Managing regional growth
Over the past several decades, desirable locations such as Nassau County have learned that the best way to regulate growth is to plan for it. They’ve also discovered that this kind of regional planning requires a coordinated effort between public and private entities.
This is why, as part of its Vision 2032 initiative, Nassau County reached out to Rayonier in 2007. Foreseeing the population growth coming to Northeast Florida, the County asked Rayonier to head up a planning effort that would help the County get ahead of the wave:
- Conserving nature at a regional scale in perpetuity
- Designating the most logical places for new homes, business districts and so forth
- Supplying land for more and better civic facilities and public infrastructure
- Expanding access to nature and creating new recreational choices
- Utilizing best practices for creating a convenient, walkable, sustainable community
Wildlight isn’t creating regional growth. It is a response to it.
Growth in Nassau County
Florida is growing faster than the rest of the U.S. Greater Jacksonville is growing faster than the rest of Florida. And Nassau County is growing faster than Greater Jacksonville.
Projected Population Growth Rates: 2021-2030
Source: University of Florida, Bureau of Economic and Business Research
6.7%
United States
11.7%
Florida
15.1%
Jacksonville MSA
19.2%
Nassau County
Nassau County Projected Population
Source: University of Florida, Bureau of Economic and Business Research
2025
114,200
2035
148,000
2050
190,200
“Unlike many communities, Nassau has been granted an opportunity that most never had, an opportunity to actively craft their future.”
2022 Growth Trends Report, Nassau County Board of Commissioners
Meeting the County’s needs
Like many places around the country, Northeast Florida has struggled to keep up with the requirements for additional civic facilities (such as parks and schools) and infrastructure (for example, roads and utilities) that go along with population growth. And with more businesses looking to relocate to the region, Nassau County must also find a way to make room for new job centers without putting additional strain on existing infrastructure.
The plan for Wildlight is a significant step toward meeting those needs. It has introduced a new development pattern in which homes and businesses, trails and nature, parks and schools come together in a sustainable and efficient way, allowing new development to absorb the impact of economic and population growth.
Growth that pays for itself
One of the advantages of a regional plan that coordinates the efforts of local government and private business is the opportunity to improve and expand public infrastructure in a fiscally responsible way. In Wildlight, infrastructure improvements and new public civic facilities are paid for not by taxpayers but through impact fees and mobility fees.
Here’s how it works
The price of every new residence and every new commercial building includes an impact fee collected by Nassau County. For public civic facilities such as parks, schools and fire stations, the facility isn’t built until the County has collected enough fees to pay for it. This approach works because these kinds of new facilities are needed only as the community grows. On the other hand, new roadways and other traffic improvements are often needed before new homes and buildings can be completed and sold. So in Wildlight, developers build traffic infrastructure improvements up front and are then reimbursed by the County for certain public roadways as impact fees are collected.
Conserving nature and protecting rural Nassau County
Early on in the planning process, it was determined that the area east of I-95 (designated as the East Nassau County Planning Area or ENCPA) was the proper place to channel most of the growth coming to Nassau County. This approach puts density in the right place, minimizing traffic impacts by bringing new homes, offices, retail areas and so forth closer to other key destinations in the region. It also helps maintain the rural character of the County’s west side.
It’s interesting to note that even with all the additional homes coming to Wildlight, the plan includes so much conservation and recreational space, the overall density of Wildlight is only about one home per acre.
“While development is knocking at Western Nassau’s door, there is time to get ahead of the curve and follow a plan that contains development to appropriate areas, while maintaining the character in others. Doing nothing, however, will assure that development comes without restraint.”
Western Nassau Heritage Preservation Vision Book
East Nassau Stewardship District
It’s not enough to merely set aside land for nature and community-wide infrastructure. Along with the land, there has to be a mechanism or framework that allows these shared assets to be maintained in perpetuity. The East Nassau Stewardship District is an independent, quasi-governmental entity, approved by the Florida State Legislature and Governor, that is planned to be responsible for the ongoing maintenance of Wildlight’s conservation land and may be responsible for its various facilities and infrastructure improvements.
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