Three years of plans and a year of litigation later, the Barnett National Bank building is now in “excellent hands.”
Those hands belong to Jacksonville Jaguars owner Shad Khan and his Stache Investments.
“Stache has demonstrated beyond doubt Mr. Khan’s commitment to Jacksonville, and that is particularly true for Downtown Jacksonville,” said Khan spokesman Jim Woodcock in a statement.
“Stache is very pleased to have won the bid and be in a position to play a role in whatever the future may hold for the property,” he said.
The latest step in the building’s future happened Wednesday morning when Stache secured the rights to the building at Adams and Laura streets after a foreclosure auction.
Khan began a financing role to redevelop the site in 2013 when he loaned a group led by local developer Steve Atkins $3 million toward rehabbing the 18-story building.
Atkins’ plans called for a ground floor bank, commercial space for several floors above and the remainder being housing.
He eventually partnered with Las Vegas-based Molasky Group of Cos., ultimately informing the city last fall the $32 million project needed about $4 million in taxpayer incentives to work.
Yet, months before those plans were fully pushed to the public, Stache Investments began foreclosure proceedings saying Atkins’ Barnett Tower LLC never made payments on the loan.
A judge in late July ordered Barnett Tower to pay Stache $4.6 million — the loan, interest and fees — or the building would be scheduled for auction.
Stache secured the building Wednesday with a winning bid of $50,100.
That followed a bid of $25,000 by Alex Klempf, director of operations for Forking Amazing Restaurants, and a $50,000 bid by Keathel Chauncey, a Tampa-area attorney serving as a trustee for an unknown company.
Jacques Klempf is rehabbing the historic Cowford Chophouse into an upscale restaurant at Bay and Ocean streets.
Forking Amazing spokeswoman Natalie DeYoung said Klempf is “always looking to add to his real estate portfolio” on the off chance the building could be had for a low price.
There was no harm in trying, she said, and the hope is Khan will “do something great” for Downtown with the building.
But, what is in store for the Barnett now that it’s Khan’s?
One option is to develop the building himself. Another would be to put it back on the market.
Tripp Gulliford, managing director of CBRE, said he can’t envision Khan developing the building because it isn’t part of his core business.
Gulliford said he expected it to go back on the market.
Woodcock’s statement said it is “far too early” to speculate what the short- or long-term future may look like.
“But until decisions regarding its future are made, rest assure that the Barnett Building is in excellent hands,” he said.
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