Jacksonville: Economy

Jacksonville: Economy

Major Industries and Commercial Activity

With its diverse economic base, young, energetic population, and high quality of life, Jacksonville experienced substantial growth during the latter decades of the twentieth century and into the twenty-first.

The city is a transportation hub, with a 38-foot deepwater port that ranks with New York as the top two vehicle-handling ports in the nation. It is served by four airports, three seaports, a highway system that links the city to three major interstates, and a rail system served by three railroads—CSX, Norfolk Southern, and Florida East Coast.

The automotive parts and accessories industry is attracted by this logistics network, as well as the fact that less than two percent of the city's manufacturing industry is unionized. Jacksonville was selected as the site of Southeast Toyota, the largest distributor in the United States, and of a distribution center for General Motors Corp. that serves Georgia, South Carolina, and Florida.

Pulp and paper mills play substantial roles in the local economy, and Georgia Pacific Corp. and Smurfit-Stone Container Corp. are two of the area's largest manufacturers. Construction equipment and building materials is another key segment of the Jacksonville economy, with Ring Power Corp., U.S. Gypsum, and Florida Rock Industries Inc. among the top employers in the region. Other large manufacturers are Northrop Grumman Corp. (aircraft), Anheuser-Busch Companies Inc. (beer), Vistakon (optical products), Swisher International Inc. (cigars and smokeless tobacco), Medtronic Xomed (surgical products), and Dura Automotive Systems Inc. (automotive components).

Three important naval air stations within the city limits and Kings Bay Submarine Base nearby give Jacksonville one of the largest military presences in the country, topped only by Norfolk, Virginia, and San Diego, California. The total economic impact of the bases in the community is about $6.1 billion annually.

Aviation is a natural fit to Jacksonville. Of the 6,000 naval personnel that exit the military every year in Jacksonville, over 80 percent remain in northeast Florida, supplying the area with a rich resource of aviation skills and related technical experience. Additionally, more than 15,000 students enroll in aviation-related programs in the Jacksonville area. One such program is Florida Community College of Jacksonville's Aviation Center of Excellence, located at the Cecil Commerce Center, which is also home to one of four airports in Jacksonville. The city was experiencing a boom in the aviation industry in the early 2000s. Flightstar Aircraft Services Inc. began operations in Jacksonville in 2000, Kaman Aerospace Corp. launched business there three years later, and Embraer broke ground in 2004 on a facility to accommodate work on a $879 million Army contract to assemble surveillance aircraft.

Jacksonville, once abandoned by the motion picture and television industry, is experiencing a renaissance. The Jacksonville Film and Television Office was formed to attract film and video production to the area and helps streamline the production process. As a result, numerous motion pictures, television movies, commercials, and videos were produced in Jacksonville in recent years. Each movie or television series filmed there can add millions of dollars to the local economy, through housing, hiring of a local labor crew, catering, special heavy equipment rental, and expenses. The city was the filming location for the 2004 remake of the film The Manchurian Candidate. The Jacksonville Economic Development Commission reports that the industry had an economic impact of more than $99 million in fiscal year 2002/2003.

Items and goods produced: aircraft, machinery, paper and paper products, building products, beer, soft drinks, tobacco, and optical and surgical products

Incentive Programs—New and Existing Companies

Local programs

Cornerstone is the economic development initiative of the Jacksonville Regional Chamber of Commerce. It is led by a group of companies and individuals who provide the leadership and resources to foster business expansion and relocation in Jacksonville. Investment dollars are channeled into business recruitment, existing business services, education and workforce preparation, and special economic initiatives.

Several incentive programs are managed at the local level. Portions of downtown Jacksonville are part of either the Empowerment Zone or the Enterprise Zone, each of which offers tax or wage credits to businesses based on the number of new jobs created. The Northwest Jacksonville Area Fund makes available grants or loans for infrastructure improvements, facade renovation, and purchase of land or buildings. The Qualified Target Industry Tax Refund is extended to companies that are on the list of industries identified by the city as desirable additions to the local economy. Similarly, Targeted Economic Development Area Special Funds are designed to induce the location of high economic value projects to critical areas of Jacksonville. Lastly, Industrial Development Revenue Bonds afford manufacturing companies access to low-interest, tax-exempt loans.

The Chamber of Commerce maintains close relationships with the City of Jacksonville, the Jacksonville Economic Development Commission, the Jacksonville Port Authority, and the 4,000 local businesses that are Chamber members and Cornerstone investors. The businesses that have located or expanded in Jacksonville cite the many city and state incentives that are available, the support of city and business leaders, and the fact that the consolidated city-county government allows for faster permitting and less bureaucratic red tape overall.

State programs

Enterprise Florida is a partnership between Florida's government and business leaders and is the principal economic development organization for the state of Florida. Enterprise Florida's mission is to increase economic opportunities for all Floridians by supporting the creation of quality jobs, a well-trained workforce, and globally competitive businesses. It pursues this mission in cooperation with its statewide network of economic development partners.

Among the incentive programs managed at the state level is the Economic Development Transportation Fund, which provides up to $2 million to fund the cost of transportation projects such as access roads and road widening required for the establishment, expansion, or retention of businesses in Florida. The Brownfield Bonus Program, which is available to most of downtown Jacksonville, extends a bonus for each new job created. The state also offers various sales and use tax exemptions for machinery and equipment purchase, electric energy, research and development, and other aspects of doing business in the area.

Job training programs

The Workforce Development Board (WDB), commonly known as Jobs & Education Partnership, is a part of Enterprise Florida. WDB provides policy, planning, and oversight for job training programs funded under the federal Workforce Investment Act, along with vocational training, adult education, employment placement, and other workforce programs administered by a variety of state and local agencies. Regional Workforce Development Boards operate under charters approved by the Workforce Development Board. The 24 regional boards have primary responsibility for direct services through a state-wide network of One-Stop Career systems.

Development Projects

The Better Jacksonville Plan was approved by voters in 2000. This plan increased the sales tax by a half-cent to raise $2.25 billion over 30 years to fund road improvements, environmental clean-up and conservation, the Northwest Jacksonville Economic Development Fund, and the construction of new public facilities downtown. It also enabled the establishment of Cecil Commerce Center, a mixed-use industrial/business park located about 20 minutes from downtown Jacksonville. Approximately 4,800 acres are available for light industrial expansion, with another 800 set aside for heavy industrial use. Also zoned for commercial, recreational, and aviation use, Cecil Commerce Center provides the setting to attract more distribution, manufacturing, and aviation economic activities to the city.