Jacksonville’s Downtown Investment Authority says it does not think the city should waive a fee on new construction.
The legislation is to be discussed and possibly voted on next week in three city council committees.
The mobility fee is paid by developers and is used to pay for transportation projects. It’s designed to encourage redevelopment close to the city’s core and limit sprawl.
DIA board member Mike Saylor says the mobility fee benefits downtown development because there are no mobility fees downtown.
“It’s a little more expensive to develop in downtown to begin with you have to deal with a lot of issues. There’s more demolition and site preparation and vertical construction is more expensive than spread construction." He said "On the flip side it’s becoming more expensive to develop in the suburbs in you have this fee in play so it does level the field.”
Local builders and developers have urged the council to approve a 3-year moratorium saying it’s needed to create construction jobs.
They say the construction will also increases property tax revenue coming into the city. Opponents say the city should collect the fees and and use the money to build more sidewalks and bike lanes.
