Regional Snapshots - Jacksonville
Buoyed by its port and the Navy, Jacksonville’s economy didn’t fall as hard as other Florida cities but hasn’t come back fast either. EverBank’s incentive-supported decision this year to move downtown doesn’t help Jacksonville’s overall high vacancy rate but does help downtown retailers and civic morale. Multifamily vacancies, after peaking at 12.1%, are down to 8.7%, says CBRE’s James Citrano. Retail is struggling as the market absorbs stores closed by Food Lion and others. However, 7-Eleven, after a 20-year break, is re-entering the north Florida market with plans to build 80 stores by 2015. Industrial has been slow. But the good news from the port is that Walt Disney World will bring three-fourths of its souvenirs through Jacksonville rather than Savannah. Also, Honda says it will export Ohio-made CR-Vs from Jacksonville. Real estate professionals are encouraged by Mayor Alvin Brown’s pro-growth and pro-downtown outlook.
| Sector | Vacancy | Rent (per sq. ft.) | |
| Office | 22.1% | $17.20 | |
| Industrial | 12.0 | 3.98 | |
| Retail | 11.1 | 14.86 | |
| » 1-Year Employment Change +3,200 jobs (+0.5%) | |||
James Citrano
Managing director / CBRE, Jacksonville
“Office is OK. Absorption numbers are not exciting. I haven’t seen an influx of corporate clients from the areas that generally feed us like New York and the Midwest. We see the economic generators beginning to take effect. We’ve got to have absorption of existing projects and adaptive reuse of others before we see new construction.”