Within a day of a zoning approval by the St. Johns County Board of County Commissioners, representatives of the Ponte Vedra Inn & Club submitted an application to the county to start work on redeveloping parts of the oceanfront resort.
Civil engineer Reid McDaniel with Jacksonville-based England-Thims & Miller Inc. submitted an application Nov. 8 for the first phase that includes construction of two buildings and tennis courts.
Work consists of underground utilities, clearing, grading, stormwater management facilities, parking areas and associated construction.
The owner is Ponte Vedra Corp., part of resort owner Jacksonville-based Gate Petroleum Co.
The project is at 200 and 295 Ponte Vedra Blvd.
The application says the 156,369-square-foot project is on 17 acres.
In a 4-1 vote, the St. Johns County Board of County Commissioners approved a Planned Unit Development on Nov. 7 that would allow the renovation and expansion of the Ponte Vedra Inn & Club and The Lodge & Club in Ponte Vedra Beach.
The PUD allows Gate to begin a 30-year master plan to renovate and expand the facilities.
Gate Petroleum President John Peyton said his father, Herb Peyton, purchased the property in 1985 from Stockton, Whatley, Davin & Co.
He said the Ponte Vedra Inn & Club will soon mark its 100th anniversary.
He said the changes made possible by the PUD will allow the resort to be more resilient in terms of climate change and sea level rise, improve the aging facilities to make the resort more competitive and provide solutions for more parking at the property.
Peyton said the plan presented for approval was the result of five years of planning and dozens of open houses and town hall meetings.
Under the plan, expected to be completed in six phases over a 30-year period, the oceanfront Ponte Vedra Inn & Club can expand to up to 349 rooms and 595,000 square feet of restaurant, bar and indoor recreation space.
The Lodge & Club on the west side of Ponte Vedra Boulevard across from the Ponte Vedra Inn & Club can expand to up to 86 rooms and 70,000 square feet of restaurant, bar and indoor recreation space.