Pekarang, the largest container ship to ever call on Jacksonville. At the Port of Fernandina, just under 290,000 tons of cargo were handled in 2018; plans for the port’s future include deepening its channel to 40 feet and the creation of a barge system between Nassau County and Savannah, Ga.
Passenger count at Jacksonville International Airport rose to 6.4 million in 2018, a 16% rise over 2017, fueled in part by the addition of Spirit Airlines to its roster and a combined 10 new destinations offered by existing carriers Allegiant, Frontier and Southwest. To handle growth, a third concourse with six additional gates and space for new shops and restaurants is planned.
KEY PLAYERS: Amazon, Seattle, Wa.; The Suddath Companies, Jacksonville; UPS, Atlanta, Ga.
Advanced Manufacturing
Northeast Florida traces the roots of its manufacturing sector to 1910 when the Maxwell House “good to the last drop” coffee cup began glowing nightly atop what is today one of the world’s largest coffee plants. More than a century later, this sector remains a prominent engine for the region’s growing economy.
In 2011, France-based global battery manufacturer Saft opened its North American headquarters and a factory for the production of lithium-ion batteries in Jacksonville. Other manufactured products coming out of this region include: military aircraft from Northrop Grumman, St. Augustine; pulp and paper from Georgia Pacific, Palatka; writing instruments from Pilot Pen, Jacksonville; industrial equipment from GE Oil & Gas, Jacksonville; light attack aircraft for counter-insurgency from Embraer, Jacksonville; aircraft components from GRACE Aerospace, Jacksonville; stainless steel trash cans from Hans-Mill Corp., Jacksonville; and state-of-the-art solar panels from China-based JinkoSolar Holding Co., which opened its North American headquarters and first U.S. factory at Jacksonville’s Cecil Commerce Center in February 2019.
These Northeast manufacturers have plans to grow in square footage and/or staff:
• Johnson & Johnson Vision Care, Jacksonville, adding 9,600 square feet at its Jacksonville contact lens plant.
• Gioia Sails South, manufacturer of marine canvas and upholstery opening a 30,000-sq.-ft. plant in Palm Coast.
• Cellulose manufacturer Rayonier Advanced Materials creating 79 new jobs at its downtown Jacksonville headquarters.
• Rulon International, maker of wood ceilings and acoustical wood walls adding 20 employees at its St. Augustine plant.
• Collins Aerospace, formerly United Technologies Aerospace Systems, re-purposing a warehouse at Jacksonville’s Imeson International Industrial Park to make parts for the U.S. Department of Defense and other end-users.
• School-supply company Cra-Z-Art opening a manufacturing and distribution center in north Jacksonville by the end of 2021.
KEY PLAYERS: JinkoSolar, Shanghai; Johnson & Johnson Vision Care, Jacksonville; Northrop Grumman, Falls Church, Va.; Rayonier Advanced Materials, Jacksonville
Renewable / Alternative Energy
Solar: In keeping with its commitment to install 30 million solar panels across Florida by 2030, Florida Power & Light is doubling its solar footprint in the Northeast region with the addition of two new solar power plants. Northern Preserve Solar Energy Center in Baker County and Twin Lakes Solar Energy Center in Putnam County are currently under construction and expected to begin powering FPL customers in early 2020. They join two other FPL solar plants opened in this region in early 2018: Coral Farms Solar Energy Center serving Putnam County and Horizon Solar Energy Center serving Putnam and Alachua counties.
Additionally, JEA, Jacksonville’s municipal utility, is working to increase solar capacity by 350%; five new solar farms generating up to 300 megawatts of power are planned.
Liquefied Natural Gas (LNG): Liquefied natural gas — natural gas that has been cooled to a liquid state for shipping and storage — is both a versatile and efficient energy source. And Northeast Florida is on track to become an international leader in its production and export. In summer 2018, Jacksonville-based Crowley Maritime launched its first LNG-powered ship from JAXPORT. With an eye to meeting increasingly stricter global limits on ship emissions, Crowley turned to LNG, which is cleaner than diesel fuel. In July 2018, Crowley’s El Coqui made history on its maiden voyage from Jacksonville to San Juan, Puerto Rico — the first time an American-flagged ship designed to transport vehicles operated on LNG. A second carrier — TOTE Maritime — soon followed, launching its own LNG-powered ships from JAXPORT.
Fast-forward to May 2019, and the opening of JAX LNG, the first small-scale LNG facility in the U.S. with both marine and truck-loading capabilities at JAXPORT. A joint venture of Pivotal LNG and NorthStar Midstream, JAX LNG currently has the capacity to produce 12,000 gallons of LNG per day and store more than 2 million, and there is enough room at the Dames Point site at JAXPORT to quintuple production and double storage space.
KEY PLAYERS: Crowley Maritime, Jacksonville; Florida Power & Light, Juno Beach; TOTE Maritime, Princeton, N.J.
