City leaders meet with potential Eureka Gardens buyer

Company set to buy several troubled properties in Jacksonville

JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – The troubled Eureka Gardens apartment complex on the Westside may officially have a new owner within the next few weeks.

Mayor Lenny Curry, Sheriff Mike Williams and City Councilman Garrett Dennis met Thursday with representatives of The Millennia Company, which is planning to buy a portfolio of subsidized housing properties from Global Ministries Foundation.

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That portfolio includes Eureka Gardens, Washington Heights and several other Jacksonville complexes.

GMF has been under scrutiny since an I-TEAM investigation that began last year exposed deplorable living conditions at the apartments.

City leaders expect a sales contract to be signed within a few weeks, but they acknowledged that the sale is just the first step toward improving life at the properties.

“Real excited about the direction those complexes will take under this direction,” Williams said. “It's not going to be overnight. It's going to take some time, but it should be good.”

“They understand the pressure that they're under,” Dennis said. “They understand that as city leaders, we have a high expectation. However, it's not an adversary type of relationship. It's going to be a very positive, amicable relationship to turn it around, because it's all about those residents at Eureka and Washington Heights and the other properties.” 

The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development will also have to sign off on the sale before it can be completed.