Nassau County, Florida
When people first think of Nassau County, Amelia Island and our beautiful beaches come to mind. Look beyond our beaches and you’ll see the landscape of our county is as diverse as our residents and businesses. Nassau County is where tourism intersects with industry, our railways and highways link to over 60 million consumers and the Port of Fernandina unites businesses with the world. Nassau County is ideally positioned for new industry and expansion opportunities with a skilled military workforce, unsurpassed logistics network and over 17 million square feet of entitled heavy industrial and commercial space, ready to welcome you.
Nassau County: Where Industry Makes History
Nassau County, Florida is ripe with history and it is our history that serves as the impetus for our current success and future growth. Since David Yulee constructed the first cross-state railroad linking Fernandina Beach to Cedar Key, on Florida's Gulf Coast, logistics has played a large part in our county’s economic success. Today that is evident in the Crawford Diamond Industrial Park, a McCallum-Sweeney certified industrial mega-site where CSX and Norfolk Southern rail lines intersect. When Europeans first settled in Nassau County, the St. Marys River to our north and the Nassau River to the south served as early transportation routes for commerce and trade. Today, the deep-water Port of Fernandina serves as an international gateway for businesses throughout Nassau County and the Southeast.
Where tourism and industry live in harmony
The Gilded Age of the late 1800s gave rise to an influx of tourists on Amelia Island. Today, Amelia Island continues to welcome vacationers to our world-class resorts, the Omni Amelia Island Plantation and the Ritz-Carlton, Amelia Island, along with numerous bed and breakfasts.
Location, location, location
Situated on the northeast coast of Florida, Nassau County’s affords businesses a low-tax climate and access to over 60 million consumers within an eight hour drive. I-95 is the main north-south artery along the Eastern seaboard, while I-10 connects Nassau County to points west.Workforce – Nassau County falls within the Jacksonville MSA with over 1.6 million residents and a workforce of over 837,000 working-age adults. We are equidistant to four military installations – Naval Submarine Base Kings Bay, Naval Station Mayport, Marine Corps Support Facility Blount Island and Naval Air Station Jacksonville – with 3,000 skilled veterans returning to the private sector and choosing to stay in our region. The military veterans of Northeast Florida and Southeast Georgia make up 14 percent of the region's workforce, compared to seven percent for the U.S. overall. Our local military members receive up-to-date industry training, possess a strong work ethic and present employers with skills transferable to manufacturing, logistics and distribution, aerospace and aviation, among others.
Infrastructure – Connect your business to the nation and world with access to an extensive highway system including I-95 and I-10, CSX and Northfolk Southern's far-reaching rail network, the Jacksonville International Airport and the deep water Port of Fernandina Beach, whose channel allows for quick access to and from the ocean...only 45 minutes from dockside to the open ocean.
Live the good life - We’re more than just a great tourist destination. Our residents enjoy an inviting climate that allows for a year-round outdoor lifestyle and a wide range of recreational opportunities, arts and culture, housing options and community character.
State and local incentives
As a designated rural county, Nassau County is able to offer many incentives to new and expanding businesses who choose to operate in the area. The Nassau County Economic Development Board (NCEDB) is here to assist you through the process. Our team can act as a resource to help you identify the incentives you may be eligible for and guide you through the process of applying for them. Please find a list below of local incentive programs. For a listing of state programs, please visit Enterprise Florida.The NCEDB can assist your company with a number of programs that can offset expenses incurred by relocating your business to Nassau County. We can provide assistance with permitting, occupational licensing or other local issues that your company may encounter.
Local incentives
Qualified Target Industry Tax Refund (QTI): The Qualified Target Industry Tax Refund incentive is available for companies that create high wage jobs in targeted high value-added industries. This incentive includes refunds on corporate income, sales, ad valorem, intangible personal property, insurance premium, and certain other taxes. Pre-approved applicants who create jobs in Florida receive tax refunds of $3,000 per net new Florida full-time equivalent job created; $6,000 in an Enterprise Zone or Rural Community (county). For businesses paying 150 percent of the average annual wage, add $1,000 per job; for businesses paying 200 percent of the average annual salary, add $2,000 per job; businesses falling within a designated high impact sector or increasing exports of its goods through a seaport or airport in the state by at least 10 percent in value or tonnage in each year of receiving a QTI refund, add $2,000 per job; projects locating in a designated Brownfield area (Brownfield Bonus) can add $2,500 per job. The local community where the company locates contributes 20 percent of the total tax refund. No more than 25 percent of the total refund approved may be taken in any single fiscal year. New or expanding businesses in selected targeted industries or corporate headquarters are eligible.Nassau County is designated a rural county by the state of Florida and the state will award a minimum of $4,500 per job. The QTI award is jointly funded with 80 percent coming from the state and 20 percent from the local community; however, the community’s 20 percent match can be waived because Nassau is designated a rural county. Approval of the tax refund by both state and local governments must be made before your company actually commits to locating in Nassau County.
Qualifications:
- Inclusion within list of Nassau County’s Targeted Industries
- Create at least 10 new full time jobs
- Overall average wage (including management) of new jobs must equal or exceed 115 percent of the lower of the statewide or local area average wages for the private sector. For businesses paying 150 percent of the average annual wage, add $1,000 per job; for businesses paying 200 percent of the average annual wage, add $2,000 per job
Nassau County Economic Development Grant: Nassau County offers qualified businesses a return of a portion of ad valorem property taxes (taxes due on real and personal property) based on the new capital investment and jobs created by the business.
The business must be in a targeted industry, create at least ten new jobs, and create at least $1 million in new capital investment in the county. The amount of the annual grant is based on the size of the project. Businesses meeting the basic requirements will be eligible to receive a grant of 100 percent of the increase in taxes resulting from the new capital investment in the first year, declining to 80 percent the second year, 60 percent the third year, and so on, until the grant phases out at the end of the fifth year.
