FRIDAY December 14, 2018
Public legal notices begin on page 4
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Daily Record JACKSONVILLE
JinkoSolar: Jacksonville Daily Record plant will be ‘showcase’ JACKSONVILLE
THE MATHIS REPORT
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Photo courtesy of JAX Chamber
From left, Ray Driver, 2018-19 JAXUSA Partnership chair; Aundra Wallace, president, JAXUSA Partnership; Nigel Cockroft, JinkoSolar general manager for the U.S. and Canada; and Shantel Davis, vice president of Real Estate and Facilities with CSX.
Nigel Cockroft says the factory at Cecil Commerce Center will be the most technologically advanced solar panel facility in the world. BY MARK BASCH CONTRIBUTING WRITER
Climate change and its causes continue to spark political debate in the U.S. But whether or not you believe the burning of fossil fuels is damaging the environment, nobody objects to the con-
struction of new solar energy facilities, says Nigel Cockroft, general manager for the U.S. and Canada for JinkoSolar Holding Co. Ltd. “In every survey, very few people find solar problematic or offensive,” Cockroft said Thursday during the fourth-quarter luncheon of JAXUSA Partnership, the economic development division of JAX Chamber. JinkoSolar began pilot production last month at its Jacksonville solar panel plant, the China-based company’s first manufacturing facility in the U.S. Cockroft said the plant in AllianceFlorida at Cecil Commerce Center already
has more than 100 employees on-site. As previously announced, it expects to have 200 when it becomes fully operational early next year. The Jacksonville plant will be the world’s most technologically advanced solar panel facility, he said, producing 1.2 million panels a year as it operates 24 hours a day, seven days a week. “It will be quite a showcase,” Cockroft said during the event at the Hyatt Regency Jacksonville Riverfront. About 400 JAXUSA members and guests attended. The plant also could increase employSEEJINKOSOLAR, PAGE 2
KAREN BRUNE MATHIS EDITOR
Fanatics warehouse sold for $15M
Buyer IP Capital Partners says it’s bullish on “assets that cater to e-commerce distribution.” Boca Raton-based IP Capital Partners added to its Jacksonville holdings with the Dec. 4 purchase of the Fanatics warehouse in West Jacksonville for $15 million. Through SCIP 5245 LLC, the Florida group bought the almost 590,000-square-foot warehouse complex on about 28 acres at 5245 Commonwealth Ave. “We are certainly bullish on the major industrial markets in Florida, and specifically those assets Isaacson that cater to e-commerce distribution,” said IP Capital Partners President Jason Isaacson. Fanatics, founded in Jacksonville, sells licensed sports merchandise worldwide through e-commerce. It has operating offices and fulfillment centers in the United States, U.K., Germany, Spain, India, Hong Kong and Japan. Jacksonville is its East Coast headquarters. SEE MATHIS, PAGE 3
Lucky’s to build-out in OakLeaf Lucky’s Market can build-out in OakLeaf Station in southwest Jacksonville, which will be its second area grocery store. The city approved the permit Wednesday for Lucky’s Market Operating Co. LLC. Snyder General Construction Inc. of Berkley, Michigan, is the contractor for the $1.34 million build-out of the 30,000-square-foot store at 8380 Merchants Way. Lucky’s Market spokeswoman Krista Torvik said the store plans to open in summer 2019 and hire 130-150 employees.
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