Itwas just after developer and cofounder of Sandcastle Resorts and Hotels Frank Flautt had purchased a 10-acre beachfront lot that would house the future Hilton Sandestin Beach Golf Resort & Spa that he placed a call to his friend Ernest Shahid.

Shahid, who developed the first major condominium in Destin in 1971, asked him what was wrong.

“I said, ‘Ernie, I think I made a tremendous mistake … I’m sitting here in Sandestin at night, and I don’t see a single light anywhere,’” Flautt recalls of the conversation. “There was no infrastructure here, and on the beach, there was nothing to speak of.”

In the early ’70s, other developers had purchased the 2,400 acres of land in Miramar Beach that we now know as Sandestin Golf and Beach Resort. By the ’80s they had only begun to establish infrastructure across the vast acreage. In purchasing the plot of land for the future Hilton Sandestin Beach, which is located within Sandestin gates, Flautt had unwittingly bought into a bright future for his hotel resort.

But back then, Sandestin’s beachside was hardly more than sand.

“When I came here in the ’80s, it was so primitive, we would have to buy groceries in Fort Walton Beach,” Flautt says. “There were a couple hamburger places, but no real infrastructure in place, no health care.”

Flautt, who previously operated a company that developed numerous Holiday Inns around Florida, saw potential in the paradise plain.

“It was very difficult to get started because interest rates were about 21 percent, and nothing made financial sense with that kind of debt,” Flautt says. “So, working with Destin developer Peter Bos, we made a plan to the develop the Hilton and sell units as a condominium.”

Hilton Sandestin Beach, which officially opened in 1984, got off to a rocky start. Flautt said things were “thin” for the first five or six years, just barely making enough profit to sustain operations and payroll.

Then, Flautt said the area began to take off. Peter Bos made great strides in Destin. Then, there was Keith Howard across the road in Sandestin, who would ultimately create Grand Boulevard, the Silver Sands Premium Outlets, and several resort residential communities, and who Flautt says “did a fantastic job of putting the whole area on the map.”

“That’s what people want to come here for,” Flautt says. “They want the sun and the sand, but they also want something to do—shopping, eating, recreations. Development has been so positive since I’ve been here, and our customers have been the greatest. There are new ones every year, but many are people who come here to stay each year and have been growing up alongside us and the property.”

As more hotels and condominiums began popping up along the coast, there was one luxury resort destination that would open in 2007 and became one of Destin’s most identifiable landmarks.

Comprised of two 13-story towers nestled within the Destin Harbor, the Emerald Grande at HarborWalk Village had been in the making since Peter Bos visited the area in the 1970s and swore he’d build a hotel.

The proposal was met with some controversy, recalls Greg Featherston, vice president of special projects for Legendary Marina and director of operations for the Emerald Grande.

“I remember hearing one of our past mayors at a city council meeting say, ‘What is that monstrosity that blocks the sun?’” Featherston recalls with a laugh. “I think attitudes have changed; the market has changed. Growth is going to happen no matter what, and the best you can do is to control it within reason.”

Featherston has been working alongside Bos for the past 44 years. Now 78, he has no plans of retiring anytime soon. A local since the mid ’80s, he is proud of the way Bos has developed the area, not only with the Emerald Grande but with infrastructure and attractions such as the Destin Commons, Legendary Marina, and Regatta Bay Golf & Yacht Club.

“The impact of the Emerald Grande and HarborWalk have been significant,” Featherston says. “Next to Eglin and Sacred Heart, we are one of the bigger employers in the area that have provided careers for people who have been with us for many years. And I think the tax implications over the years—not only bed tax paid by what is generated here but real estate taxes paid by all our different owners—is pretty significant.”

Featherston expects an even greater impact soon, as they get ready to begin phase two of the Emerald Grande. The eastward expansion will include a larger parking garage capable of holding about 1,500 vehicles, an additional 350-plus hotel rooms, a new water feature, a large arcade for rainy day entertainment, and a slew of new restaurants.

“The city has been working with us very well,” Featherston says. “I know traffic is a problem, but whatever should have been done about that to prevent it, should have been done a long time ago. You can look at 30A and see they are going through the same issues. If they could only look forward to try to figure something out while there is still vacant land there.”

Featherston says the cost of living in Destin is an issue. Exorbitant rent expenses are pushing workers out to areas including Fort Walton Beach, Crestview, Niceville, and Navarre. Their commutes get them caught up in tourism traffic and contribute to congestion.

“You’ve got places like the apartments north of the Walmart, but they’re asking so much for rent you’ll have four or five workers grouping up in one unit to afford it,” Featherston says. “It would be nice if we had the space for low-income and affordable housing, but that’s just not feasible without government subsidies, and the price of land is so high it would be difficult to turn a profit. It’s very unfortunate.”

Featherston says while beachfront space is now essentially nonexistent, he does foresee the area growing a bit more on the northern side. “It’s just got to be smart and sustainable,” he adds.

