The St. Johns River Water Management District is reviewing plans for two residential developments in the Garden District in Yulee’s master-planned Wildlight community.
The water management district began reviewing the projects May 5 because of their potential impact on wetlands.
The two developments would bring a total of 790 homes to the area.
Raydient Places + Properties, a division of Rayonier Inc., is the developer. It owns the 4,708-acre Garden District through Wildlight LLC.
The district is at Riverbluff Parkway and Pages Dairy Road, about 9 miles east of Interstate 95 and Wildlight’s Town District, which includes retail, office space and housing.
Jacksonville-based England-Thims & Miller is the civil engineer for both projects.
365-home project
ETM met with Nassau County’s Development Review Committee on Feb. 25 to discuss the first project, located in the southeastern portion of the site. It includes 365 single-family homes to be developed in three phases and designates areas for future development.
425-home project
The second ETM project was presented to the DRC on March 11 and includes 425 homes. Plans show two parks, a multi-use trail and a golf cart path. It is north of the first ETM project.
A third development
There is a third development in the Garden District by Jacksonville-based civil engineer Kimley-Horn, which has not started the water management district review process.
It is south of the first ETM project.
On March 4, Kimley-Horn told the DRC its development would bring about 250 single-family homes to the area. It is west of the first ETM neighborhood.
A strip of land with existing homes, which Raydient does not own, divides the two projects.
According to a Raydient spokesperson, the Garden District emphasizes outdoor amenities, conservation and river access. It is Raydient’s second Detailed Specific Area Plan.
The district is zoned PD-ENCPA, a Nassau County designation that allows for large-scale planning and development. The zoning was adopted in July 2011.