The city issued an amended permit July 15 for the $34 million remodeling of the historic Union Terminal Warehouse into apartments, offices and retail units.
The amended permit is based on a revision of landscape drawings.
The 361,169-square-foot building is at 700 E. Union St. near Jacksonville’s Eastside neighborhood and EverBank Stadium.
WPC IV LLC of Maitland is the contractor for the project. Jacksonville-based Dasher Hurst Architects is the architect.
Atlanta-based developer Columbia Ventures bought the more than 7-acre property through East Union Property Owner LLC on Dec. 3, 2018, for $4.6 million.
It plans for 228 apartments and 50,000 square feet of small office, food and beverage and maker space on the site, according to its website, columbiaven.com.
In May 2019, the Jacksonville Planning Commission recommended approval to rezone and amend the land use of the property for mixed-use development, including residential, commercial and compatible light industrial uses.
Those plans showed the 7.35-acre property included the main warehouse and six more warehouse and office buildings constructed between 1912 and 1990.
Turner Construction Co. built Union Terminal Warehouse from 1912-13. The main warehouse is 298,171 square feet.
Owner C.B. Gay declared in 1913 it was the largest commercial building built in Florida.
Property records show additions to the site at 640-648 E. Union St. continued through 1990.
The city issued a permit Jan. 6, 2021, for WPC – Winter Park Construction – to perform the $2.7 million demolition and concrete restoration of the four-story building for mixed uses.
Council voted in April 2021 to designate the Union Terminal a local landmark.
The Union Terminal Warehouse parcel straddles the Downtown Investment Authority’s boundary and remains eligible for Downtown incentive financing.
The Union Terminal building is outside of the Downtown Zoning Overlay District, which DIA staff said in 2021 means there is no requirement for the project’s design to obtain approval from the regulatory Downtown Development Review Board.
The project is on the planned Emerald Trail, a 30-mile multiuse paved path that would connect urban neighborhoods with Downtown.
In May 2021, Columbia Ventures pitched some of the retail spaces to the DIA as studios and “maker’s spaces” to attract artists.
In May 2022, the Jacksonville City Council authorized $8.29 million in public financing for the developer’s plan to renovate and adapt the historic Union Terminal Warehouse into mixed-income housing and retail.
The project has a required completion date of August 31, 2024, and the developer has requested a six-month extension, which is now under review, according to a DIA spokesperson.
The main building has been housing creative loft spaces for artists, woodworking, makers and manufacturers, the Daily Record previously reported. The other buildings have office space, car repair services and leased storage space.
Columbia Ventures is affiliated with the Atlanta-based housing development and property management firm Columbia Residential, which has apartment communities and senior living facilities in Florida, Georgia, Louisiana and Texas.
This story has been updated.