Flautt shares the same sentiment. “My hope for this area in the next few years is we don’t get too overdeveloped and unappealing,” he says.

After all, there is a reason the Emerald Coast has been a must-visit vacation destination for generations.

“All of this new development looks fresh and good now, but my theory is we’ve got to continue to put money back into these properties and make it a place people want to come,” Flautt says. “It can’t get dirty or unpleasant to be here.

“We can’t let it lose its charm.” ▪

Luxury in real estate isn’t necessarily defined by price point,” says Sara Becnel, president of Sandestin Investments and managing partner of The Agency Northwest Florida Beaches. “It’s about ensuring that anyone who entrusts us with their real estate needs feels truly cared for and catered to.”

This client-first philosophy motivated Becnel to rebrand Sandestin Real Estate as The Agency Northwest Florida Beaches in January, aligning the company with a globally recognized real estate firm known for its white-glove service and innovative marketing resources.

“For over a year, I’d been exploring ways to broaden our reach and visibility,” explains Becnel. Determined to find the right fit, she began focusing on franchise models, looking for a brand whose philosophy, values, and approach resonated with her vision. One name, The Agency, stood out from the rest.

With its global presence of over130 offices in 12 countries, Becnel feels The Agency is small enough to maintain its boutique feel and collaborative culture while facilitating networking across its many locations.

“I wasn’t interested in joining a massive legacy real estate brand,” Becnel emphasizes. “I wanted to preserve our small, service-driven culture while giving agents and clients access to broader markets and powerful resources.”

For Becnel, the timing of her search was ideal as The Agency was actively seeking a partner along Florida’s Emerald Coast. The new partnership secured exclusive territory stretching from Perdido Key to Inlet Beach, offering sellers greater exposure and helping buyers discover properties they might otherwise have missed. Listings now reach high-demand domestic and international feeder markets.

This connection has already delivered results. One early success was receiving a $22 million referral for a Seagrove property from a connection with The Agency’s Aspen office.

The momentum didn’t stop there. Shortly after the Northwest Florida launch, The Agency approached Becnel about expanding into Madrid. The company had been seeking a partner to help launch the location, and with Becnel’s leadership and business skills, they felt she was the ideal choice. After conducting her due diligence, including market research and financial projections, and meeting with the local team, Becnel decided to commit to the new office.

According to Becnel, Spain’s real estate market is booming, with Madrid being a key European market. The Agency already operates in Mallorca, Málaga, and Barcelona. “Expanding to Madrid made sense,” she says. “We are committed to opening in Madrid on June 3, 2025.”

Today, the team operates out of the Sandestin Welcome Center in Miramar Beach, with plans for a new satellite location on Highway 30A. Becnel recently appointed Glen Stegemann as broker and executive director to oversee operations in Northwest Florida, Madrid, and future markets.

“He’s like a real estate encyclopedia,” she laughs. “He brings energy, fresh ideas, and great support to our existing team.”

At its core, Becnel emphasizes that the company remains family-owned and values-driven, powered by the same trusted team that people know and love, but with a new name and a wider reach. This high-touch approach extends beyond sales to rental support. While The Agency does not directly handle short-term rentals, it recommends Sandestin Rental Management for vacation rentals within the resort and beyond.

According to Becnel, another distinction is that The Agency Northwest Florida Beaches offers employee and 1099 agent models, which attract top-tier talent and offer agents flexibility and a personalized structure that works best for them.

Looking beyond the merger and Madrid, The Agency plans to actively explore other markets, both regionally and internationally.

“This isn’t just about growth for growth’s sake,” Becnel emphasizes. “It is about thoughtful expansion.” ▪

According to the latest U.S. Census data from 2022, there is a growing trend of people fleeing metropolitan areas, such as New York and California, for smaller cities in Florida and Texas. There was a net influx of nearly 250,000 people to Florida, many of which settled in tight-knit communities, such as DeFuniak Springs. 

Reynolds Henderson, a commercial and residential real estate investor in Walton County, is ready for the resurgence of small-town America. Henderson points to locales in Walton County as hidden gems that could potentially be the newest “best place to live.”

“We just need help getting it there,” Henderson said. “Investing in these communities in a meaningful way is key, and it will take a collaborative effort to make things better.”

As a former member of Main Street Defuniak Springs, a program aimed at bolstering the local economy through the improvement of its historic downtown, and the current chair of the city’s Community Redevelopment Agency (CRA), Henderson has been instrumental in the revitalization of downtown Defuniak Springs. 

On Baldwin Avenue, Henderson has already restored eight buildings, which now house attractions such as Perla Baking Company, the Sweet Southern Comfort restaurant, The Pink House Aesthetics & Wellness Boutique and title insurance provider Setco Services. 

