East Coast Compounding Pharmacy

Fast Turnaround | Jacksonville, FL

A Tight Site, A Tighter Timeline 

Almond Engineering reached out needing a partner who could move fast without cutting corners. It was a pharmacy site — every day of delay was a day patients couldn’t park, couldn’t get in, couldn’t get what they needed. Gervais Ventures got on site, got to work, and got it done. The property sits on a quarter-acre lot near a school in downtown Jacksonville, along an active boulevard where neighboring businesses couldn’t afford to lose access during construction. An existing structure had to come down. An adjoining lot had to be brought into the property and unified with it, turning what had been a driveway into the site’s new entrance.

None of it slowed us down.

Construction crew prior to demolition in St. Petersburg

More Complicated Than Paving a Lot

Tenant improvement work on an existing, active commercial site is complex. There’s no clean slate to work from. Every decision has to account for what’s already there, the existing utilities, grades, setbacks, and neighboring properties, while still delivering a finished site that performs the way a new one would.

We managed the full scope from the first day of demolition through final site stabilization, self-performing the excavation, grading, and structural concrete where it made sense, and bringing in trade partners for the specialized work. Permitting, hazardous material removal, structural demolition, utility relocation, grading, site concrete, structural concrete, electrical, paving, landscaping, and hardscaping ran as one coordinated effort instead of a series of handoffs.

ECC parking lot mid construction - bobcat and excavator
ECC parking lot in mid construction with ADA curb installed

We removed roughly 1,100 square feet of concrete, 475 square feet of asphalt, and the existing fencing and curbing, then rebuilt from the subgrade up: nine parking spaces reconfigured for proper circulation, one fully ADA-compliant accessible space, and pervious pavers throughout to manage stormwater on a tight footprint. Final impervious surface ratio: 83%, under the 85% zoning maximum.

We coordinated with Jacksonville’s public utility provider to relocate the water meter and backflow preventer into a newly dedicated easement, and tied the site back into the public right-of-way with new curb and gutter, ADA-compliant curb ramps, and sidewalk connections. Temporary traffic control kept neighboring businesses accessible along the boulevard throughout construction.

aerial view of the jobsite
ECC parking lot mid construction - bobcat and excavator
ECC parking lot in mid construction with ADA curb installed

JOB DONE, DOORS OPEN

Patients can park, access the building, and move through the property safely. The owner has a compliant, professionally finished property and the confidence that the details underneath, the utilities, drainage, and grades, were handled correctly the first time.

For property owners and tenants working through the complexity of Jacksonville’s permitting environment, this is what thoughtful general contracting looks like. Not just getting a project built, but understanding what the project is actually for.

“It’s not often that you find folks that maintain a high level of professionalism, keep their word, maintain a timeline, and are honest with you throughout the whole process. I can’t recommend Gervais Ventures enough.”
Max McDaniel

Co-Founder and Owner, East Coast Compounding & Pharmacy

Nik Gervais and Owner of ECC, Max McDaniel

That’s the standard Gervais Ventures holds on every job, big or small: move fast, communicate clearly, and leave the client with a property that performs the way it should have all along.

The Project Team

We select trade partners the same way we approach every project: with the client’s outcome in mind. That means local firms with proven track records, the right expertise for the specific scope, and the accountability to perform when it matters.

  • Design Partner: Almond Engineering, P.A.
  • Trade Partners: ISI Demolition · Crabtree Plumbing · Miller Electric/Emcor · 3D Concrete/W Gardner · Whitley Steel · Kudzu Trucking and Paving · Armstrong Fence Company · Scapes of Northeast Florida · Carlson and Associates · Legacy Engineering · GPRS · Bold City Seal · The Branch Manager · Supreme Air · FastSigns
ECC parking lot mid construction - bobcat and excavator
ECC parking lot in mid construction with ADA curb installed