Financial / Professional Services
Home to more than 20 institutions on Forbes’ Global 500 list, the Northeast is widely known as a banking, investment and insurance powerhouse. Bank of America/Merrill Lynch, Citi, JP Morgan Chase, Fidelity National Financial, FIS (Fidelity National Information Services), Wells Fargo, VyStar Credit Union, Frankfurt-based Deutsche Bank and Sydney-based Macquarie Group all have significant presence in Jacksonville, as do insurance giants Florida Blue, Aetna and Allstate.
Within the next year, VyStar Credit Union will move its 700 Jacksonville-based employees from a suburban site to the SunTrust tower downtown. In the meantime, VyStar has acquired Citizens State Bank in Perry, bringing the number of its full-service branches to 55 and total assets to nearly $8.9 billion, and purchased the rights to rebrand Jacksonville’s Veterans Memorial Arena as VyStar Veterans Memorial Arena.
Bangalore-based business process management firm Hinduja Global Solutions has opened a customer service center in Jacksonville to serve clients in a variety of industries, including banking, consumer electronics, health care, telecom and automotive; 400 jobs are anticipated.
KEY PLAYERS: Florida Blue, Jacksonville; Fidelity National Financial/FIS, Jacksonville; VyStar Credit Union, Jacksonville
Health Care
Health care in this region is superior and growing. Four Northeast hospitals earned top 50 rankings on U.S. News & World Report’s “Best Hospitals 2019-20” list.
Mayo Clinic Jacksonville garnered the most attention in the 2019-20 rankings with recognition in three categories: geriatrics, neurology and neurosurgery, and urology. In 2018, Mayo opened a five-story, 190,000-sq.-ft treatment center for oncology, hematology, neurology and neurosurgery at its Jacksonville campus and added a $10-million positron emission tomography (PET) radiochemistry facility, bringing its total local presence to 2.6 million square feet.
UF Health Jacksonville claimed excellence in two U.S. News & World Report categories: ear, nose and throat, and nephrology. In 2018, UF Health opened the first Epilepsy Wellness Center in the region at its UF Health Neuroscience Institute in Jacksonville and began building a medical outpost in Wildlight, a master-planned community east of I-95 in Nassau County, to provide primary and urgent care, imaging, pediatrics, obstetrics and dentistry.
Baptist Medical Center Jacksonville garnered recognition from U.S. News & World Report for its gynecology and diabetes & endocrinology care. Currently underway at Baptist’s downtown Jacksonville campus: upgrades to birthing and postpartum rooms in the maternity department with an estimated completion date of early 2020. Next up, a freestanding ER in west Jacksonville, the ninth such Baptist Health System facility in the region.
And Flagler Hospital in St. Augustine was ranked No. 23 nationwide for diabetes and endocrinology care.
In addition, Wolfson Children’s Hospital in Jacksonville earned accolades on U.S. News & World Report’s “Best Children’s Hospitals, 2019-20” list, ranking No. 48 and No. 50 respectively nationwide for pediatric neurology and neurosurgery and cancer care.
Life & Leisure
Past Is Present
Northeast Florida is America’s birthplace. Spaniards came ashore near what is today St. Augustine a full 55 years before the Brits touched ground at Plymouth Rock, and they left significant evidence behind. Worth a close-up look: Castillo de San Marcos (oldest masonry fort in the continental U.S.), the oldest house, oldest wooden schoolhouse in Florida, St. Augustine Lighthouse & Maritime Museum and more. The Civil War looms large in this region too. Florida’s bloodiest Civil War confrontation — the Battle of Olustee — took place in what is today Baker County in 1864. A live reenactment commemorates the event each February.
Plenty More to See and Do
Northeast Florida beyond St. Augustine offers many attractions including: Jacksonville’s Cummer Museum of Art and Gardens, Museum of Science and History (MOSH) and Jacksonville Zoo and Gardens (check out the new African Forest exhibit); historic downtown Fernandina Beach (400+ historic homes, churches and commercial buildings); Flagler Beach, named one of America’s “Coolest Small Towns” by Budget Travel Magazine; Green Cove Springs, which some believe to be the actual “Fountain of Youth” that Ponce de Leon came looking for; and swimming, snorkeling, sailing and surfing along 90 miles of Atlantic Ocean coastline.
Great Golfing … and More
Golfers love Florida’s Northeast with its more than 80 courses, including TPC Sawgrass in Ponte Vedra where the Players PGA Tournament is held annually in March. And under construction nearby, PGA Tour’s new 187,000-sq.-ft. headquarters. Estimated completion: 2020.
Aside from golf, Northeast has plenty of other sports to cheer for: the NFL Jacksonville Jaguars at newly re-christened TIAA Bank Field, the AFL Jacksonville Sharks, Minor League Baseball’s Jacksonville Jumbo Shrimp, the NASL Jacksonville Armada FC and one of college sports’ biggest rivalries, the annual Florida-Georgia Football Classic.