According to Henderson, the CRA, which is funded through tax incremental financing, is experiencing strong revenues. “I’m confident we will be able to continue what I consider catalyst projects,” he said. “DeFuniak is a huge asset to Walton County, and it’s time for us to get it where it needs to be — a place people want to go or even live.”

For the latter to be possible, Henderson believes in the need for more affordable housing. He is the co-founder of the North Walton Opportunity Fund, which obtained land in the North Walton Opportunity Zone designated for the construction of affordable residences. As the current owner of several local and international real estate investment and development companies, Henderson said he and his partners at Custom Home Shop, LLC are already making progress.

“We are dedicated to building smaller, more affordable homes of high quality and sustainability,” he said. “It’s something that can be challenging, especially with inflation right now, but the need is desperate and demand is high. We need all levels of affordable housing, from retirees and first-time homebuyers to those in need of workforce housing and members of low-income households.  

“Land pricing south of the bay, and even in Freeport now, is ridiculous. We have a long way to go as a county to maximize our resources to make it more developer-friendly to affordable housing, but I am proud of the work we’ve done so far.”

Henderson currently serves a four-year term as treasurer of Triumph Gulf Coast, a nonprofit organization responsible for the distribution of the $1.5 billion in funding received from the settlement of the Deepwater Horizon Oil Spill to be used for the enrichment of the Northwest Florida economy. He calls it his mission to “make Walton County a better place to live,” and, through Triumph, hopes to make more strides in the right direction.

“I have been pushing hard for more Walton County projects,” he said. “Of course, the board votes on them, but I am hopeful that in the next couple of months, we will see several of those come to the forefront.”

Projects such as revitalizing the Defuniak Springs Airport’s infrastructure would be an instrumental resource to the quickly growing area. Henderson would also like to see the Walton County School District’s workforce education program, as well as the Walton County Sheriff’s Office’s request for enhanced public safety and communications, come before the board.

“If we can get any of those done, it’ll be huge for the county,” Henderson said.

Outside of these roles, Henderson is a dedicated participant in community service and volunteerism. He previously served on the board of trustees for the Children’s Volunteer Health Network and Northwest Florida State College and was on the board of directors for the Seaside Neighborhood Schools and the Rosemary Beach Foundation, among others. 

When taking a break from revitalizing his community, Henderson spends time with his wife and two sons and can often be found frequenting his commercial properties in Rosemary Beach or restaurants he’s partnered in, such as The Citizen and Fonville Press Market Cafe in Alys Beach.

“I’m a foodie, but should probably be less of one with my waistline nowadays,” he joked.

Though an Alabama native, Henderson is proud to be raising his family in Walton County.

“It’s rewarding when you see the change, and it’s change for the good,” he said. “Rebuilding the small town and realizing the benefits of a smaller community is important, and I’m happy with what we have accomplished in Defuniak so far in making people proud to be where they are.”

Change is inevitable, but Defuniak has a history worth preserving and celebrating. According to Henderson, “We’ve got a gem here, and there’s such an opportunity.”

Shortly after getting into real estate 25 years ago, Stewart Proctor attended a seminar at which a gray-haired veteran of the business told relative newcomers how their career paths were likely to unfold.

In an interview, Proctor paraphrased what he heard long ago.

You’re gonna work for a firm and in the first five years, you are either gonna sink or swim. If you survive, you’re gonna flourish and at some point, you’re gonna decide that I can do this better my way, and you will break off from wherever you are and start your own business. Then, you’ll realize that you’ve become a small-business owner moreso than a real estate broker, and you’ll sell your company and get back to your roots.

For Proctor and his business partner, J.R. Long, that speech proved prophetic. “That is exactly what our trajectory has been,” Proctor said.

He observed that some people set out to own a business and may not really care what the business is. Others start a business as an extension of their passion for a particular industry or occupational field.

“My business partner and I do what we do because we like real estate, not necessarily because we love being small-business owners,” Proctor said. “We had 25 employees after we started and built up Structure Commercial Real Estate, and it got to where we weren’t doing a lot of active brokerage and consulting.”

The partners sold that company and got back to focusing on their roots as Proctor & Long Commercial Real Estate. Then, in October 2020, they were presented with an opportunity to become part of Ciminelli Real Estate Corporation, which is present in several large Florida markets and whose operations in the state are headquartered in Tampa.

The arrangement suits managing director Proctor just fine.

“We’re in charge of our own market and we effectively own our business, but we have all the support operations we need without actually having to have that staff on-site in Tallahassee,” he said. “All of our back-office marketing, our accounting department for property management, all of that is in Tampa, which allows us to focus on real estate.”

As to those professional steps the old man outlined, Justin Beck, vice president of Stirling, has followed them, too. In February, Louisiana-based Stirling acquired Beck Partners, including its offices in Pensacola and Tallahassee.

