Mackoul Distributors Inc., a 104-year-old Jacksonville-based family company that puts candy and snack foods on shelves statewide, is expanding in the Jacksonville International Tradeport.
Mackoul, through Tradeport North LLC, bought an almost 90,000-square-foot warehouse at 13350 International Parkway from Flagler Development Co.
Mackoul paid $3.45 million for the 5.1-acre property. Ameris Bank issued two mortgages totaling $3.16 million. The documents were signed Friday and recorded Wednesday with the Duval County Clerk of Court.
Flagler owned the property through FDG Jacksonville International Tradeport LLC. The property’s 2014 assessed value in progress is $2.75 million.
Third-generation President Ron Mackoul said Wednesday the company has been leasing space at the Tradeport building for about 15 years, “and Flagler finally relented to sell it to us.”
Mackoul Distributors leases 36,000 square feet of space at the building and intends to expand to 45,000 square feet and retain the tenants using the other space.
The company is based at 3425 N. Main St., where it owns a 38,000-square-foot warehouse on 2.08 acres.
Mackoul said the long-term strategy is to consolidate at the Tradeport property and eventually decide what to do with the Main Street site.
Owning at the Tradeport is a strategic move.
“We have a little more control of our destiny,” Mackoul said.
“We really like the Tradeport area, we really like the space. This way, we can control the property long-term,” he said.
The company has about 45 employees and the majority work at the Tradeport, he said.
Mackoul Distributors, which has
revenue of $50 million a year, distributes candy, snacks, tobacco products and sundries to gas stations, liquor stores and college bookstores statewide.
The company began in 1910 from a grocery store on Bay Street Downtown as A. Mackoul Tobacco Co., selling tobacco and candy to grocery and drug stores in Jacksonville, according to mackoul.net and mackoulfoods.com.
Mackoul said there were several locations before it built its Main Street location, which was later expanded.
It leased the Tradeport space in North Jacksonville, near Jacksonville International Airport, in the late 1990s.
The company had a foodservice business but divested that in 2011 to focus on its retail distribution. While it has some business in Georgia, it is predominantly Florida-based.
Interline, Continental Concession expand at Westside park
Interline Brands is expanding its Jacksonville distribution center in the Westside Industrial Park by 25,000 square feet, growing to 300,000 square feet.
Jacksonville-based Interline, a national distributor and direct marketer of maintenance, repair and operations products, leases space at a 446,000-square-foot building at 4601 Bulls Bay Highway.
The expansion coincides with the relocation and expansion of neighboring tenant, Continental Concession Supplies Inc., which is growing by 11,000 square feet to 36,000 square feet in the building.
Continental Concession Supplies distributes candy to movie theaters, stadiums and retail stores. It has operated in Jacksonville for 10 years.
The company, based in New Hyde Park, N.Y., began as a producer of fruit drinks and pre-popped popcorn more than 30 years ago and has grown into a national distributor specializing in the theater and specialty markets. Jacksonville is one of seven warehouse locations across the country.
The city issued a permit Tuesday for Pattillo Construction Corp. to renovate space for Continental Concession Supplies at a project cost of $209,075.
Continental Concession moved to accommodate the Interline expansion, while another tenant adjusted its space to provide for Continental Concession.
Wasserstrom Co., which occupies the remainder of the building, had taken a 146,000-square-foot space, but is using 110,000 square feet.
The extra was available for Continental Concession.
The city recently approved construction of a demising wall by Pattillo Construction for Wasserstrom at a construction cost of $101,545.
Wasserstrom, a Columbus, Ohio-based restaurant and foodservice supply distributor, operates five distribution centers across the country.
Its Jacksonville warehouse was a 62,390-square-foot building in Imeson International Industrial Park at 9400 Busch Drive in North Jacksonville before its move to Westside. It owns that property.
Pattillo Industrial Real Estate represents and manages Westside Industrial Park. Pattillo Industrial is headquartered in Stone Mountain, Ga., and has owned property in Jacksonville for more than 40 years.
Gatlin buys Wilson Square Shopping Center
Gatlin Development Co. of Fort Lauderdale bought the Wilson Square Shopping Center on Tuesday for $2.7 million, which indicates it will continue with its plans to redevelop a former Food Lion there into a Walmart Neighborhood Market.
Gatlin, through GDC Wilson LLC, bought the 8.8-acre shopping center at 6855 Wilson Blvd. from Wilson Square LLC of Hallandale. The almost 76,500-square-foot center includes the almost 40,000-square-foot supermarket building.
First Tennessee Bank issued a mortgage of $2.87 million. The property has a 2014 assessed value in progress of $2.63 million.
The Daily Record reported Feb. 18 that the Wilson Square Walmart Neighborhood Market was in review as a $1.6 million renovation of another former Food Lion that Gatlin intended to remodel. It will be the area’s fifth Walmart Neighborhood Market.
The four Walmart Neighborhood Markets that opened last year are in former Food Lion stores in Gatlin properties: Merrill Station in Arlington; the Crossroads at Mandarin in Mandarin; Julington Square along Florida 13 in St. Johns County; and along County Road 220 in Middleburg in Clay County.
Gatlin’s website is gatlindc.com.
FCTI Nationwide build-out approved
The city approved the permit Tuesday for FCTI Nationwide ATM Network to renovate 14,002 square feet of space in Southside at 7018 A.C. Skinner Parkway, No. 230.
The Malle Co. is the contractor for the $104,000 project.
As the Daily Record reported March 12, FCTI Nationwide ATM Network bought Jacksonville-based Global Axcess Corp.’s ATM network and was making plans to relocate in Southside.
The new location is a mile from the Global Axcess offices at 7800 Belfort Parkway, Suite 165. Global Axcess announced Aug. 6 that it filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy reorganization but had a deal in place to sell its main business.
FCTI — Financial Consulting & Trading International Inc. — is based in Century City, Calif., and announced in September that it agreed to buy all of the ATM-related assets of Global Axcess and its affiliates. The $10.9 million transaction was completed in September.
FCTI has been leasing Global’s 7,900 square feet of space in a short-term agreement through April 30.
FCTI representatives have not commented.
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