Jacksonville owns $15M in underutilized buildings

What do Jacksonville’s old County Courthouse Annex, the Palms Fish Camp, the Brewster Hospital, and the old Duval County Armory have in common?

They are just a few of the 14 underutilized buildings, with a value of almost $15 million between them, owned by the city of Jacksonville.

During a period of belt-tightening for the city, the recent distribution of a spreadsheet with these buildings listed, coupled with the crest of the latest real estate bubble, suggests that there is no time like the present for the city to divest itself of the property.

Yet there is a caveat.

Not all of these buildings are in equally good shape. Some date back to 1948, as does the Old County Courthouse Annex.

Land value of these properties is just shy of $5.6 million.

If Jacksonville were inclined to fill in gaps in the general fund with the disposition of assets, the city may not be able to get market value for each of the 14 buildings on the list.

And in some cases, such as the four buildings in LaVilla, it may make sense to hold until development/gentrification of the area is truly underway.

But for a city facing a tight budget year, relieving itself of capital assets might be a way to ease short-term pain.