Update, September 17, 2026: The vote happened. On Wednesday, September 16, 2026, the Downtown Investment Authority board voted 8-0 to approve Resolution 2026-09-02, per the Jacksonville Daily Record; Action News Jax reported the vote as unanimous. The package is a $20 million completion grant plus a Recapture Enhanced Value grant of nearly $39.4 million, for a total the Daily Record puts at nearly $59.4 million.
The deal now goes to Jacksonville City Council for the final decision. Two conditions reported from the meeting matter for buyers: more than 50% of the condo units must be presold within 21 months of final approval of the redevelopment agreement, and the developer told the board it needs roughly 50% presales to obtain construction financing.
Board members questioned the projected condo pricing of $1,400 per square foot, which member Scott Wohlers called "very optimistic," per the Daily Record, and noted that the Four Seasons condos down the street had sold seven of 26 units as that project nears completion, per Action News Jax.
The unit counts also moved: the Daily Record now reports about 165 hotel rooms and 51 condominiums; Action News Jax reports up to 100 residential units and more than 160 hotel rooms. The original September 15 report follows, with tense adjusted.
Four days after the Riverfront Plaza tower cleared the Downtown Development Review Board, the number that everyone was waiting for arrived. On Monday, September 14, 2026, the Downtown Investment Authority released an amended agenda for its September 16 board meeting with Resolution 2026-09-02: an incentive package for Gateway Jax's hotel and residential tower on the last empty pad at Riverfront Plaza. Jacksonville Today puts the total at $55.387 million; the Jacksonville Daily Record puts it at nearly $59.4 million. Both outlets agree on the $20 million cash completion grant. They differ on the value of the property-tax rebate, and this piece carries both figures.
Our September 11 report said the estimated $20 million completion grant had not yet been requested. It has been now, and it comes with more attached.
What is in the package
The package has two parts, per Jacksonville Today's reading of the resolution. The first is a Recapture Enhanced Value grant, or REV grant, which refunds 75% of the increase in property tax the finished tower generates on the 1.1-acre pad at 801 Bay Street. The pad was city-owned and paid no property tax, so the whole bill is new money. Jacksonville Today values the REV grant at $35.397 million; the Daily Record reports it at nearly $39.4 million. The second part is a $20 million completion grant, paid in cash only after the building is finished.
The DIA's own arithmetic, as reported by Jacksonville Today, is that the city gets back $2.94 for every dollar it puts in. The project cost is estimated at $271.5 million. The contracting entity is 801 Bay St LLC, a Gateway Cos. subsidiary.
What the city gets in return
The draft agreement is more specific about the building than anything released before it. The hotel is to be a four- or five-star or luxury boutique property with 130 to 170 rooms, and its operator would pay 2% of hotel room revenue into the Downtown Economic Development Fund. The residential piece is at least 50 units and at most 150, and the agreement allows condominiums, rentals or a mix; it also permits transient rentals. If condos are built, each owner would pay $50 a month, escalating 2% a year for 30 years, toward the maintenance and programming of Riverfront Plaza park. The building must include a public terrace of at least 5,000 square feet and two restaurants of at least 7,500 square feet opening onto the park, and the city is to receive a share of pretax net cash flow that is still to be negotiated.
On height, the two reports do not match. Jacksonville Today describes a 17-story tower; the Daily Record, like the DDRB filing we reported on September 11, says 20 stories. We carry both until the final design submission settles it.
Why the completion grant comes from the CRA
The $20 million would be paid from Northbank Community Redevelopment Area tax increment, not the general fund. That routing matters. City Council members have spent the summer pushing back on cash completion grants funded from general revenue, and the $28.5 million grant for the Pearl Square Publix tower, which we covered in our post on the downtown Publix incentive rework, remains on hold. Jacksonville Today also notes the backdrop of a possible $300 million a year revenue hit if the November property-tax referendum passes. A CRA-funded grant sidesteps the general-fund argument without removing the question of whether the city should be paying cash at all.
The Hotel Merrydelle deal on the same agenda
The same September 16 agenda also carried a reworked deal for the Hotel Merrydelle; the three reports on the tower vote we read did not report the outcome of that item, so it is carried here as proposed. The Merrydelle is the roughly $50 million renovation of the former Ambassador Hotel at 420 Julia Street. Jacksonville Today reports the package moved from $10.1 million in forgivable and deferred loans to a $15 million loan fully repaid over 20 years at 1% interest. Jacksonville Today's "$70 million" headline combines the two projects; the Riverfront Plaza figures above are the tower alone.
What happens next
The DIA board approved Resolution 2026-09-02 on Wednesday, September 16, by an 8-0 vote. The incentive legislation now goes to City Council for the final decision, where the completion-grant debate will be waiting for it. Action News Jax reported that Council Finance Chair Will Lahnen said funding the $20 million from the Northbank CRA tax increment rather than general revenue could make the request easier to accept.
