Public accounting firm Ernst & Young chose Flagler Center as its expansion and relocation site and expects to move toward the end of June or July.
It will lease 45,181 square feet for relocation of its Downtown office and its new client service delivery center.
Mike Brennan, North Florida Offices managing partner for Ernst & Young LLP, said about 530 employees will work at the new location.
In addition to the 450 new jobs it will create, Ernst & Young will relocate 80 from the Wells Fargo Center Downtown, Brennan said.
Michael Loftin, managing director for Banyan Street Capital, the building manager for Wells Fargo, said Ernst & Young leased 4,000 square feet at the center and moved there seven years ago from the Bank of America tower.
Brennan said that office will be combined with the new client delivery service center in one business park.
The company said in a news release Thursday it would lease 15,759 square feet in Lakeside Two at 12740 Gran Bay Parkway W. and 29,422 square feet in Lakeside Five at 12926 Gran Bay Parkway W.
A spokeswoman said no contractor has been selected for the tenant improvements.
Brennan said Ernst & Young has hired 100 people for the new center and they operate out of temporary leased space in Flagler Center.
The center, which is between Interstate 95 and Philips Highway, south of Old St. Augustine Road, is owned by Crocker Partners.
Ross Carrier and Mark Montgomery, both senior vice presidents with Avison Young, represented Crocker Partners.
Glenn Dyke, executive vice president, and Oliver Barakat, senior vice president of CBRE, represented Ernst & Young.
Brennan said the company’s search “started as a blank piece of paper” and included Downtown and office parks. He said Flagler Center could accommodate the operation.
Brennan said the company considered other cities and chose Jacksonville. “We just thought it would be the best fit for what we are looking for,” he said.
Ernst & Young’s location choice has been expected since March, when it was confirmed the company was Project Omega that wanted to expand in Jacksonville with a service delivery center and add 450 jobs by the end of 2019.
Signs of that started showing soon after the economic development legislation was filed Feb. 9. City Council adopted the resolution Feb. 23.
Job websites posted openings for positions in an Ernst & Young Financial Services Office Solutions Delivery Center in Jacksonville.
The city and state are providing $3.29 million in tax incentives for the expansion.
The city’s share is $450,000 through a portion of a Qualified Targeted Industry Tax Refund grant offered for creating jobs.
The state’s share is $2.84 million, comprising $1.8 million through the job-creation grant along with more than $1 million through a state training grant.
Ernst & Young said the new information technology and financial services jobs would pay an average of $49,340 a year. It said it will invest $6 million in IT, equipment and real estate improvements.
The company, based in London, handles a range of services, including auditing and risk management.
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