County undergoing explosive growth
BY FRANKLIN HAYES Gulf Breeze News franklin@gulfbreezenews.com

Even to the casual observer, it is quite obvious that Santa Rosa County is growing by leaps and bounds. County officials recently released a report that details the area's growth. The report's statistics, provided by the county's building department and compiled by the county's computer department, are categorized by geographic location. The report covers the last 16 years of development in residential and commercial sectors.

County building official Tim Tolbert said the county's growth surpassed his department's projections every year, except 2006.

"We're definitely headed toward growth," Tolbert said. "The huge increase in 2005 was because of storm repairs and the lucrative real estate market. I believe we'll be back to normal in 2007 and 2008."

The report, which separated the county by fire district, shows that the Holley-Navarre area led the county in residential growth between 1991 and 2006.

The area was responsible for 8,256 single-family residential permits during that time, resulting in an estimated the area peaked in 2004 with $111 million in residential development. Midway was the second largest district with approximately $555 million in construction, followed by Pace with $492 million.

The City of Gulf Breeze ranked sixth with $108 million.

Tolbert said the construction cost estimates were pulled from permits filled out by developers and may be lower than actual costs.

"Some people think if they put a lower [cost] number the permit will be cheaper," Tolbert said. "That's just not the case."

The Pace area exploded with commercial development during the designated time frame, logging an estimated $258 million in commercial construction costs. Pace peaked in 2006 with $192 million in construction, accounting for more than 75 percent of the county's total figure.

The Midway area ranked a distant second with $84 million in commercial development and was followed by Holley- Navarre with $67 million. The city of Gulf Breeze ranked fourth with $42 million.

"Over the last five years we've seen tremendous growth along the Highway 90 corridor," said Commissioner W.D. "Don" Salter, whose district includes parts of Pace north of Berryhill Road. "I feel that the trend will continue because even though housing construction is down across the state, Santa Rosa County still has some of the most affordable land throughout the state."

Commissioners hope an impact fee ordinance they passed a little more than a year ago will provide the necessary funding to ensure county infrastructure is on par with development.

As of Jan. 1, 2006, all new development is be required to pay transportation impact fees which will be applied toward the construction for new roadway capacity projects.

To view the full report or for more information about impact fees, visit www.co.santarosa. fl.us.