JACKSONVILLE, Fla. — A deal years in the making has fallen apart, putting Duval County Public Schools back at square one in its effort to sell its Riverfront headquarters.
The developer claims key financial obligations tied to the property were not clearly disclosed during sale negotiations.
For nearly 20 years, Duval County Public Schools has tried to sell its headquarters, promising to turn the prime riverfront property into millions of dollars for school repairs.
Last November, in a split 4–3 vote, the School Board approved a $17.2 million sale to Chase Properties. The plan called for a mixed-use development including apartments, condominiums and a hotel. In turn, the district planned to move its administrative offices to a renovated building in Baymeadows for about $13.6 million.
This week, however, Chase Properties notified the district that it intends to terminate the agreement.
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At the center of the dispute is what’s known as a Community Development District, or CDD, encumbrance. A spokesperson for Chase Properties, Inc. told Action News Jax:
“It was never disclosed in any of three different Invitations to Negotiate nor in either of the two appraisals. It was also not properly disclosed in the Purchase and Sale Agreement and was not discovered until the Title Report was received. This issue would have never happened if the school board had ordered a title policy before attempting to sell the property.”
We asked DCPS if it had a response to Chase Properties’ statement about the failure to disclose the financial obligations linked to the property, but the district didn’t get back to us.
But we did find this contract language the Duval School Board approved on November 4. It states, the change in ownership could result in “higher property taxes or the levying of assessments against the property, or portions thereof, by the CDD.”
In a letter to the School Board, Superintendent Dr. Christopher Bernier confirmed that Chase intends to terminate the approved contract. He also wrote that, consistent with board guidance to avoid holding two properties at the same time, the district has exercised its option to terminate its contract to purchase the Baymeadows headquarters site.
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Some parents say they are relieved the deal is off.
Yasmina White, a Duval County Public Schools parent who has spoken out against the move, said she believes the decision is in taxpayers’ best interest.
“There were several red flags that don’t align in the best benefit of taxpayers. So this is great news,” White said.
White said she has advocated against the move for months.
“I am happy this has fallen through… So seeing this come about is exactly what our community needs, and exactly what DCPS parents wanted to happen,” she said.
For now, the district remains in its downtown headquarters, with no clear timeline for what comes next.
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