Rumor: Palm Harbor Shopping Center Might get a New Publix
Site is too valuable for a worn out plaza. Look for all new construction.
Palm Coast, FL – February 22, 2013 – It’s still only a rumor, but I’m told that we can expect to see a new owner/developer of the Palm Harbor Shopping Center. The new owner reportedly will begin tearing down the Palm Harbor Shopping Center, replacing it with new construction. The existing Publix will remain open until the new store is ready to move into. At that time, the old store will be razed. The new Publix will be the plaza’s anchor store. Apparently, the site is too valuable for a worn out plaza.
Rumor: (noun) a current story or statement without confirmation or certainty as to facts
Federal REDRESS ordered for us
For the newer Palm Coasters – This is how that shopping center came about for ‘The Palm Coast Project ‘ the ‘…largest planned community in the Nation..’ and ‘…the largest New Town in the World…’ comprised of 93,000 of Palm Coast Community Lands – It was part of the many ordered REDRESS Amenities / Features / Improvements pursuant Federal Trade Commission Consent Agreement C-284.
A brief synopsis of the REDRESS ordered for us, and of course to benefit the newer Palm Coasters :
August 1975
Because you have made a commitment in Palm Coast by establishing your home here, we believe you should be aware of an agreement that we recently reached with the Federal Trade Commission.
ITT Community Development Corporation ( ICDC) has signed a Consent Agreement with the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) concerning the furture development of Palm Coast. Signing the agreement does not constitute an admission that any law has been violated, as the agreement itself states. We feel the agreement is important in order to attain our primary goal — the development of Palm Coast as a balanced, well-rounded community.
An important part of the Consent Agreement calls for the execution of plans, within six years, which we believe, in the long run, will be good for Palm Coast. In brief, among other things , we have agreed to the following:
1. A shopping center with at least 400,000 square feet of floor space will be provided.We are already in contact with prospective developers of individual stores, including a supermarket.
2. With appropriate governmental agreement, a traffic interchange on Interstate Highway 95 will be constructed to serve Palm Coast according to plans we submitted to the Florida Department of Transportation in August 1972. ICDC will pay for the interchange as originally designed.
3. An office and research park area will be developed with appropriate roads and utilities to serve it and landscaping to make it an attractive part of Palm Coast. Planning for this already is under way.
4. A multi-purpose office building, with at least 5,000 square feet of floor space, will be constructed for tenants in the office and reserch park. This structure, also, is under planning.
5. We will move the headquarters of ICDC to Palm Coast. We plan to be substantial employer contributing much to the economy of Palm Coast and Flagler County.
The agreement also provides for us to restrict our developoment efforts to 42,000 acres for a period of 15 years ( with possible extension for another five years). This will allow appropriate construction in areas set aside for commercial establishments, light industry, recreation, preservation and conservation and other residential uses. Moreover, during this 15- or 20-year period, sales will be limited to 48,000 registered lots of which over 36,000 already have been sold.
The aforementioned are some of the most important points contained in the Consent Agreement as it affect you and the balanced development of Palm Coast. You will also be interested in knonwing of additional projects that we believe further enhance the community.. Here are some examples:
We have donated two acres of land, adjoining the furture Emergency Services Building site, to the Palm Coast branch of the YMCA to be used as the location fo a Community Activities Center. We will bear the cost of constructing this facility for all community residents and for sharing in operational expenses during its first three years — a gift totalling more than $400,000.
We have provided as a gift a site of 57 acres to the Flagler County School Board for a junior-senior high school. The first class of proud seniors was graduated from Flagler-Palm Coast High School last spring.
We have designated a number of sites for recreation parks, preservation and conservation, and other public areas. One site, in Section 1-A, now is being developed and a paved bicycle path has been constructed. Another bike path, starting near the Yacht Club, is in use. We are working with the Palm Coast Civic Association so that Palm Coast residents can form a legal entity to which we can donate a one-acre site and an Emergency Services Building to house fire and security forces, an ambulance, and facilities for community activities. A preliminary blueprint of the structure has been approved by a committee from the Community.
As you know, we donated a $36,000 pumper fire truck to the Palm Coast Volunteer Fire Department , which will be stationed in the Emergency Services Building..
Palm Coast’s first church building, St. Mark by the Sea Lutheran Church, we dedicated on the morning of July 4. Catholic and Baptist church organizations have purchased sites for their proposed churches. And Temple Beth Shalom is considering building a Synagogue. We at ICDC are very pleased, as we know citizens of Palm Coast are, to witness this growth and progress in the vitally important religious life of our community.
Palm Coast’s first financial institution, a branch of the Security First Federal Savings and Loan Association, recently opened for business. We believe others will follow with the growth of the community.
These and many other facilitates will be needed to serve Palm Coast’s growing population. And it is growing. During the last nine months, construction of over 200 homes began. We now have over 1,000 people living and enjoying the good life at Palm Coast.
In closing, let me assure you that the ITT Community Development Corporation believes very strongly in the future of Palm Coast and that we are determined that it will grow and progress in a balanced and healthy manner.
Sincerely yours,
Alan Smolen
President.
