Jacksonville, Fla. – Major development could be coming to King Street in Riverside.
CenterState Bank is working with developer J.B. Ritz to build a new bank and apartment complex with 118 units. Renderings show a smaller CenterState bank being moved to the corner of Lydia Street.
Meanwhile, the Apartment would face King, Forbes and Frederica Streets. The bank owns the property, however, city leaders and Riverside-Avondale Preservation (RAP) are overseeing the project.
If approved, plans include 118 units, with 206 parking spaces, which translates to one parking space per bedroom. The new bank would have 18 parking spaces, plus an additional 42 spaces.
CenterState Bank pulled demolition permits for the property back in July.
“It is extremely important that this building maintain a historic look and fit with the integrity of Riverside,” Councilman Jim Love said. “It must fit both in size and style and be a building we can be proud of."
According to Councilman Jim Love, change on the property is inevitable.
“Something is going to replace this bank and this space eventually, so we’re working to get the best we can for this area,” he said.
Love said if the proposal is approved, drainage surrounding the property would have to be updated.
“As it stands right now, the current property does not meet current drainage codes, so all of that would have to be updated to ensure there’s no flooding,” he said.
Meanwhile, residents like Pamela Miller said they disapprove of the project.
“The traffic out here is already a nightmare, people can barely get on King Street, let alone find parking,” Miller said. “A lot of people are going to move here thinking they’re in a great neighborhood but we have a ton of crime and barely any police."
Miller said she’s worried property values will go down as well.
“If this apartment is 3 or 4 stories high, it’s going to obstruct the property views on Frederica and people will be parking on their street constantly,” she said.
RAP said they currently don’t have an opinion on the development. Phases for the development would require a new bank to be developed first, followed by the demolition of the old bank and construction of the apartment complex, with move-ins slated by 2020.