“I love putting deals together,” Beck said. “That’s where my happy place is. Between our two offices, we had 35 people in our organization and I didn’t know if I wanted to continue to manage an operation that size. I found myself spending a lot of time each day doing things that I don’t especially love to do.”

Beck started talking business with Stirling early in 2023.

“I was really impressed with them and their leadership team,” Beck said. “They have a culture that is very similar to the Beck culture, and that was very important to me.”

Stirling, Beck noted, is the largest commercial real estate company in Louisiana, has the largest such office in Mobile, Alabama, and now has the biggest one in Pensacola.

“Stirling has been good for our entire team and our customers,” Beck said. “We have more resources at our disposal, there are more growth opportunities for our people and we can extend better service to our clients. We’re a 200-employee business now. We went from managing 2 million square feet of property — not huge, but not small — to Stirling that has 24 million. Still, it’s a very flat organization. It’s not a big corporate bureaucracy; it’s not top-down. And it is very entrepreneurial.”

Both Proctor and Beck focus on office and industrial real estate. Business, they agree, has been good, but concerns loom.

“In 2021, we had a record year, as good as it gets,” Beck said. “Interest rates were at all-time lows, demand was high, and it seemed like everyone wanted to be in Florida, especially Northwest Florida. We had plenty to say grace over.”

In the spring of 2022, interest rates started to tick up and transaction volume started to decline.

“But in 2023, we did pretty well despite the interest rate environment,” Beck said. “It was led by leasing activity. Retail saw all-time highs in rents and occupancy. Industrial, same. Office, same. In Atlanta, Houston and Washington, D.C., they’ve got huge vacancies in office. Rents are dropping, and owners are having to make concessions. We don’t have any of that.”

Downtown Pensacola has been a particular success story. Vacancy rates there were a miniscule 3% throughout 2023, Beck said.

“We’ve done deals with folks who had a Mobile office and a Pensacola office, and they consolidated post-COVID in Pensacola. Businesses are expanding north from Central and South Florida, and they want to be in Pensacola.”

The Beck (now Stirling) team is active in multifamily and single-family residential development and land acquisition. Housing developers, Beck said, are still finding a way to make the numbers work.

“But because of the interest rate environment, we’re not going to see a ton of new products,” he said. “It’s more difficult now to develop than it was in 2021. Until we have some interest rate relief, I don’t think you are going to see much of a drop in construction prices. Multifamily is probably the one area where you can still make things pencil. Single family is difficult.”

Interest costs, too, are having a dampening effect. Beck explained that a single blanket policy covers all of what had been Beck properties.

“It was only a 16% increase this year,” Beck said. “Last year, it was a 45% increase, and the year before that, it was a 30% increase. Rates have increased, but where they are really getting us is on the insurable value.”

In Tallahassee, a market where volatility tends to be suppressed by a large percentage of public employment, Proctor’s experience has largely paralleled Beck’s.

The COVID-19 pandemic brought about a surge in office vacancy rates in Tallahassee, but occupancy has since rebounded.

“You’d be hard-pressed to find any available large blocks of office space outside of downtown,” Proctor said. “Our downtown market has always been a little more volatile than the suburban market. But even now, overall office vacancy rates are probably 5%.”

Industrial and office have seen a substantial increase in rental rates, Proctor noted.

“Rates don’t go up unless there is overdemand and undersupply,” he said. “Retail vacancy is less than 5%. As much as e-commerce is thriving, consumers still like a brick-and-mortar store. They still want to leave the house and go shopping.”

Insurance costs, in Proctor’s view, are the biggest threat to the market.

“They are escalating faster than rents can increase,” he said. “As much as commercial owners try to pass costs through, you have to be careful or you will start running tenants off or price yourself out of the market. The mom-and-pop business owners are the ones who will potentially take it on the chin. When insurance rates triple, it’s hard to stay out of the red.”

Said Proctor, “We’re gonna need some stronger legislation to solve the problem.”

DeeDee Davis, the broker/CEO at NAI Pensacola Commercial Real Estate, took a relatively circuitous route to her current position. A former state legislator, she worked for 25 years as a classroom teacher before entering the business world.

How would the one-time Florida lawmaker address the insurance problem?

“The state needs to provide more incentives for insurance companies to do business in Florida,” Davis said. “Insurance seems to be the one area of business where we haven’t rolled out the red carpet. The only thing that is going to bring rates down is more competition. Insurers are leaving the state, and granted, not every state gets hit with the ferocious storms that Florida sees, but there are plenty of natural disasters in other states, too.”

Davis said that from the fourth quarter of 2023 through the first quarter of 2024, at least a third of the property management clients she works with lost their insurance and had to scramble to find new coverage.

Davis recognizes that real estate is subject to cycles.

“Two years ago, it was mini warehouses,” she said. “They barely made it to market before they sold. People were looking for land to build mini warehouses. Now, we’re seeing a demand for residential development parcels. We don’t have enough apartments coming out of the ground to meet the demand right now, especially downtown. Usually, where there is growth in residential, commercial will follow. The reverse is happening downtown.”

