Construction continues on the Four Seasons hotel in Downtown Jacksonville. | Mike Mendenhall, Jacksonville Today
Published on November 20, 2025 at 5:07 pm
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The Jacksonville City Council is likely to vote Tuesday on upping the city’s property tax refund for the future Four Seasons hotel and residences by $6 million.
The proposals come as Iguana Investments Florida LLC — the development company of Jacksonville Jaguars owner Shad Khan — has agreed to make $6 million-plus in roadway improvements on Bay Street in front of the hotel, and as the cost for the project continues to rise.
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If City Council approves Ordinance 2025-0815, it will bump the total property tax incentive for the Four Seasons portion of Khan’s Shipyards development on the Downtown riverfront to a maximum $56,581,200 over 20 years.
That would bring the city’s overall incentives package for the Shipyards development — which includes the 12-story hotel, six-story office building, marina, and marina building/restaurant — to $133,896,354, according to a breakdown from the DIA.
The city refers to the tax break as a Recapture Enhanced Value Grant. It works as a refund of the increase in taxes collected on a property after new development bring more value to the site.
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The Downtown Investment Authority board — the city agency in charge of Downtown development strategy — endorsed the changes to the project’s redevelopment agreement in August. Three City Council committees unanimously advanced the changes this week.
Four Seasons roadwork
An Aug. 13 memo from DIA Director of Operations Guy Parola says Iguana has received a $3 million grant from the state of Florida to help pay for the first phase of the Bay Street “road diet,” a project to improve traffic flow and speed around the hotel and stadium.
The work is expected to cost $6 million “with unknown costs on subsequent phases.” Iguana will be reimbursed for the costs of the project beyond the state grant using the city REV grant, the memo says.
Council Vice President Nick Howland said Nov. 18 that he likes the revised deal because it pays for the roadwork through new property tax revenue generated by the Four Seasons.
“Although we’re increasing the REV grant potential here by about $6 million … there’s actually a benefit to the city by doing this,” Howland said during a meeting of council’s Finance Committee. “Iguana has agreed to do the road diet on Bay Street and pay for it up front, and we’re reimbursing them on an up to cost basis on a REV grant in future years. So it ends up that the city gathers and collects the time, value and money in this particular project and funding situation.
“I hope it improves traffic on Bay Street.”
Built on the city’s former Kids Kampus park, the Four Seasons is also eligible for a higher maximum property tax payout under the deal due to increases in the project’s overall costs. The updated agreement says Iguana’s minimum capital investment in the hotel will rise from $334.552 million to $373.962 million.
That’s nearly $4 million more than what Jaguars executives told Jacksonville Today news partner the Jacksonville Daily Record in May 2022, when they expected the hotel to cost about $370 million.
Iguana also will have another year to finish the hotel, extending the completion deadline from June 30, 2026, to June 30, 2027.
There also are changes to the lease agreement for the restaurant space planned for the marina building that will sit adjacent to the hotel.
The initial five-year lease has been increased to 10 years with an 10-year extension option for Iguana. The developer will now pay $15,000 per year instead of $1 for rent. That money will go toward Iguana’s maintenance responsibility of the event lawn in between the office building and hotel, the new agreement says.
Steve Diebenow, partner attorney for Driver Mcafee Hawthorne and Diebenow, which represents Iguana, told council members this week that when the development team took the marina restaurant space to market, a 10-year lease was more appealing to prospective tenants.
Total public costs
City officials have made several changes to the Shipyard agreement since it was first approved in 2021.
The city is not only providing financial incentives, but infrastructure projects, building relocations and land-giveaways are factored into Iguana’s total benefits package. If the council approves the latest agreement Tuesday night, here is the list of direct and indirect incentives the city is providing to get the Shipyards developed:
- Hotel REV grant: $56,581,200.
- Office building REV grant: $8,120,300.
- Hotel completion grant: $25,834,887.
- Hotel and condominium land: $12,449,900.
- Easement parcels value: $285,000.
- Net value of office parcel: $230,000.
- Net loss on relocation of Kid Kampus: $6,219,400.
- Relocation of the fire station and dock: $9,800,000.
- Marina park: $3,312,052.
- Marina services building/restaurant: $6,563,615.
- Relocation of the Fire Museum: $3,500,000.
- Relocation of utility lines: $1,000,000.
These incentives total $133,896,354. DIA officials say the city will receive a total $152,771,758 tax and economic benefit and a net benefit of $18,875,404 out of the project. The city says that’s a $1.14 return on every $1 it invested.
The last time council approved major changes to the Four Seasons deal was January 2023, when the overall incentives deal was bumped from $114.4 million to $129.75 million.
The hotel at 1406 E. Bay St. will have 176 rooms and 25 for-sale luxury condominiums, a spa, pools and restaurant when it opens, as well as the adjacent marina and restaurant. The office building will hold the Jaguars business and office staff, as well as have space for lease for other companies.
