“Project Sharp” seeks nearly $30 million in incentives for 500 jobs, new HQ

Jacksonville, FL — A company with around 1,200 existing jobs in Jacksonville is looking at adding 500 more and building a new headquarters and parking garage. A $29.9 million incentives package is now being considered by the City, in order to seal the deal.

The package will go in front of the Downtown Investment Authority on Wednesday, and if it’s approved, it then needs final approval by the Jacksonville City Council before taking effect.

The terms filed with the DIA show “Project Sharp” is proposing to add 500 new jobs and retain the existing 1,216 jobs in the City. It is also looking at building a new 300,000 square foot office building- which would serve as its corporate headquarters- and a parking garage, with that capital investment expected to be around $145 million. The building would go up in Downtown Jacksonville.

To achieve this plan, the term sheet outlines $29.9 million in City and State incentives, with the majority of that carried by the City.

The State’s portion would be through the Qualified Target Industry Tax Refund Program, which would pay $1,200 per job created for this project, for a total of $3 million. The City’s total share of that would be $600,000 and the State has the $2.4 million balance.

The City is also offering a City Closing Fund Grant of $3.5 million, which would be paid upon substantial completion of the construction portion of the project.

The brunt of the funding is through Recapture Enhanced Value Grant funding, which is essentially a property tax break based on the growth generated by the project. This project would be eligible for a 75% grant over 20 years, totaling up to $23.4 million.

The company behind “Project Sharp” is not named in the project documents filed with the DIA. Florida law allows confidentiality in these types of economic development agreements.