A.G. Gancarski
A letter from the city of Jacksonville’s Office of Economic Development to the family business of Councilwoman Katrina Brown demanded repayment for economic incentive money that didn’t create jobs.
On Jan. 5, a Certified Letter was sent from OED to CoWealth, LLC, noting that the city received the “required annual surveys” for 2012 to 2015, in which the company was supposed to create jobs at a Northwest Jacksonville barbecue sauce plant.
However, said the city, no jobs were created.
“Therefore,” said the city, “the full balance of the Northwest Jacksonville Economic Development Fund grant, $210,549.99, must be repaid.”
OED wants payment in full within 60 days of the letter.
The alternative: setting up a payment schedule within 30 days.
Brown’s family businesses have had other issues as well, including delinquent sales tax remittances and delayed property tax payments.
The barbecue sauce plant, meanwhile, was raided last month by the FBI, state, and local agencies, though the exact reason for that raid is not known to media.
Bad press has plagued Brown’s familial business interests of late.
CoWealth LLC, which has been in the news for failing to fulfill job creation goals for a Westside Jacksonville BBQ sauce plant for which the company secured $590,000 in loans and grants from the city, finally paid its 2015 property taxes on December 30.
CoWealth also is in trouble with the Small Business Association.
The Florida Times-Union reported that “CoWealth received a $2.65 million loan from a Louisiana bank. That loan was backed by the Small Business Administration, whose Office of Inspector General was among the agencies that went to the Commonwealth Avenue building two weeks ago” for a multi-jurisdictional raid involving federal, state, and local authorities.
Brown’s family business enterprises seem to have struggled with revenue problems for a couple of years now.
Even during her successful city council campaign of 2015, delinquent property taxes became an issue.
