Walton County, FL – Sustainable Land Development Today has honored the WaterColor development in Walton County, Florida as a 2008 Visionary Award Honorable Mention recipient. Developed by PBS&J and the St. Joe Company and located on 499 acres of northwest coastline, the mixed-use development hosts over 1,000 residential units, a 60-room resort hotel, and 100,000 square feet of commercial and retail property.
Located in a sensitive environment that includes the rare coastal dune lakes of Grayton Beach State Park and Point Washington State Forest, the development faced significant challenges to successfully co-exist with endangered species and wetland habitat. The issue was resolved by permanently setting aside more than half of the project for conservation.
“WaterColor was planned and designed with conservation and preservation in mind,” said Ken Jones, vice president/principal technical professional for PBS&J. “The developers and planners used minimal manmade features to enhance the already abundant natural amenities in order to create a sustainable community.”
“Eighty acres of beachfront was set aside to create a habitat for the endangered Choctawhatchee Beach Mouse,” Jones added. The natural dune system has been kept in place along the coastline to preserve and protect the development and associated facilities during hurricanes.
The 20-month entitlement process involved coordinating with 29 reviewing agencies to gain final approval of WaterColor. The process, which was completed in March 1999, resulted in a project with large open spaces, pedestrian and vehicular connectivity, habitat restoration, and significant wetland buffers. Stormwater ponds were created as enhanced wetlands located adjacent to the existing wetland areas and a vehicular and a pedestrian bridge was built across a coastal-dune-lake tributary to provide connectivity throughout the development.
The project is scheduled for completion in December of 2009.
2008 Visionary Award applicants were evaluated on leadership, responsibility, and innovation in project development. Five projects were selected as finalists, with Denver-area development, Tallyn’s Reach, chosen as the ultimate winner.