About 30 years after opening San Sebastian Winery in downtown St. Augustine, Clermont-based Lakeridge Winery and Vineyards wants to develop a marketplace adjacent to the vintner.
Through Seavin Inc., Lakeridge owns both the 0.26-acre 157 King St. vintner building and its adjacent 2.38-acre lot.
The St. Johns River Water Management District is reviewing a proposal for the development, which includes a restaurant, retail building and additional surface parking adjacent to the vintner, according to Lakeridge’s application.
An existing concrete vault system, built under a now-expired Florida Department of Environmental Protection permit, will be incorporated into the project.
At the district’s request, the system is being designed based on the property’s current condition rather than its state before the original permit.
A new underground storage system with StormTech chambers will be installed beneath the main parking lot to improve water quality, recovering water within 72 hours using updated geotechnical parameters and a safety factor of 2.0. The combined system will manage runoff from both the mean annual 24-hour and 25-year 24-hour storm events.
Lakeridge Winery & Vineyards, founded in Clermont in 1989 by Gary Cox and investors from Lafayette Vineyards in Tallahassee, produces wines from Noble, Carlos and Welder muscadine grapes, as well as Chardonnay, Pinot Grigio, Petite Sirah and Cabernet Sauvignon, according to its application.
Wine production takes place on Lakeridge’s 127-acre estate, with an additional 450 acres at Prosperity Vineyards in the Florida Panhandle and 200 acres under contract statewide.
Plans also include demolishing an existing maintenance facility to construct a new five-story parking garage for staff parking and maintenance operations.