Carmen and Rafael Godwin, owners of Juliette Balcony in Downtown Jacksonville, bought the adjacent Mag’s Cafe property Dec. 19 for $1.4 million.
Mag’s Cafe, a Downtown breakfast and lunch staple, closed in October 2023 because of staffing and problems with the homeless population, restaurant owner Bobby Reynolds said at the time. It opened as Magnificat Cafe in 2003.
The building is at 231 N. Laura St., across the street from the Main Library. The sale includes an attached retail building at 38-44 W. Monroe St. behind Mag’s.
The sellers were Charles Sears of Jacksonville and Alfred Pavlis of Fairfield, Connecticut, through 231 North Laura LLC and 38-44 West Monroe LLC.
The Godwins purchased the properties through Urban Historic Core LLC.
Historic Urban Core obtained a $1.05 million mortgage with Renasant Bank in Jacksonville.
In 2022, the Godwins bought Juliette Balcony, at 225 N. Laura St., next to Chamblin’s Uptown. In some documents it is referred to as Juliette’s Balcony.
For years, the ground floor had been the site of Gus & Co Shoe and Luggage Repair. The Godwins bought the 120-year-old building from Ron Chamblin in September 2022 for $890,000.
At the time of the purchase, Rafael Godwin said the plan was to restore the building to how it looked when renovated in the 1920s.
This month, the Downtown Investment Authority board recommended approval of a $2.56 million incentive package to redevelop the vacant three-story building at 225 N. Laura St. With the vote, the incentives advance to the Jacksonville City Council.
Plans call for eight residential units on the upper floors and a restaurant on the ground floor. The residential units will be offered as short-term rentals through platforms such as Airbnb.
DIA documents show the company will invest $5.8 million into the project.
Alan and Ellen Cottrill, co-founders of Avant Construction Group, have partnered with the Godwins to take on an ownership stake in the Juliette Balcony building. Avant Construction is the general contractor.
The project is expected to be completed by early 2026.
Avant Construction was involved in the restoration of the Seminole Club that has become Sweet Pete’s as well as the Federal Reserve Building and Porter House Mansion.
The company is renovating the Greenleaf & Crosby Building for it to become part of the Oak Steakhouse chain. It also is involved in the upcoming renovation of the Jones Bros. Furniture Co. building.
Ellen Cottrill told the Daily Record on Dec. 18 that the Godwins planned to buy and renovate Mag’s Cafe and the adjacent building on West Monroe Street.
Carmen Godwin is a real estate agent with Cowford Realty + Design. She was involved in the creation of Riverside Arts Market and the Riverside Community Garden, according to her website. She is the former Riverside Avondale Preservation executive director.
She was involved in the renovation and expansion of the Historic Nassau County Jail in Amelia Island, the Historic Buckland House in Riverside, as well as single-family and multifamily residential buildings in Riverside, Avondale, Fairfax and Murray Hill, according to her website biography.
The Mag’s Cafe building was constructed in 1951 on 0.03 acre. It is 1,426 square feet.
The 38-44 W. Monroe St. building was constructed in 1948 on 0.05 acre. It comprises three storefronts that total 5,467 square feet. It is behind Mag’s Cafe and Juliette Balcony.