Teaching remains an important part of what Davis does, but she likes a work life that is not subject to ringing bells.

“I really like the independence and flexibility that comes with my job,” she said. “I like to train others and watch them succeed. And making deals is fun, usually, but there’s not much low-hanging fruit out there anymore. If you can get a deal closed, you have earned it, I can assure you.”

At the mega-developer St. Joe, William Brock, vice president for commercial real estate, is responsible for leasing up company-owned properties.

“Right now, we’re primarily dealing with three developments — the Watersound and Watersound West Bay town center and our medical campus,” Brock said. “And, I’d add the Pier Park North shopping center.” 

The West Bay center, currently in development, is in close proximity to the Latitude Margaritaville Watersound community. A little farther south on State 79, a medical office building is being constructed as part of a campus that will eventually include a full-service hospital.

“A lot of our decision-making about where and what to develop is based on residential rooftops,” Brock said.

“Currently, we have a little over a million square feet of commercial space that has been developed, and that is approximately 95% occupied. We have another 1.2 million square feet planned at the town centers and the medical campus. Of that amount, about 200,000 square feet has been built or is under construction. We have a significant runway ahead of us.”

Land-rich St. Joe largely refrains from selling parcels to others for development, preferring recurring sources of income.

“In Bay, Walton and Gulf counties, we are into monetizing our land holdings,” Brock said.

Slaton Murray, principal/executive commercial advisor at NAI Talcor in Tallahassee, shares the concerns cited by peers about the growing burdens presented by increasing real estate taxes and insurance premiums, but he feels fortunate to be doing business where he does.

“Business is steady here,” he said. “Leasing is holding strong, likewise rental rates and vacancy rates are low across asset classes. Office in a lot of markets seems to be struggling, but because we are so anchored by state government and three institutions of higher learning, we’re not seeing the kind of vacancies that exist elsewhere.”

Tallahassee, Murray noted, is a strong student housing market that yields a lot of private investment. Especially on its east side, Tallahassee is seeing significant residential development near the new Amazon fulfillment center.

“Something very encouraging for us in Tallahassee is that state government, including FSU and city/county government, will be bringing approximately $2.5 billion in construction to the city in the next three to five years. We love seeing that because a lot of these projects use local contractors, vendors and businesses, and that creates jobs. Knowing that pipeline is out there is really encouraging for us.”

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The High Cost of a Home

Affordability factor buffets residential real estate markets

As one would expect, some of the same factors impacting commercial real estate activity, notably inflation, insurance costs and interest rates, also affect residential sales volume.

Chip Hartung, the broker/owner at Coldwell Banker Hartung in Tallahassee, has been riding the currents in the world of real estate since 1979 when he first launched his firm. The business maintains a small commercial division but is focused primarily on residential home sales or, as they like to say, “Fulfilling the Dream of Home.”

For years prior to the COVID-19 pandemic, Coldwell Banker Hartung’s inventory and sales were steady, and the firm posted modest increases in sales from year to year.

“During COVID, we saw the market accelerate at a level we had never seen before,” Hartung said. “Prices increased, we saw multiple offers and buyers were paying over list price. A lot of that had to do with the fact that money was so cheap. Interest rates were so low that they triggered a real estate frenzy. Home prices pretty much doubled.”

Now, the frenzy has cooled.

“The great news was that we had a great run,” Hartung said in April. “The bad news is that today we’ve got high interest rates, low inventory and prices that are prohibitive for the younger generation of homebuyers. We’re paying the piper.”

Hartung said he is still seeing a lot of demand — people want to buy a home — but that desire is often frustrated by the affordability factor.

The Florida Panhandle has entertained many new arrivals from northern climes, who have joined in a migration, fueled by the work-at-home trend. In Tallahassee, Hartung said, Realtors find themselves working more often with migrants from South Florida, who are seeking relief from congestion, a slower pace of life and, relative to Miami prices, less expensive real estate.

“Here, they can get a little bit more land,” Hartung said. “A lot of buyers are making purchases in Gadsden and Jefferson counties. A friend of mine had a successful real estate business in South Florida, and he moved his family to a house on five acres in Jefferson County. They’re growing their own vegetables, and they are glad to be out of Miami.”

In Tallahassee, the scarcity and cost of developable lots suppress inventory.

“New construction in Tallahassee has been lagging behind other markets in the last five to 10 years,” Hartung said. “The cost to acquire land, the cost for engineering, the cost for infrastructure — by the time a builder had a lot that was ready to build on, it was $100,000. And you can’t build a $250,000 house on a $100,000 lot and make it work.”

A development that will affect residential real estate practices but does not apply to the commercial sector is the settlement, reached in March, in lawsuits filed by groups of home sellers against the National Association of Realtors and several major brokerages.

