WEST BAY — Bay and Walton County planning officials have a hefty application to sift through in the coming months.
The St. Joe Co. submitted its 600-plus page Bay-Walton Sector Plan application to the counties Friday, outlining a 50-year vision for a roughly 110,000-acre area, which covers about 172 square miles.
St. Joe’s concept centers on developing pocketed residential communities with a focus on retired, active adults, and commercial town centers to support the residents’ needs.
The proposal is an extension of the existing 75,000-acre West Bay Sector Plan adopted in 2002, and, if approved, will serve as a long-term planning tool for St. Joe, company officials said.
St.Joe Chief Executive Officer Park Brady said the plan presents a one-of-a-kind opportunity for both the company and the community.
“It’s really unique, and the reason it becomes unique is that no one else owns 110,000 acres in a local community,” Brady said. “We could have done this in pieces … but we felt that it’s better off for the community and us to have a guide.”
Read the Bay County application (Large PDF) »
Read the Walton County application (Large PDF) »
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St. Joe Senior Vice President Jorge Gonzalez said the process now will be governed by the counties, which will be holding a series of workshops, meetings and public hearings to discuss the application.
The document addresses in detail potential impacts on the environment, transportation, water supply, stormwater management, transportation, community facilities and other areas the development could have over the 50-year period.
Gonzalez said the counties will approach the process as a comprehensive plan amendment and vote on whether they want to transmit the application to the state agencies for review.
“Once we can resolve all the issues that the state has, that’s when we’ll tell the county we’re ready to schedule adoption hearings,” Gonzalez said.
After the long-term master plan is in place, St. Joe still will be required to submit detailed-specific area plans for county approval before beginning any construction.
“It’s not going to happen fast,” Brady said. “This is the framework under which pieces will be approved or not approved.”
Maximum impact by the numbers*
- 29,101 residential units projected in the first 10 years of construction.
- 145,494 residential units constructed over a 50-year period.
- 11.2 million square feet of office/employment center space
- 4.5 million square feet of retail/commercial space
- 1,350 hospital beds
- 2,775 hotel rooms
- 6 million square feet of industrial/warehouse space
- 342 holes of golf
- 1.1 million square feet of recreation development.
- Projected population of 70,133 within first 10 years of development.
- Peak population of 350,643 (13.9 percent seasonal)
- Projected employment of 12,536 within first 10 years of development.
- Projected employment of 62,676 at build out
- Hotel development projected to generate 4,627 full-time equivalent visitors at build out.
- 5,048 residential units projected in the first 10 years of construction.
- 24,706 residential units constructed over a 50-year period.
- 113,000 square feet of office/employment center space
- 505,000 square feet of retail/commercial space
- 530 hotel rooms
- 81 holes of golf
- 322,000 square feet of recreation development.
- Peak population of 58,800 (35 percent seasonal)
* Figures are for 100 percent build out, which the company does not anticipate. The state requires developers to submit plans that account for the greatest possible impact.