A local Jacksonville IT company just closed on a property near Everbank Field. Worldwide IT, one of Jacksonville’s Best Places to Work, has purchased the 6,293 sq ft building at 220 Talleyrand Ave. They decided to purchase the property after seeing all of the other development under way by the stadium; such as, Intuition Ale Works and the proposed amphitheater.
Matthew Clark and Eric Bumgarner represented the seller on the sale and Tyler Saldutti represented the buyer.
• According to Eric Bumgarner, Vice President of Industrial Brokerage Services at Prime Realty, "The sale of 220 Talleyrand has great significance in the industrial market in downtown Jacksonville, as this sale has created a record comp for the area. I believe this sale will create a domino effect and lead to more local and innovative companies, such as Worldwoide IT, moving to the urban core. All it takes is one leader and the rest will follow. #makejaxhappen!"
• “The pieces are starting to come together in downtown’s overall development. Increased development around the stadium, brooklyn, and uban core are leading to the activity we need, to have a thriving downtown.” Says Mathew Clark, VP at Prime Realty.
• “When a great Jacksonville company purchases an iconic address and plans to make major improvements to the property, that is a win-win-win!” exclaims Tyler Saldutti, CEO at Prime Realty.
Worldwide IT plans move to headquarters Downtown
Mar 18, 2016, 8:01am EDT Updated: Mar 18, 2016, 9:31am EDT
Worldwide IT started out of Joshua Sizemore's garage on Jacksonville's Westside about 14 years ago. It's been a lot of work, but the company has since grown into a flourishing business that now will be headquartered at property next to EverBank Field.
Sizemore, owner of Worldwide IT, closed on an about 6,300 square-foot industrial warehouse Thursday morning for $420,000.
"I have a heart for Downtown and really believe in it," Sizemore said. "I'm putting my money where my mouth is."
He would like to see 50 to 60 people work out of that building in the coming years. His plans are to gut the building and do a full renovation. He declined to discuss the full cost of the move, but the costs for similar projects typically run in the hundreds of thousands of dollars.
"I want it to mesh well with the amphitheater, the stadium upgrades and everything else that's going on in that area," he said.
It's been an exciting time for the 39-year-old business owner as his company recently landed a contract to be the Jacksonville Suns IT service provider. He also plans to hire two or three more employees.
Worldwide IT currently operates out of a building at 1721 Blanding Blvd. Sizemore said the facility is maxed out with 11 employees crammed into 1,400 square feet of space. The company had started looking for additional space about a year ago, always in the Downtown or Avondale/Riverside area where Sizemore now lives.
Ultimately, Sizemore settled on 220 Tallyrand Ave. adjacent to Everbank Field.
Prime Realty brokered the deal between both the buyer and seller.
Tyler Saldutti, CEO at Prime Realty, represented Sizemore in the transaction.
"It's just nice when it's a home-grown success like this," he said. "I love working with local companies and seeing them have an impact."
Also with Prime Realty, Eric Bumgarner, who represented the seller with Matthew Clark, said this sale could lead to a "domino effect" bringing more companies to take a look at the area.
"All it takes is one leader and the rest will follow," he said.
Clark, vice president at Prime Realty, partnered with Bumgarner and said the pieces are really coming together for Downtown.
"Increased development around the stadium, Brooklyn, and urban core are leading to the activity we need, to have a thriving downtown,” Clark said.
Sizemore does believe the area is primed to explode as upgrades at the Jaguars stadium take off and are scheduled to begin in April. There's still the Shipyards project that could be transformative if it ever gets off the ground, he said.
Although much smaller, Sizemore has his own development plans with permits to file and construction crews to hire. He would like to start construction in the next 30 days, but has yet to file the needed permits and understands that may not be possible. He wants to be in the building in time for opening day kickoff.
He said he also will utilize the property on game days throwing parties at the building. The building is on 0.63 acres of land and most of the left half of the property is open space.
"We're very customer friendly and relationship driven," he said. "It's going to be really fun."
Derek Gilliam
Reporter
Jacksonville Business Journal