Plaintiffs contended that NAR rules governing homes listed for sale on its affiliated Multiple Listing Services (MLS) unfairly propped up agency commissions contrary to antitrust laws. NAR disputed the characterization of its rules as noncompetitive.

The effect of the settlement will be to decouple commissions; the seller’s agent and the buyer’s agent will be paid separately. And, there will be no more automatic offers of compensation in the MLS. Scripts, dialog and forms will be revised accordingly.

“As Realtors, we need to be more transparent in our interactions with buyers and sellers,” Hartung said. “Offers of compensation to buyers’ brokers and MLS are no longer allowed. I think, though, that most sellers will still want to offer compensation to buyers’ brokers.

“Also, Realtors are now required to use buyers’ brokers agreements when they work with buyers or show buyers houses. In practice, most Realtors adhere to these rules anyway. It’s more of a mechanical thing. Brokers are making sure they have the right conversations, and they are detailing them with written agreements. Things have got to be formalized and documented.”

Some industry analysts have predicted that the settlement will result in the greater use of alternatives to traditional brokerage.

“For those of us who have been in the business a long time, commissions have always been negotiable,” Hartung said. “We’ll see different models, but I think the traditional brokerage model will continue. There’s a place for discount brokers and flat-fee brokers. And there is a place for full-service operations — in real estate, dentistry or other professions. That’s the American way.”

On June 2, 2022, the WestRock Paper Mill in Panama City, owned by WestRock Co., the second-largest American packaging company, permanently ceased operations. Once Bay County’s largest employer with approximately 450 workers, the mill was deemed too expensive to maintain, and its main products, heavyweight kraft and fluff pulp, were no longer priorities in the parent company’s strategy to focus on higher-value markets.

Fortunately, SRM Concrete, founded by Melissa and Mike Hollingshead in Smyrna, Tennessee, in 1999, decided this past February to buy the sprawling 300-acre property for $30 million. Today, the family-owned-and-operated company, with headquarters in nearby Murfreesboro, Tennessee, serves customers in 19 states and has more than 8,300 employees. 

“We purchased this plant with the intention of creating storage for cement, and we’ll use the other parts of the property for other segments of our business,” explained Ben Endsley, general manager of Hollingshead Cement, one of SRM’s divisions. “We’re in the ready-mix concrete business, but we also have 26 rock quarries, so we’re in the stone and aggregate market as well. We also own things like precast plants and block manufacturing plants, so because of the scale of the property, once we have a full site layout, we’ll kind of do one of everything we do.”

What truly made the Panama City location attractive, according to Endsley, was its access to water, which will allow the company to load and offload raw materials and products. “We’ve already brought in one vessel at the Port of Panama City of some cement that we’re using to supplement some of our local ready-mix production,” he noted. “And eventually we’ll put in a berth to bring vessels and barges into our location.” 

Endsley affirmed that SRM’s decision to move to Bay County was not predicated on any additional considerations. “We have met with the Economic Development Agency, and we met with a lot of local municipalities and officials as far as the site planning and development, but we weren’t lured in by any kind of economic package. That wasn’t any part of the deal.” 

Indeed, the value to the Bay County community will come from SRM in the form of several dozen new jobs, a cleaned-up industrial site and a non-polluting plant that Endsley said will use the greenest products available. 

“The newest cement on the market that we will be importing, once we have the facility up and running, is called 1L cement,” he stated. “It’s a greener alternative. It uses less energy to produce, but it’s still a very strong and durable product.”

And SRM intends to find other ways to create value. “One of our core values is to be a strategic partner with the community,” Endsley shared. “As an employer, you want to be part of the community and be able to give back in different ways. Part of our focus will be on partnering with schools and different civic organizations. We like to focus on children and child development.”

At present, SRM is in the final phases of naming a demo contractor to take down the paper mill and recycle whatever equipment possible. “The demolition is going to take between 16 and 24 months. That’s one of the early steps before we can really develop the site,” Endsley said. “We’re already using some of the property; we’re importing cement and distributing it to our local ready-mix plants, but we’re not doing that on the scale that we’re going to be able to do once we have the site developed.”

To preserve some of the history of WestRock Paper, which began operations in 1931, SRM plans to maintain some of the older buildings on-site. Endsley said, “I think they add a touch of history. You can’t go anywhere in the town without talking to somebody who didn’t know somebody who was employed at that paper mill. Everybody knows about that site, and everybody has a story to tell. We want to make sure the site continues with that legacy and creates generational jobs in the community. When WestRock closed, they left about nine or 10 people there as caretakers; we employed all of those people right off the bat. And we’re hiring three or four additional people. As the demo goes away, the site will bring in between 40 and 80 jobs once we have everything up and running.”

Though SRM has ready-mix locations all around the Gulf Coast and is focused on expanding its footprint in the market, it also aims to add value to the area. In Endsley’s words, “We want to help the community thrive for years to come and give good jobs to the employees in that town. So, I think it’s going to be a really good fit for us and for the community.”

