Site work begins for 1,600 'traditional community' homes in Panama City Beach area

Nathan Cobb, The News Herald
·2 min read
To help add more housing opportunities to Bay County, the St. Joe Company has begun developing the site for the Ward Creek Community. The project has plans for 1,600 properties, split between single-family homes and townhomes.
To help add more housing opportunities to Bay County, the St. Joe Company has begun developing the site for the Ward Creek Community. The project has plans for 1,600 properties, split between single-family homes and townhomes.

PANAMA CITY BEACH — For Mike Kerrigan, spokesperson for the St. Joe Company, "it's no secret there's a high demand for housing in Bay County."

To help solve this problem, the company has begun developing the site for the Ward Creek community, which will be located off the east side of State 79, about 4 miles north of the road's intersection with Panama City Beach Parkway.

Kerrigan, who noted it was still too early in the project to know when homes would hit the market and how much they would cost, said the community would be developed in multiple phases.

Its plans call for 1,600 total properties, split between single-family homes and townhomes.

"What we know right now is that we've started the site work on the first phase and we expect the first of those homesites to be done with development and (ready) for builders ... later on this year, likely this summer," he said. "(The timeline) will really be determined by the builders who are purchasing the homesites. We already have 714 of the homesites under contract with builders."

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Unlike Latitude Margaritaville Watersound, another housing development along State 79 that St. Joe recently opened through a joint partnership with Minto Communities USA and Margaritaville Holdings, the Ward Creek Community will be for residents of all ages.

The Jimmy-Buffett-themed retreat is only for those 55 years old and older.

"This will be a traditional community and we expect to see a mix of future residents," Kerrigan said of Ward Creek. "As we see Northwest Florida and Panama City Beach appealing to more and more people from around the country, we want to make sure that we're developing in a way that can fit the needs of any type of buyer."

Ground is being cleared for a new housing development along highway 79, north of Philip Griffitts Parkway.
Ground is being cleared for a new housing development along highway 79, north of Philip Griffitts Parkway.

For Parker McClellan, executive director of the Northwest Florida Beaches International Airport, any new housing developments that will bring more people to the area and boost traffic at his facility is a good thing.

The airport, located about 10 miles north of the ongoing St. Joe project, experienced a record breaking year in 2021, shattering its previous annual passenger record from 2019 by the end of October.

"Housing (growth) in our community is much needed and the development of that property was sure to come," McClellan said. "We support any growth in the community and the region that will increase the people using the airport. We look at Latitude Margaritaville having a positive impact, so this community would be doing the same thing."

This article originally appeared on The News Herald: Panama City Beach development underway for 1,600 new homes