Why Federal REDRESS was ordered for us:
II. CONSUMER INJURY– NECESSITY FOR CONSUMER REDRESS–CONSUMER REDRESS
Most of Palm Coast residential lots are one-quarter of an acre currently selling for a minimum of $ 4,700, i.e. $18,800 per acre. By the date the deed is transferred to the consumer, usually sic to ten years after an installment sales contract is signed, respondents are obligated to clear the lot and provide roads, drainage, utilities and some recreational amenities. Before execution of the consent order respondents were not obligated to provide a grocery store, a shopping center, an office building or other indispensable amenities associated with a self-contained or fully-developed community which is what Palm coast is represented to be.
In all of Flagler County, there are only 2,500 households and 7,100 people. The Palm Coast development which is located in Flagler County has less than 700 residences and 1,600 people. 2. Consumer interviews, consumer complaints, the paucity of construction activity by homesite purchasers, and the sales techniques and promotional material used by respondents led staff to conclude that the majority of Palm Coast lots were purchased for investment reasons. Consumers believe that after a short period of time, their lots can be resold at a profit. However, of the more than 38,000 lots sold, less than one hundred ( 100 ) lots have been resold by individual owners.
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Saving our Palm Coast Heritage and History
Toby – We respectfully request that if this comes to fruition that you please contact the owners and ask them if they would please SAVE the WALL MURAL there and hopefully restore it and incorporate it into the newer design plan.
We hope you understand, most of the REDRESS ordered for us has been lost, sold, and transformed and perhaps we could save just a little something – giving the Newer Palm Coaster a ‘..sense of place…’.
Thank you very much.
PALM COAST SHOPPING CENTER UNDERWAY
SECURITY FIRST PLANS BUILDING AT SHOPPING CENTER
Late this year, Security First Federal Savings and Loan Association plans to move from its present building into a new building it plans to construct on a one-acre site adjacent to the Palm Coast Shopping Center, according to David Neubauer, Manager of Commercial Development for ITT Community Development Corporation (ICDC) and Richard A. Harris, Senior Vice President of Security First Federal in charge of establishing new branches.
The new building for Security First’s Palm Coast office will include safety deposit boxes, The new building also will provide facilities in which the Association will close all mortgage loans originated by its Palm Coast office.
"The new structure will be a free standing building of about 3,5000 square feet on the east side of the Shopping Center. The building will be designed for Security First by Haas and Reed, Jacksonville architects and planners, who also designed the Shopping Center which is presently underway," Harris stated.
"We will have a full service operation in our new building . A manager and four employees will staff the new branch office. When Security First moves into its new building its present temporary building next to the Convenience center will be moved away," Harris said.
:Those of us at ICDC are delighted that Security First Federal has shown its confidence in the growth of Palm Coast." Neubauer commented,, "both by moving a temporary structure to the community a little over two years ago, and now by planning a permanent structure at the Shopping Center area."
He added: "The new branch office will provide much needed new services to the present and future residents of Palm Coast."
Palm Coast Spring Festival
The first annual Palm Coast Spring Festival became a reality when the first event of the action and fun filled week began on Monday, May the 15th. Six brand new tennis courts were officially opened for play, and two bright young tennis professionals, Tom and Tim Guillikson , twin brothers provided the fans plenty of excitement when they played each other in an exhibition match.
Meanwhile, over at the Golf Course, a hole-in-one tournament was taking place. Later in the week the Golf Course sponsored a driving contest and on Friday there was a scramble tournament with about two hundred golfers taking part.
Following the Gullikson’s match, a week long tennis tournament began for local tennis buffs.
The park-like setting behind the Welcome Center Tower was turned into an art and fashion center with artists displaying their work, while fashion models showed off the newest in ladies fashions. In between fashion shows various musical groups performed with music ranging from jazz to marching bands.
Indoor sports were much in evidence at the Yacht Club where bridge, backgammon and chess tournaments were taking place throughout the week.
Outside the Yacht Club the largest events took place on Saturday. The Italian-American Festa took over part of the grounds with numerous booth of Italian food and games. The Yacht Club swimming pool was the scene of hundreds of youngsters taking part in the swim meet. At the same time skateboard championships were being conducted on the Yacht Club bridge.
The first two events on Saturday were a four mile foot race starting and finishing at the Yacht Club, and the Great Palm Coast Bicycle Race which started at the Yacht Club Bridge and ran for six miles.
Saturday afternoon the first Palm Coast International Bath Tub Boat Race was held with racers coming from as far away as British Columbia. The Bath Tub races employ boats which use the mold of a bathtub as a pilot house with some type of stabilization built around it.
Following the races,, awards fro the week were presented by Alan Smolen, president of ICDC.
Saturday night a performance was presented to an audience of approximately 3,000 by Archie Campbell, star of the television series "Hee Haw: . Accompanying him was R. W. Blackwood and the Blackwood Rhythm Band.
Closing out the week with a bang was accomplished with a thirty minute firework extravaganza.
Next year’s festival is already in the planning stages and it promises to be a bigger and better event than this year’s . Dates for the event will be announced in the next issue.
The Palm Coaster , Volume 7, Number 2, Summer 1978, p. 8.