Sheltair FBO Breaks Ground at New Airport

Sheltair Aviation broke ground on their new facility on Friday at their new location at the Northwest Florida Beaches International Airport. The airport opened last May with General Aviation operating out of the new facility since mid summer.

Of the two FBO’s that were operating out of the old Panama City Airport, Sheltair is the only one that was able to successfully negotiate new terms for operation at the new facility. The airport just cut ties with H4C, taking back possession of their land in a $6 million eminent domain deal.

The new Sheltair facility at the new Panama City airport will consist of a 5,000 square foot terminal and a 9,000 square foot hangar. Officials estimate that the new FBO facility will have a $5 million impact on the area.

Proposed RV Park NIXED

I haven’t seen as lively a topic as this since spring break discussions of years past. At this week’s planning board meeting, it was stated that it had been years since they had a turnout like that, with the chairman of the board saying, “I hope your church has this good of an attendance on Sunday.” I’m no expert on crowd estimations, but I’d say there was at least two hundred people in attendance. The board room at the City building in Panama City Beach was packed full with standing persons lining the walls and wannabe attendees clamoring for a listen in the foyer.

I’ll get right to the point: the RV park will not be developed on this property, not now, and probably not ever. After heavy opposition from the surrounding community, the developer withdrew their application to change their Planned Unit Development stating that at this point, they had no idea what they were going to do with the property.

Here is what happened.

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Old La Borgata is New Proposed RV Park in West Panama City Beach

Do you remember La Borgata, a luxury development resort community that was to be developed on the west end of Panama City Beach? A few years ago, amid real estate horror stories and a sinking market, Ronnie Gilley Properties cleared the land, installed the infrastructure and bought the support of country music star, Alan Jackson to develop this luxury community across the street of Wild Heron. This development was to consist of just under 200 luxury town homes and condominiums from 850 to 3,000 square feet, retail shops, salt water pools, heated spas and plenty of other resort fluff.

Well, plans have changed.

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New 3,000 Acre Nature Park Under Construction

Under construction right now is a 3,000 acre nature park on the west end of Panama City Beach. Owned by the city of Panama City Beach, this new park will feature over 20 miles of nature trails with around a mile of it being elevated 6 foot wide boardwalk.

The location of the park is just north of the St. Joe Commerce Park on Griffin Blvd, about a mile west of Highway 79 on Panama City Beach Parkway (Back Beach Road).

The 3,000 acre property was purchased as a nature preserve and to serve as a discharge for treated waste water. There will be a number of retention ponds and wetlands that will be surrounded by nature trails.

In addition to tons of nature trails and beautiful nature, there will be an amenity building that will have public restrooms.

The park is expected to be completed in April of 2011, look for more information soon, including a video tour, when we can get better access to the property.

New Fire Station Being Built on Panama City Beach

West of Highway 79 in Panama City Beach, a new Bay County Fire Station is being built. This new facility will house 6 full time firefighters, and have the capacity to hold a ladder truck, three fire vehicles, a tanker and a rescue truck.

The land that the new fire station is being build on is a 2.5 acre tract that was purchased from St. Joe last year.

Construction started in August, and the new station is set to be complete by summer of 2011. Construction is by DooleyMack Constructors out of Panama City Beach – thanks for the info, Trey.

The new 11,000 square foot station will have a full kitchen, 6 dorm rooms, a two bay garage, ample parking and a huge driveway that will be plenty large enough to wash the trucks when they aren’t being used. So far, they are under budget and ahead of schedule.

New Dollar General on Thomas Drive

Some of you might have noticed the excavating and construction going on at Thomas Drive and Luff Street. We took it upon ourselves to find out for you.

It is going to be a new Dollar General! It is being developed by Concept Construction and Development, and is the newest Dollar General in Panama City Beach. Concept Construction and Development has also built the Dollar General on 15th Street, 22nd Street and the one in Lynn Haven on Highway 390.

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Office Depot Opens in Panama City Beach – In 4 Weeks

Last summer, when the new Publix opened at the intersection of R Jackson Blvd and Back Beach Road, Dunkin Donuts came, along with Tropical Smoothie and a variety of other assorted shops. Office Depot was supposed to be on the roster, but I was told that due to the downturn in the economy, they had indefinitely pulled out of this new location and were actually re-evaluating the operations of many other locations across the U.S. Well, things must have turned around for them because their sign is back up, the inside of the space is close to being finished off and they are scheduled to open within the next four weeks.

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Brand New Panama City Beach Library Now Open!

It’s been quite a week or two for Panama City Beach – first a new international airport, and as of Wednesday June 2^nd 2010, a brand new state-of-the-art library! At 10,000 square feet, the new facility is larger, offers a much broader range of services, and is conveniently located on Hutchinson Blvd and Lyndell Lane in the center of Panama City Beach. Continue reading “Brand New Panama City Beach Library Now Open!” →

Wonder No More: Update on WonderWorks/The Upside Down House

If you’ve been driving on Front Beach Road close to Wal-Mart recently, you will have no doubt noticed a rather large, oddly-shaped structure located next to Walgreen’s and opposite Ripley’s Believe it or not Museum. In case you were wondering, this imposing building is actually going to be an awesome family attraction by the name of WonderWorks, and is scheduled to be open this summer. Continue reading “Wonder No More: Update on WonderWorks/The Upside Down House” →

Paving the Way for Harley Davidson on Panama City Beach

READ: Harley-Davidson Dealership Groundbreaking

You’ve driven past the sign probably a thousand times since it was posted; some of you passing with excitement, others with disdain. Either way, Harley Davidson Motor Cycles is coming to Panama City Beach. The acceleration lane headed West from the intersection of Panama City Beach Parkway and Gulf Blvd is almost complete and the crews have one more layer of asphalt to lay. After that, its vroom, vrooom!

Businesses like Harley Davidson moving into our area is always a good thing, a sign of the economic prosperity to be had on our wonderful beaches. However, we at PCBDaily.com have read the comments (see exhibit A) about Bike Week and although we are fans of the event, the chromed-out weekend remains one of PCB’s most polarizing topics. Some love it, some hate. Harley Davidson’s arrival onto our beach can only mean that the bike week has more staying power than many realize.

We expect construction to begin soon on the latest addition to the Harley Davidson family of Dealers.

This construction appears to be the first of the “Commercial Opportunities” that are offered by the St. Joe Company along Panama City Beach Parkway (or Back Beach Road, as some still call it). This and other land parcels are convenient to Frank Brown Park and Pier Park.

As growth continues on Panama City Beach… We’ll keep you posted!