JACKSONVILLE, Fla. — One of Downtown Jacksonville’s largest employers is one step closer to relocating its employees to office space on the Southside.
On Friday, the Citizens Insurance Audit Committee released its recommendation to move more than 1,000 downtown employees out of the EverBank Building and into an office building on Baypine Road.
>>> STREAM ACTION NEWS JAX LIVE <<<
Last week we showed you internal documents detailing 41 safety complaints fielded by Citizens Insurance regarding conditions Downtown, including aggressive panhandling and harassment from homeless individuals.
Council Finance Chair Ron Salem (R-Group 2 At-Large) reacted to the recommendation to relocate saying he and other council members were blindsided by the announcement.
“It’s a massive disappointment for me. It’s a failure. The mayor came to the council and we appropriated $120,000 for a lobbying effort. We haven’t heard anything and boom, today we hear they’re leaving,” said Salem.
But there’s still one final step before the relocation is finalized.
[DOWNLOAD: Free Action News Jax app for alerts as news breaks]
Mayor Donna Deegan’s Administration said it’s still hopeful the board will reverse course when it meets next week, with additional incentives now on the table to keep the company Downtown.
“The City of Jacksonville remains committed to making every reasonable effort to retain this anchor employer. I have spoken to Sheriff Waters, and we will work together to place a JSO stop station in the building for extra security,” said the mayor’s office in a statement Friday afternoon. “There is a window still open for Citizens Insurance to remain Downtown. We are hopeful their Board of Directors will reevaluate this decision given the progress that’s been made, not only in terms of safety, but also the many exciting projects that are coming out of the ground.”
The Citizens recommendation caps off a two-week stretch that brought news of other potential losses Downtown, including the possible cancelation of the Army Corp of Engineers lease in the Prudential building and the potential sale of the Charles E. Bennett federal building.
Given the potential loss of thousands of downtown workers, Salem argued the administration needs to do everything in its power to stop the bleeding.
“I think the mayor ought to be visiting every CEO, determining where they are, what are their issues if they have any, and working on solving them,” said Salem.
The final decision from the Citizens Board is set to be made next Wednesday.
[SIGN UP: Action News Jax Daily Headlines Newsletter]
Click here to download the free Action News Jax news and weather apps, click here to download the Action News Jax Now app for your smart TV and click here to stream Action News Jax live.
Sign Up
