Nearly 400 affordable and workforce apartments are under development in LaVilla, but there are no nearby commercial and retail services.
Altogether, the LaVilla area of Downtown will gain 390 residences by late 2018, with more possibly in development.
The nearest grocer, Fresh Market in Brooklyn Station on Riverside, might not be the first choice for those in affordable or low-income housing, which cap incomes for residents.
The nearest pharmacy is Walgreens on Park Street in Riverside. Publix Super Markets operates a Riverside Avenue store in the Five Points area.
Neither is within convenient walking distance of LaVilla or the Downtown urban core.
That might spark development in LaVilla.
“I would say the retail development follows the residential component in most cases,” said Marc Padgett, a Downtown Investment Authority board member.
Vestcor Inc. broke ground Wednesday on Lofts at Monroe, an affordable housing complex southwest of the Duval County Courthouse.
It’s the latest mid-rise infill housing project for the company in LaVilla.
Vestcor also is wrapping up the first phase of Lofts at LaVilla near the Prime Osborn Convention Center, with a proposed second phase gaining DIA support Tuesday.
Padgett, who attended the groundbreaking, said LaVilla finally is catching up with the urban renewal of neighboring Riverside and Brooklyn.
“We’ve been dormant for a while over here,” Padgett said. “I give the mayor and the City Council a lot of credit for recognizing the needs here.”
Steve Moore, president of The Vestcor Companies, said the company works only on residential projects and has no plans for retail development in LaVilla.
Still, he said, “the need is certainly there.”
“We would hope that this and other projects we’re working on would bring commercial development Downtown,” Moore said.
He said the answer could be public transportation to take residents to shops in Riverside or other neighborhoods.
The Jacksonville Transportation Authority Regional Transportation Center under construction is steps from Lofts at LaVilla and will provide direct access to the Skyway and bus service.
Moore said there were no plans to incorporate public transit shuttles at Vestcor developments.
Republican U.S. Sen. Marco Rubio said he applauds the city and Mayor Lenny Curry for applying for a federal infrastructure grant to remove the ramps from the Hart Bridge to Downtown.
In an Oct. 26 letter to Curry, Rubio called the removal “an important mission for North Florida,” saying the project will help relieve congestion, improve freight flow and enhance access to the Talleyrand port district.
“Funds from this grant would be essential to the efficient movement of people and freight through the region and would serve as a catalyst for the City of Jacksonville to provide northeast Florida with opportunities for economic and job growth,” the letter states.
Jacksonville Jaguars owner Shad Khan also prefers the ramps be removed. He proposes a $500 million mixed-use project for the Metropolitan Park and Shipyards properties under the ramps.
The city is applying for a $25 million Infrastructure for Rebuilding America grant and is one of three municipalities under consideration for the funds.
Curry said removing the ramps would improve freight and truck traffic to Talleyrand Avenue.
A Florida Department of Transportation study this summer supports that argument.
City Council members on Oct. 24 approved $1.5 million for surveying, geotechnical investigations and preparation of a design criteria package to make the project “shovel-ready.”
If the federal funding is approved, Curry said FDOT has agreed to spend $12 million for the project, subject to legislative approval.
The city would be responsible for the remaining cost, estimated at $12 million.