Gateway Jax representatives told the board the city has an option to buy the pad back if construction does not start on time, a term carried over from the land swap that gave Gateway the site. Separately, the tower still needs final design approval from the DDRB, which granted conceptual approval 6-0 with conditions on September 10.
Gateway Jax CEO Bryan Moll has said the hotel brand has been narrowed to two candidates and will be announced soon. No construction date has been given.
What this means for buyers, sellers and agents
Three things in this package touch property directly. First, the condo assessment: $50 a month escalating 2% a year for 30 years is a real carrying cost that would sit on top of any condo association fee and should be in any buyer's math if the residential piece is sold rather than rented. Second, the transient-rental allowance: a building that permits short-term rental use is treated differently by lenders and insurers than one that does not, and it changes who the likely buyers are. Third, supply: if the tower is built on the timeline downtown projects usually run, it adds 50 to 150 residences and a hotel to the Northbank late this decade, which is relevant to anyone pricing an existing downtown or Southbank condo today. None of this is a forecast; the package has passed the DIA board but not City Council, which has the final say.
People also ask
What is a REV grant in downtown Jacksonville?
A Recapture Enhanced Value grant refunds a share of the new property tax a project generates once it is built and on the tax roll. The Riverfront Plaza package approved by the DIA board on September 16, 2026 refunds 75% of the increase over 20 years; Jacksonville Today reported the value at $35.397 million before the vote and the Jacksonville Daily Record at nearly $39.4 million. A REV grant does not draw on the city's general fund, which is why the Downtown Investment Authority has favored it over cash completion grants this year.
Will the Riverfront Plaza tower be condos or apartments?
The draft agreement released September 14, 2026 requires at least 50 residential units and allows up to 150, and it lets the developer build condominiums, rentals or a mix; it also permits transient rentals. At the September 16, 2026 DIA meeting the project was presented as condominiums: the Jacksonville Daily Record reports 51 condo units projected at $1,400 per square foot, and Action News Jax reports up to 100 residential units. Both outlets report a presale requirement of more than 50% of the units. If condos are built, the agreement has each owner paying $50 a month, rising 2% a year for 30 years, toward maintenance and programming of Riverfront Plaza park.
When would construction of the Riverfront Plaza tower start?
No date has been given. The Downtown Development Review Board granted conceptual approval on September 10, 2026 with conditions; final design approval is still ahead. The DIA board approved the incentive package 8-0 on September 16, 2026, and the legislation now goes to City Council for a final vote. Under the approved terms, more than 50% of the condo units must be presold within 21 months of final approval of the redevelopment agreement, per the Jacksonville Daily Record. Gateway Jax CEO Bryan Moll has said a hotel brand, narrowed to two candidates, will be announced soon.
The takeaway
The Riverfront Plaza tower now has a public price tag: a $20 million completion grant from Northbank CRA tax increment plus a 75% REV grant valued at $35.4 million by Jacksonville Today and nearly $39.4 million by the Daily Record, against a $271.5 million project. The DIA board approved it 8-0 on Wednesday, September 16, 2026; City Council decides next. The building is 130 to 170 hotel rooms and 50 to 150 residences, condo or rental, on a 17- or 20-story frame depending on which report you read.
Sources
- Jacksonville Today, "Gateway Jax seeks $55M in incentives for Riverfront Plaza tower; Merrydelle deal reworked", by Mike Mendenhall, published September 14, 2026, 4:48 p.m.: jaxtoday.org
- Jacksonville Daily Record, "Gateway Jax seeks more than $59 million in incentives for Riverfront Plaza high-rise", published September 14, 2026: jaxdailyrecord.com
- Jacksonville Daily Record, "DIA board endorses more than $59 million in incentives for Riverfront Plaza high-rise", published September 16, 2026: jaxdailyrecord.com
- Action News Jax, "DIA green lights $59 million for new Riverfront Plaza tower, despite viability concerns", by Jake Stofan, published September 16, 2026, 6:40 p.m.: actionnewsjax.com
- First Coast News, "Riverfront Plaza hotel and condo tower clears DIA vote, heads to City Council", published September 16, 2026: firstcoastnews.com
- Momentum Realty, "Riverfront Plaza Tower Wins DDRB Conceptual Approval 6-0", updated September 11, 2026: movewithmomentum.com
How this article was prepared: every figure, date and name above is taken from the named reports and is attributed to the outlet that published it. The Jacksonville Today report and the Action News Jax report were read in full; the Jacksonville Daily Record reports sit behind a paywall and are cited from their headlines and published summaries only, which is why the REV grant figure is carried as "nearly $39.4 million" and not as an exact number. The September 17 update reflects the September 16 vote as reported by the Daily Record, Action News Jax and First Coast News. Where the two outlets disagree, both figures are shown. Nothing here is a forecast or a recommendation. Momentum Realty has no role in this project or in either incentive agreement. Nothing on this page describes any person or household; it describes a building, a site and the public money attached to them. Figures are deemed reliable but not guaranteed. Equal Housing Opportunity.