Jacksonville Jaguars unveil plan for Four Seasons Hotel development and $120 million football complex
JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – Jacksonville Jaguars owner Shad Khan showed off his plan for building a Four Seasons Hotel and Residences on the riverfront and added a new wrinkle to what he wants to do downtown by unveiling a proposed "football performance center" that the team says will give fans a better experience combined with new team training facilities.
The tab for the football performance center would be about $120 million. The proposals would have the Jaguars and the city split that cost 50-50, the team picking up any cost overruns.
The current space dedicated to football operations inside TIAA Bank Field does not meet NFL team requirements. Creating a football performance center will allow the Jaguars and their football operations staff to move out of the stadium permanently, permitting stadium renovations to commence. This process will also allow for Jaguars home games to continue to be played at TIAA Bank Field during stadium renovations.
Khan has previously said the Four Seasons would be the anchor for his concept named The Jacksonville Shipyards on a stretch of vacant land that city officials have been trying to turn into a downtown destination for the past two decades.
The team has been in talks with the Downtown Investment Authority about an economic development deal which would involve some level of taxpayer support.
That part of the riverfront also would get a new office building, an orthopedic sports medicine complex, and upgrades to the existing city-owned marina.
Off the riverfront, Khan is proposing to build a new team training facility for the team that would be geared to fan access with public viewing stands, restrooms, concession areas, a store and public meeting space. The center would be built on a site near the Gate 2 entrance to TIAA Bank Field.
Coach Urban Meyer said in March the team was in "serious discussions" about building a new training facility.
Stadium of the Future
The center would be the Jaguars' opening shot in their "Stadium of the Future" plan that could eventually make large-scale improvements to TIAA Bank Field. The studies for the stadium itself are ongoing and would likely be tied to negotiations between the team and the city over extending the Jaguars' lease for the city-owned stadium.
The Jaguars rolled out the plans during an event at TIAA Bank Field featuring Khan, Meyer and team President Mark Lamping.
“My goal is for downtown Jacksonville to be the envy of cities here in the U.S. and elsewhere, and I see no reason why we can’t achieve that goal,” Khan said in announcing the plan. “I am confident we have the local leadership, spirit and commitment to revitalize downtown Jacksonville in a manner that will make the world take notice while also serving the needs of the community and the people who make Jacksonville their home.”
“Shad is making a big bet on our future,” Lamping said. “So, this is a big plan. Working together, we can make this happen.”
Khan's history of development plans for Jacksonville
Khan and the city worked together in 2015 to build and finance the Daily's Place amphitheater and flex field, but since then, Khan has come up short in getting his plans turned into actual construction.
City Council rejected a bid to build a new entertainment center along with mid-rise apartments buildings and hotel on Lot J next to Daily's Place. Even though council supported that project on a 12-7 vote, it fell short of the super-majority needed to amend the city's capital improvement program.
Khan has tried before to be master developer for the Shipyards site. Most recently, time ran out last year on reaching an agreement with the DIA for an economic development deal.
This time around, the team is seeking to rally public support by launching a 1st DownTown Jacksonville that will post information at www.1stdowntownjax.com about the team's plans for downtown and give residents a way to get personally involved.
The team said The Jacksonville Shipyards development will unfold in two phases.
In the first phase, The Four Seasons Hotel and Residences would open in early 2025 with 176 hotel room and 25 residential units.
The Jaguars say the market exists for the Four Seasons, which is one of the top brands for price and accommodations. It would business travelers who want a "luxury downtown" place to say and leisure travelers coming to Jacksonville for Jaguars games and other events downtown and at the sports complex.
The team also expects area residents will head to the Four Seasons to use its "five-star spa" along with two restaurants, a ballroom and the marina.
Asking for Jacksonville's help with funding
The city would own the proposed practice facility and the Jaguars would sign a long-term lease to use it. After the facility opens in summer 2023, the Jaguars would bear the full cost of maintaining and operating it.
The center would have 125,000 square feet of space for locker rooms, meeting rooms, training and recovery areas, medical support, weight room, dining facilities, officers for coaches and scouts, a draft room, and public meeting space.
The center would have two full-size grass practice fields and a full-size indoor practice field. The indoor field would allow the Daily's Place flex field, which was built for team practices, to get used "300-plus days a year" by city parks department activities, the team said.
For the city-owned marina, the plan would be to renovate it and build a new 6,500-square foot marina building for housing a dockmaster’s office, ship store, restrooms with showers, a food and beverage venue and a marina park and events lawn. The city would still own the marina and it would remain open to the public for us by boaters.
The first phase of The Jacksonville Shipyards would build a six-story building that would have at least 100,000 square feet off class A office space and 16,000 square feet for retail, cafe and other amenities. The Jaguars would move their business operations, affiliated companies and third-party tenants to that building, according to the announcement.
The second phase would entail construction of an orthopedic sports medicine complex by Baptist Health/JOI.
The 42,000 square foot medical center would have medical care for sports-related injuries along with performance training.
The second phase also would have 15,000 square feet of street-level space for retail, a parking structure with more than 200 spaces and might have a residential building, according to the team.
Contributing: Nate Davis, Paste BN