Sea Grove Village
Diverse Housing Community with shops/hotel proposed on Bailey Road
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Sea Grove Village designer John Hillman
Posted
A development group will apply to the city of Fernandina Beach to build a mid-island community of 160 residential units, along with a village center of retail shops and a marsh-front boutique hotel located on Bailey Road adjacent to the Ybor Alvarez sports fields.
The Sea Grove Village project on 24 acres is headed by Jack Healan Jr., his son Jack Healan III and John Hillman. The group developed the nearby Crane Island community and Healan played a key role in the development of Amelia Island Plantation, Marsh Lakes, and Brady Point Preserve from 1978 to 2010.
The development group plans to apply for review before the city's Technical Review Committee and the Planning Advisory Board in May. They will also need city commission support regarding two of the parcels that comprise the 24-acre site. One parcel in the city is zoned industrial and would need to be rezoned residential. The other parcel is in the county and would need to be annexed into the city. The third parcel is in the city and holds a residential zoning designation.
Project Overview
Sea Grove Village plans call for 43 second and third-floor apartments above retail shops, 45 townhouses, a mix of 22 duplexes and quadplexes, 14 live-work units, and 30 homes ranging from 1,800 to 2,000 square feet.
The Sea Grove Village center is designed for 20,000 square feet of retail shops fronted by a two-acre open space including a performance pavilion.
The Sea Grove Village parcels were previously clear cut by the city and Nassau County and the developers said they plan on investing $1 million to plant mature trees and landscaping.
"We're going to reforest this land. That's why the name became grove, we're creating a grove of trees, a grove of people. That's a big, big part of what this is about," said John Hillman, who is heading design and sales efforts for the project.
Hillman described the majority of the residential units as "attainable" in terms of pricing, with one-bedroom units priced in the $300,000 range and some townhouses priced from $400,000 to $600,000.
The 30 full-sized homes on different lot sizes will be priced at more than $1 million.
"How do we help people find respectful housing without having to leave (the island)? This is what happens every day, people leaving the island because they can't afford to live here," Hillman explained. "I believe we are addressing an urgent need on the island, not just to bring back hundreds of trees to the island, but to tackle head-on the need for more diverse housing."
At the far west end of the development is a hotel/event center with a swimming pool and dock along the Amelia Island marsh.
"The idea is that there would be a really first-class restaurant (in the hotel) overlooking the water to watch sunsets," Hillman said. "It's not a big hotel, about 20 rooms. A wedding party could rent out the whole hotel with their reception in the first-floor event space."
Retail & Public Space Vision
Among the considerations for the 20,000 square feet of retail space are a food hall comprised of different offerings from various small kitchen operators, and the possibility of a boutique movie theater and a pickleball sports campus and bar.
Hillman described other retail which might include two restaurants, a coffee/shop bakery, yoga/Pilates, a bike shop, general store/market and a florist.
"The thing we want is this village green to scream out as you're coming off Amelia Island Parkway, you tell your friends 'Meet me at the village green. Sean McCarthy is there playing music, and little kids are playing in the park because it's a safe place to be," Hillman said. "We don't want it to be some boutique shopping place you come to once a year. We want to provide a place you come to every day."
Sea Grove Village will seek to be a Planned Unit Development (PUD) in the city. A PUD is a master-planned community that integrates residential, commercial, and recreational spaces within a single development, providing a cohesive design and efficient land use.
"If there is anybody who can do these types of developments, we're a pretty unique team to pull it off," Hillman said. "We're not leaving town. We've already made a lot of money on Crane Island. This is more about trying to do the best we can for a lot of people."
If approved by the city, Hillman estimated Sea Grove Village to be completed in four to five years.
Hillman has a well-earned reputation as an innovative development designer, having built Babcock Ranch, the state's first fully solar-powered residential community near Punta Gorda.
Sustainability, Traffic, and Infrastructure
The developers are also focused on the primary objections to development on the island.
"We know trees, traffic and sustainability are the big three," Hillman said. "We're solving for trees. We're not talking about (planting) little wimpy trees, but trees from day one that look like a street tree."
In meeting with residents of Crane Island, Hillman said there were traffic safety concerns about the intersection of Bailey Road and Crane Island Drive at the entrance of Ybor Alvarez soccer and softball fields.
"We're going to need support working with the city about having a roundabout there so people can leave those fields safely. A three-way stop sign would be a nightmare," he said.
