Jacksonville-based TVC Development Inc. continues to move full speed ahead with the intense development of infill housing around the vicinity of the JTA Skyway system in LaVilla. The 133-unit Lofts at Jefferson Station is the latest multi-family project to get underway. Located on a 1.77-acre site, just south of the JTA Skyway’s Jefferson Street station between West Bay and Water Streets, 80 units will be set aside for affordable housing. The remaining 53 units will be dedicated to workforce housing. In addition, the five story structure will consist of four residential floors over one level of parking with 150 individual spaces. Other components of the Lofts at Jefferson Station include 5,489 square feet of recreation/open space, a second floor fitness center and a fifth floor amenity area overlooking the downtown skyline. Site work removing the remains of long demolished buildings associated with LaVilla’s forgotten Railroad Row is now underway.
The Lofts at Jefferson Station is the fourth major residential development under construction or recently completed in the LaVilla area of Downtown Jacksonville. TVC’s 130-unit Lofts at LaVilla opened in late 2017 just west of the proposed Lofts at Jefferson Street site. A few blocks north at West Adams and Davis Streets, TVC’s 108-unit Lofts at Monroe is currently under construction. In addition, at the intersection of Jefferson and Houston Street, Sarasota-based Beneficial Communities continues to make progress on the 72-unit Houston Street Manor senior housing project. Furthermore, plans are materializing to redevelop 905 West Forsyth Street into a 16-unit apartment development with 5,000 square feet of ground level retail space.
Completed in December 2017, TVC’s Lofts at LaVilla is located just west of the Lofts at Jefferson Station site.
Article by Ennis Davis, AICP. Davis is a certified senior planner and graduate of Florida A&M University. He is the author of the award winning books “Reclaiming Jacksonville,” “Cohen Brothers: The Big Store” and “Images of Modern America: Jacksonville.” Davis has served with various organizations committed to improving urban communities, including the American Planning Association and the Florida Trust for Historic Preservation. A 2013 Next City Vanguard, Davis is the co-founder of ModernCities.com and Transform Jax, a tactical urbanist group. Contact Ennis at edavis@moderncities.com