OK, I understand "Metrojacksonville" is full of emotional volatility and recency bias, but while I have my concerns with Curry's Administration, the very much revered Barnett and Trio were incentivized under his watch and are actually in motion during his administration. So all is not lost. Jax is on a very bumpy ride to renewal, but that's probably not unique to Jax. Finally, does anyone know the inside scoop on the hand-off of the Barnett Building from Shad-owned Iguana to its current ownership? Is there a compelling story of reconciliation and mediation here?
Khan, through Stache Investments, loaned Adkins $3 million to purchase the Barnett in 2013. Barnett failed to make payments on the loan, the property went into foreclosure, and Khan bid around $50k to retain it in 2016. Khan didn't necessarily want to develop it himself, but he wanted to make sure that the property was put in good hands. The trust was broken with Adkins, but when Molasky group came back to the table with Adkins and laid out their plans for the Trio, Khan agreed to sell it to Molasky, for around $4 million and change, I believe.
For the Trio deal, I personally give most of the credit to Adkins and Aundra Wallace, but I agree, Curry has overseen a lot of positive development downtown, has made some bold moves, and has successfully lobbied for a lot of state money for the Hart Bridge ramp removals. He's deepened the city's relationship with Shad Khan and the Jaguars (which I fully support), and even if I don't support every decision, he makes things happen. I'll take Curry 20 times out of 10 over Peyton. That number jumps to 25 if he buries the hatchet with Sleiman and works towards a common solution for the Landing.