ST. JOHNS COUNTY, Fla. – St. Johns County leaders hosted a “State of the County” presentation with the future of World Golf Village as a topic of concern.
The county is looking toward the future with multiple projects in the works. At the presentation, people got a chance to tour the World Golf Village Hall of Fame.
Doug Hogan lives in St. Johns County and said the property would be a great entertainment venue.
“We’ve got the IMAX theater here. And there’s a Renaissance Hotel over there. There’s some bones to build on here. And I would like to see them build on it,” Hogan said.
District 1 Commissioner Christian Whitehurst answered questions about issues with road projects and the future of the WGV following the presentation from County Administrator Joy Andrews.
SURVEY RESULTS | Some SJC residents want World Golf Village IMAX to remain open; others seek more options.
“It’s in all of our interest to measure twice and cut once. We don’t want to rush to judgment and bring something to this beautiful community that’s not the right fit. So even if that means being patient and taking our time, then we’re going to find the right fit for this beautiful community,” Andrews said.
Andrews said the county is taking legal action against developers who did not complete road projects connected to housing developments on County Road 210 and State Road 16.
"There’s a lot of red tape, and it takes 20 [to] 25 years. So the problems that I have complained about, I come to find out they were routed long, long ago. And it’s hard to turn that train around,” Andrews said.
Whitehurst said while they can’t undo past approvals, the board is shifting its approach to how to approve future projects.
“Moving forward, what our board has demonstrated through our votes is that number one, we’re willing to deny a lot of projects, and we have. And number two, if they get approvals, then they have to bring with those approvals infrastructure,” Whitehurst said.
District 2 Commissioner Sarah Arnold said a resident survey on the property gave them a better idea of how to move forward.
“It’s pretty unanimous what the community wants. We’re seeing entertainment, culture, performing arts, retail, high end restaurants. The community has a pretty cohesive vision for what they want here, including the IMAX. Everybody wants the IMAX to stay,” Arnold said.
Arnold said meeting the community’s needs and wants encourages the county to get it right when deciding on the property’s future.
“It’s why we’re taking our time. It’s why we’re taking all of these steps,” Arnold said. “we want to make sure we are hearing the community and what they want so we get it right this time.”
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