 

Watching the world’s fourth-largest commercial aerospace manufacturing city explode with growth just off your doorstep might be a source of envy for many. But don’t count Northwest Florida in that mix.

Building upon the ripple effect of this growth in Mobile, Alabama, has become a mission for Jennifer Conoley and her staff at Florida’s Great Northwest (FGNW). As president and CEO of the organization promoting economic growth along the Panhandle, Conoley has been laser-focused on building relationships with Airbus officials, sharing the story of what Northwest Florida has to offer.

Those relationships, the success stories and future goals were the primary topics of discussion at the FGNW quarterly directors meeting held at Florida State University Panama City on June 27.

Airbus and Boeing are the top two manufacturers of commercial aircraft in the world. The facility in Mobile, which broke ground just over a decade ago, has seen steady growth and is set to become the world’s fourth-largest of its kind, behind facilities in Germany, France and Seattle.

The 80 people attending the meeting listened to Airbus Head of State and Local Affairs Craig Savage talk about the company’s success and spell out why Northwest Florida is an important player in the future growth of Mobile.

“We now have an order book backlog of 8,000 aircraft,” Savage said. Shortening that backlog so customers don’t have to wait until 2032 to get their aircraft is fueling growth for his company.

To shorten that backlog, Airbus hopes to take advantage of the 3,000 military veterans who get out of the service along the Gulf Coast annually. Savage said talent acquisition is one of the big requirements to build out their ecosystem.

“We all want that talent to stay along the Gulf Coast,” he said, adding that of the 2,200 Airbus employees working in Mobile, 30% are military veterans.

Savage, an Air Force veteran himself once stationed at Tyndall Air Force Base, still has an 850 area code on his phone, a detail that makes Conoley claim him as a Northwest Floridian.

“We are on a mission in lockstep with Airbus to create the Gulf Coast Aerospace Corridor, and we want to outpace the Pacific Northwest Aerospace Corridor,” Conoley told the audience. For her organization, targeting aerospace suppliers in the region and forming relationships with the original equipment manufacturers (OEMs) is equally important.

To do this, Conoley and staff have been meeting with Airbus officials and other aviation companies all over the world at trade shows and events in locations like Paris, France.

“It’s all about timing and finding the right person,” she said.

Conoley wants the smaller companies that make parts for Airbus to consider this region in their growth plans to be closer to the main facility.

According to Shane Chadwick, FGNW’s business intelligence and marketing manager, an analytical approach to forming these relationships is already starting to yield results. By targeting last-mile delivery component manufacturers, Chadwick said Northwest Florida has a competitive advantage being located close to six aerospace OEMs, as well as having six military installations within the region.

Chadwick uses a business intelligence software platform to target which of the 1,300 Airbus suppliers are likely to have a corporate expansion project in the future. He notes that in the past three years, this philosophy has yielded three site location announcements creating over 700 jobs and $75 million in capital investment in the region.

In the past four months, Chadwick said FGNW has reached out to 100 companies resulting in two new projects and one site visit.

“We’re just sharing our story,” Conoley told the Holley Academic Center audience. Her goal is to ensure Northwest Florida is a competitive player for this future growth surrounding Airbus. “We’re not asking anybody to say Northwest Florida is the only place you should be. But we want them to say Northwest Florida is absolutely somewhere you should consider.”

Russ Barley didn’t know precisely what to expect when he became mayor of Freeport, the small Walton County city where he grew up. He would discover that people contact the mayor’s office regarding a wide range of problems, fully expecting the city to solve them.

Many people, Barley said, believe the city is empowered to unilaterally make improvements or changes to a state or federal highway that happens to pass through town. Others call with problems that lie beyond the purview of city operations and are appropriate to private-sector solutions.

In his first term as mayor, Barley was visited by an older woman who was convinced that she had bats in her attic. He might have simply referred the woman to a wildlife removal service but instead made an earnest effort to help her out.

He called the nearby E.O. Wilson Biophilia Center and learned that it was home to an expert on bats who was willing to visit the woman’s home. Upon doing so, the bat man found that the attic was free of flying mammals; there wasn’t the first splat of guano up there.

“The homeowner’s daughter later told me that her mother just thinks she has bats,” Barley said. 

Barley shared the phantom bat story with Gene Wright, then the mayor of Malone, in Jackson County.

Wright had a “Silver Bat Award” plaque made, recognizing his colleague for having gone beyond the call of duty in responding to a case of bat hysteria. He “slightly embarrassed” Barley by presenting the plaque to him at a Northwest Florida League of Cities meeting.

Visitors to Barley’s office can’t miss the award, despite its modest 4-by-6 inches in size. When the mayor is seated at his desk, it is right over his left shoulder.

