JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – A proposed 84-unit apartment complex near Ribault High School in northwest Jacksonville faces mounting opposition, with the city’s planning department recommending denial of the project planned for a former private landfill site.
City staff found that the proposal “is not consistent with the land development pattern and neighborhood character,” recommending against the development in their official report.
The over five-acre site along McMillan Avenue has a complex history.
According to project applicant Michael Herzberg, the property borders Lonnie C. Miller Park, where incinerator ash was likely dumped when the area was used as a city landfill, before it was converted into a park, which has raised significant environmental concerns.
“We don’t know what’s there,” residents emphasized during a community press conference, where dozens gathered to oppose the project.
However, Herzberg argues that the location is appropriate given its surroundings.
Image of what one of the McMillan multi-family buildings would look like. (News4JAX)
“What we are trying to do is create a transition from those intensive uses to the neighborhood itself,” he said.
He said the developers have made several concessions in response to community feedback, including:
Reducing the project from 96 to 84 single-bedroom units
Limited development to 40% of the property
Planned seven buildings specifically for a 55 and over community
A key point of contention is the site’s remediation requirements.
Herzberg explained that making the site usable would require extensive environmental cleanup.
“The only way to make the site usable is to do a source removal extraction under the eyes of the city as well as FDEP,” Herzberg stated. “The expense involved would render it impossible to build single-family homes and make it viable for the market area.”
Which is why he said single-family homes aren’t planned, and instead the team is opting for multi-family apartments.
Even with the concessions being explained, longtime residents voiced several concerns during a press conference at the lot on Monday, like:
Environmental safety and unknown contaminants
Preference for home ownership over rental properties
Preservation of neighborhood character
Traffic on the nearby roads
“You want to just put any and everything in our community and we’re supposed to take it,” one resident said.
Councilmember Ju’Coby Pittman opens press conference with members of the District 10 community (News4JAX)
One community advocate noted, “We have the best money government can buy, but you can’t buy this community.”
Despite the planning department’s recommendation for denial, the Land Use and Zoning Committee passed both parts of the proposal. The project now moves to a final public hearing at the city council.
The city council meeting, scheduled for Tuesday at 5 p.m., is the last opportunity for public input before the council’s decisive vote on the rezoning request.
“Let’s stand up for ourselves,” one resident said.
Copyright 2025 by WJXT News4JAX – All rights reserved.