ST. JOHNS COUNTY
Years in the making, the Compass Hotel by Margaritaville is advancing in the county’s Beachwalk community off County Road 210.
The county’s development review committee took a first pass at reviewing the project Nov. 12, an important step before a building permit can be issued.
According to a building permit application and site plans, the hotel project will have 111 rooms.
There are also short-term-stay cottages planned at the site, but not yet submitted for permitting.
The cottages would be managed by the Margaritaville Hotel and would not be advertised on Airbnb or VRBO, representatives said during a St. Johns County Commission meeting in November 2024.
They cannot operate as timeshares or be occupied by the same person, family or group for more than three consecutive months, the developer told the county.
Beachwalk Retail Center LLC, a partnership between PEBB Enterprises and Falcone Group of Boca Raton, will develop the hotel and cottages. It owns the land, according to the county property appraiser website.
Prime AE Group is the civil engineer.
Update plans were submitted to the county Dec. 2.
ESPN basketball analyst Steffi Sorensen received rezoning approval Nov. 18 for her proposed health and wellness center, called Dark Horse.
The St. Johns County Board of County Commissioners unanimously voted to rezone the site to Planned Unit Development from Open Rural — a required step for development.
The 11.86-acre site is on the north side of Greenbriar Road, east of Florida 13 North and about 1.2 miles west of Longleaf Pine Parkway and the Shoppes of Rivertown.
Plans must be reviewed by the county development review committee before construction. A meeting is not yet scheduled, a spokesperson said Dec. 1.
Sorensen, a St. Johns County native, played at the University of Florida and one year professionally in France before beginning her television career with ESPN, where she provides analysis and sideline reporting.
She said the facility is designed to bring fitness, recovery and performance training under one roof.
The site is owned by the Chris R. Sorensen Family Trust.
Three Publix grocery stores are proposed in St. Johns County, and one renovated store has reopened.
Plans are under review for a Publix in northern St. Johns County, submitted Nov. 10. The site is northeast of The Church of Eleven22 campus and Creekside High School, about 3.8 miles southeast of the Interstate 95–U.S. 98 interchange.
The application outlines a 63,265-square-foot project with an affiliated liquor store.
ACC Project Longleaf LLC owns the land.
A second new Publix is under construction in the SilverLeaf community. It is north of SilverLeaf Parkway and west of St. Johns Parkway near the 55-plus age-restricted Reverie TrailMark development.
The project features a 55,701-square-foot store built with Publix’s new prototype, which typically includes a Pours café offering beer and wine.
The site will also include a 2,100-square-foot liquor store and two additional retail spaces totaling 13,700 square feet. The shopping center is owned by SilverLeaf Market LLC.
Construction is expected to be completed in mid-February, according to a project spokesperson, though Publix has not announced an opening date.
A third Publix is expected at 2875 Florida 16 in the planned Elevation Pointe community west of the St. Augustine Premium Outlets. St. Johns County issued a permit Dec. 20 for Publix Super Markets Inc. to build a 48,387-square-foot store at a project cost of $3.83 million.
Elevation Pointe is a mixed-use development featuring retail, apartments and townhomes. A 2,100-square-foot liquor store is also planned.
A renovated Publix on Anastasia Island reopened Nov. 13 after upgrades.
At 1033 A1A Beach Blvd., the store retains its traditional departments while adding new services, a liquor store and catering.
Two unnamed 61,000-square-foot grocery store projects are planned in St. Johns County, and they aren’t Publix or Winn-Dixie, according to company representatives.
The footprints match Harris Teeter.
One is in early design review at Veterans Parkway and County Road 210 and includes the possibility of a fueling station.
The shopping center is 77,000 square feet, according to its pre-application, a first step in county development projects. Jacksonville-based Kimley-Horn is the civil engineer. The land is owned by Helow Properties LTD, developer of the master-planned Greenbriar community.
Another 61,000-square-foot store is planned in the SilverLeaf community.
The county’s Planning and Zoning Agency recommended approval 5-1 on Nov. 6 for a minor modification to the SilverLeaf planned unit development. The change would allow the grocery store, an affiliated liquor store and outparcels designed for restaurant tenants to sell alcohol within 275 feet of the Episcopal Church in the Diocese of Florida, instead of the required 1,000 feet.
The site is at County Road 16A and SilverLeaf Parkway. Ellen Avery-Smith of Jacksonville-based Rogers Towers represents the project.
England-Thims & Miller Inc. is the civil engineer. The Hutson Co., through White’s Ford Timber LLC, owns the property.
Harris Teeter announced Nov. 10 that it will open five stores in new markets, including Jacksonville at the Atlantic North shopping center at northwest Atlantic and Kernan boulevards. It expects to start construction on the site it is leasing at 11901 Atlantic Blvd. in spring 2026 and will hire 100 to 200 employees. Sleiman Enterprises is the landlord.
The only Harris Teeter in Florida is in Fernandina Beach and was recently permitted for a wine bar.
The company previously operated stores in Jacksonville’s Mandarin neighborhood and in Ponte Vedra Beach, which closed in 2004 and 2006, respectively.