The plaque is emblematic of the approach that Barley takes to his role as mayor. He reports to City Hall five days a week in suit and tie, meanwhile leaving the operation of his three businesses in town — a flower shop and women’s and children’s clothing stores — to his employees.

“I am a full-time mayor,” Barley said. “I am here if someone wants to speak to me, and I can answer their questions or get an answer for them. I don’t want anyone answering questions for me.”

In 2013, Barley defeated 22-year incumbent Mickey Marse, 366 votes to 160, to win the office he has held ever since. Marse’s father was Freeport’s first mayor following its incorporation in 1963. Barley’s father was its second.

“When I decided to run for mayor, it was because I didn’t see much growth in Freeport,” Barley said. “I would go to high school graduations, and that was the last I’d see of the students. They would just leave; there was nothing here.”

Barley didn’t hang around long himself after graduating from Freeport High School. He attended what was then Okaloosa-Walton Junior College for two years and then enlisted in the Navy. He served for five years, two of them in Newfoundland, and was honored to be named a personnel man.

Upon separating from the military, Barley worked at a Veterans Administration hospital in Jackson, Mississippi, and opened a flower shop there.

“I have a God-given talent in the floral industry,” he said.

He moved to Jacksonville and worked for a big flower shop there before starting his own. Thirty-four years ago, he completed a large loop, returning to Freeport and setting up shop in Santa Rosa Beach.

“People used to say, ‘You live in Freeport?’ like they couldn’t believe it,” Barley said of his 19 years doing business on the coast. “Now, people are moving from Destin to live here.”

Barley moved his shop inland when he was satisfied that Freeport had become big enough to support it.

“I am doing very well,” he said.

When Barley became mayor, Freeport’s Planning Department was
a one-person operation. “Now, we have six or seven people in Planning,” he said.

The department grew so quickly that it took over the city’s community center. A new, 4,000-square-foot center is under construction.

In 1990, Freeport numbered 873 residents, according to the U.S. Census. Twenty years later, it had grown to just 1,787 souls. As of late 2023, Barley said, the population had reached 12,780. Another 14,859 people live in the city’s utilities service area.

In recent years, Freeport has been the fastest-growing city in Florida, percentage-wise. 

Barley likes to make the rounds in Freeport, delivering progress reports to service clubs and other gatherings.

He talks about efforts by the city to develop infrastructure in anticipation of growth rather than in response to it. He cites work to expand the city’s existing wastewater treatment facility and its plans to build a second one on the east side of town.

He discusses plans to build a road that will extend from the Hammock Bay development to U.S. 331 at Marquis Way, thus relieving congestion at the north-south highway’s intersection with State Road 20.

He lists businesses that are new to town: Circle K, Pizza Hut, Emerald Coast Title Co., 331 Noodles, Tool Expo, Otto’s Car Wash.

He cites development orders — approved, pending and anticipated — and says that the city can be expected to grow to 30,000 in population in the next 10 years.

“People often ask me when we are going to get a big-box store,” Barley said. “We don’t recruit businesses like that. They do their own market research. The numbers will tell them when it’s time to come here.

“When I was elected, it was a goal of mine to have a hotel in Freeport,” Barley said. “Now, we’re about to have four.”

Freeport has reached the point where it doesn’t have to give itself away.

Barley noted a California fabrication business that had an interest in coming to Freeport. The city was willing to provide the suitor with incentives including land in exchange for high-paying jobs.

“But it got to the point where they wanted the city to practically set them up in business,” Barley said, “and the council decided to suspend talks with them.

“We’re still a laid-back community,” Barley said in describing Freeport’s appeal. “People see all the waterways that we have around here, and that’s attractive to them. And, we’re just 15 minutes from the Gulf of Mexico.

“We have lots of military here and retirees from up north, and we’re seeing young people moving in. I ask myself how they find out about Freeport, what they do when they get here and how they can afford to live here. I’m not sure I’ve figured that out.”

In Freeport, Barley said, the average price of a home is $450,000. Apartments rent for $1,500 to $2,000 per month.

“We have more people all the time, and they all want to keep the small-town atmosphere,” Barley said.

He promotes events that bring people together and provide a sense of community: Bayfest, Night at the Park, the Mayor’s Ball, the Spring Festival/Eggstravaganza. The city has plans to enlarge its library. It has a modest museum, sometimes staffed by volunteers. If no volunteer is present on a given day, Barley said, “We’ll give you the key, and you can have a look around yourself.”

Barley is 75. He underwent quintuple bypass surgery in 2017. He has survived rectal cancer and is not sure if he will seek a fourth term.

“I’m thinking and praying about it,” he said. “Things aren’t the same. We’ve got a city manager now.”

Every day on the way to his office, Barley passes by a collection of old photos curated by the late town historian, Beckie Blount Buxton. He passes by dozens of framed portraits of Miss Freeports.

“I am here for a reason,” Barley said confidently. “There is still more for me to accomplish.”