JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – The Five Points neighborhood will soon have a new pot of money to address its security problem.
With a 14-5 vote on Oct. 28, the Jacksonville City Council approved legislation to create a business improvement district in Five Points.
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PREVIOUS COVERAGE: Plan to create special district to collect fees from 5 Points businesses set for City Council vote
Under Ordinance 2025-0539, commercial property owners in the district will be assessed a fee to provide funding for landscaping, security and promotion.
Council President Kevin Carrico and Council members Rory Diamond, Terrance Freeman, Mike Gay and Ron Salem voted against the measure.
Five Points, a commercial district amid the historic Riverside and Avondale neighborhoods south of Downtown Jacksonville, has experienced outbreaks of crime in recent years.
In 2023, business owners said “mobs” had taken over the streets, creating a chilling effect on business after the crowds dispersed. In recent weeks, a number of businesses in the district have been burglarized.
The BID drew support from business leaders and property owners in the district.
According to legislation, the BID will be funded by the fee for commercial properties, which will be assessed annually. Property owners in the district, which comprises all or parts of 21 blocks, will be charged separate fees per heated square foot and parking square footage.
The assessment will take effect in 2026.
Council member Jimmy Peluso, who introduced the ordinance and whose District 7 includes Five Points, said the first year of the BID would be funded with about $150,000 from the city’s community benefits agreement with the Jacksonville Jaguars.
Under the $300 million CBA, a complement to the city’s $1.4 billion stadium deal with the team, each of the 14 Council districts was allotted $1 million.
Peluso said stationing JSO officers full-time in Five Points would be implausible, as they are needed elsewhere in a city encompassing 840 square miles.
During the Finance Committee’s discussion, Diamond added an amendment to the bill that would allow businesses to opt out. The city’s Office of General Counsel cautioned that the opt-out could open the city to litigation.
An amendment offered by Peluso, and passed by Council on Oct. 28, removed the opt-out amendment.
“Based upon the nature of this district, the services that are being provided, I don’t see how an opt-out provision would properly meet the two-prong analysis for how a special assessment needs to run,” said Dylan Reingold, chief deputy general counsel.
Peluso said in August, when the legislation was introduced, that he expected fees to start at 20 to 25 cents per heated square foot during the first assessment period in 2026. The legislation allows for per-square-foot fees of up to 55 cents for structures and 50 cents for parking during the first year.
According to a document filed with the ordinance, the district would assess the fees on about 100 commercial properties held by 80 owners.
The district would operate on revenue generated by the fee instead of a budget based on expected revenue. The district’s budget would be approved by Council each year.
Several Council members voiced opposition to what they saw as a tax increase on small businesses.
“The issue with these dependent districts is you’re essentially forcing people to pay a tax,” Diamond said.
“What is that magic number where you have enough people saying, ‘Yes, I want to do this,’ to the extent that you go from it being something that everybody wants versus something that’s just being coerced. Right now, I don’t think you’re there.”
Freeman voted against it.
“I’m just not going to support a tax on small businesses. I’m an advocate for it. I have one myself, and I feel like that’s what we’re doing,” Freeman said.
Council members in favor of the BID said they supported Peluso as the Five Points district Council representative, or felt the Five Points BID and other BIDs could benefit Jacksonville as it continues to grow.
“In my own district, I understand the value of having one of these,” said District 11 Council member Raul Arias. “If we allow anybody to just opt out any year, then from 94 business owners, it could easily go to 10, which is not fair.”
“This is not a tax on small businesses,” Council member Rahman Johnson said.
“The businesses in the area have said this is something they want to improve the district so that their businesses flourish,” he said. “If and when this legislation passes, and I believe this is a good idea, the people from this district will still get an idea, or still get the opportunity to opine on how the funds should be spent.”
At previous committee meetings, Five Points business employees spoke in support of the proposal for the BID. While no one spoke against the BID during committee meetings, Peluso’s office said 11 of 94 property owners were not in favor of the BID as of Oct. 22.