Florida State College at Jacksonville (FSCJ) recently celebrated the grand opening of a culinary café that is part of a larger revitalization project bringing new teaching space and housing for the school’s culinary students.

The renovation of the 104-year-old Lerner building includes apartments for 60 students along with the 5,000-square-foot café, which doubles as a classroom for FSCJ’s Downtown Campus Culinary program. Enhanced Capital helped finance the project through $4.5 million in federal Historic Tax Credits.

The Jacksonville Business Journal covered the grand opening and ribbon-cutting ceremony that took place at the café, 20 West, on March 15. According to the newspaper, 20 West will provide students with hands-on experience both cooking and serving customers. The farm-to-fork café will serve breakfast and lunch five days a week along with catering options for the local community.

“It’s a good opportunity for them to learn production in an understanding environment,” Brett Comer, FSCJ alumni and executive chef, told the Jacksonville Business Journal.

The economic redevelopment project is also contributing to the rebirth of the urban area overall.

“This is the beginning of our downtown immersion project,” FSCJ retiring president Cynthia Bioteau said. “We look at the urban core as ready to light up again.”

The Federal Historic Preservation Tax Incentives Program generates billions of dollars in private investment in historic preservation and community revitalization projects. A recent report found this program created nearly 107,000 jobs in 2017 alone while generating additional economic activity and enhancing property values as well.

To read the full article in the Jacksonville Business Journal, please click here.

(Photo courtesy of the Jacksonville Business Journal.)