Hillman said limiting increased traffic was addressed by capping the number of cars to two per household. He said bicycles and electric scooters would be another easy mode for people to use to get around.
He said Sea Grove Village would also offer car share programs and autonomous (self-driving) vehicles as alternative means of transportation in the future.
Hillman believes about 60 percent of those purchasing units will already be living on the island, so additional traffic won't be highly impacted.
The developer has also addressed stormwater and sustainability with city officials.
"We feel like our focus on water management, using greywater, and being a bit of a new standard of what developments and communities should do to help protect water resources," Hillman said. "With all that said, we feel like we are in full alignment with the many strategic initiatives published by the City and Nassau County."
Although city regulations mandate 452 total parking spaces, Sea Grove Village will provide 495 parking spaces.
In order to gain support for the development, Sea Grove Village plans on holding public events on the open space where the village retail center will be located.
"We're going to have opportunities for the public to try it out. On the village green we're going to have farmer's markets; we're going to have food truck events. We're going to give the public a chance to come and say 'yeah, this is the kind of place I can see myself coming to.' We're going to start seeding those opportunities for people to come out and experience it," Hillman said.
Comments
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JoeW
Hooray! More Vehicle Traffic! Do It! COMING SOON! "Welcome to Amelia Island! Home of the 'Parking Lot' formerly known as the City of Fernandina Beach".
Friday, March 28 Report this
JofusD
Can our infrastructure handle this? This week's gridlock was unbearable.
Friday, March 28 Report this
SandyKerry
This is absolute insanity! Our island cannot support these #s! There is gridlock NOW - adding 160 residential units (320 cars) will bring traffic to a standstill. Property previously clear-cut by both city & county?! What could possibly have justified that? Noticeably lacking is any mention of provision for schools. A recent rezoning approval by the county of just 55 residential units was found deficient in their school concurrency agreement! How then will this new proposed Sea Groves development now meet these requirements? Building on a marsh?! St John’s Water Mgmt may think differently. Anyone who experienced the gridlock of traffic backed up Monday from half way down 8th street heading off island knows how impossible it is NOW to get off the island!! This is not just about density or over-development. Our very lives are at risk in the event of ann emergency. It would be next to impossible to evacuate Amelia Island! It’s time for a moratorium until city AND county planners, and most importantly our elected officials address the concerns of all residents of Amelia Island. Enough is enough!!
Friday, March 28 Report this
KoachKay
Great idea BUT, there are SO many empty store fronts and buildings all over the island. Buildings around Amelia Park, a very similar project, look abandoned. Retail space at the corner of Rt 200 and Amelia Parkway look empty. How do you intend to fill the spaces in the Grove and retain those businesses? How quickly will the cost of the lease become prohibitive? We are becoming an island of empty retail space. This is as big a problem as too much traffic in my opinion.
Saturday, March 29 Report this
Vholcom
At what point do we reach max density? This is insane.
Sunday, March 30 Report this
Margaret68
What are they thinking? Just plan to hunker down during a hurricane because you will never get off the island.
Sunday, March 30 Report this
sk3nelson
I generally oppose lots of development in what feels like the last parts of Old Florida. The parcel attached to Amelia Island State Park should never be developed for high rise condos and I hope it does not move forward. That kind of density is not needed.
This though, appears thoughtfully designed, something rare in todays world of development. Mixed income units are a general plus for affordability. Having a public space with amenities, locationally right next to the soccer fields, feels like a real win for the city/community as well.
I actually hope this one gets approved.
I would hope the extra tax revenue for the city, would go directly to road & infrastructure improvements, addressing valid concerns of road/traffic infrastructure at scale.
Tuesday, April 1 Report this
LucyP74
If they ARE the same group that developed Crane Island, they did a POOR job in properly protecting the old growth trees. They are dying at an alarming rate because they didn’t do their due diligence during the construction process. Perhaps they are doing something now to attempt to correct their mistakes. The ONLY development on the island that was done “well” is the now Omn / old Plantation because they DID preserve the TREES! The Riverstone property COULD do the same and have a MAJESTIC property, but instead are choosing to destroy the natural beauty they have. It’s depressing to see everything that is happening locally and across the whole state.
Wednesday, April 2 Report this
karllynn1990
So sad to see more trees felled to accommodate wallets and egos.
Wednesday, April 2 Report this