Residents Aghast at Amelia Baptists’ PUD Proposal

By Mike Lednovich

Amelia Baptist Church held a neighborhood meeting Monday and revealed its plans to construct two condominium buildings with 24 total units along the Amelia River on an oak-lined street of residential homes off Buccaneer Trail.

The 3.64 acres the church owns are zoned residential, and allowing the condos would require approvals from Nassau County.

The church displayed plans for two 4-story buildings, around a pool with 24 total units. The meeting of Shadow Woods Lane homeowners was held at the American Beach Community Center.

The church said it plans on filing a Planned Unit Development (PUD) application with the county in the next 30 days. A Planned Unit Development (PUD) is a zoning district that allows for a variety of residential, commercial, and open space uses within a single development. The application will include a schematic of the proposed project.

One person in attendance said the crowd “gasped” when the plan drawings were shown by the church.

“The assembled neighbors were aghast at what they saw. It looked like a Las Vegas casino. Nothing could be more out of character from their established, tranquil, single-family homes and neighborhood and the quality of life of those living there,” wrote Sam Kennard, a nearby neighbor in a letter to homeowners. “The egregious and unconscionable development plan was strongly objected to by all of the concerned neighbors in attendance, because it would permanently, negatively change the shape and character of their neighborhood, property values and lives.”

Because the project is a PUD and requires a public benefit, a small park with three parkings spaces was included.

The builder is Wood Development Company of Jacksonville, which developed Dunes of Amelia on Amelia Island.

“It was obvious from the presentation that the leadership of Amelia Baptist Church did not understand the Nassau Codes that they have the desire to circumvent with their PUD,” said nearby resident Tom Oliver. “Additionally, this was the only development option they pursued even though there were other approaches with less impact on their neighbors.”

The project also includes expanding the church complex, which is just west of the roundabout on Buccaneer Trail near Harris Teeter grocery store.

“I’m sure the six houses on Shadow Woods Lane will be thrilled with people driving past their houses to use this new public area,” wrote Laura Keller, a resident near what would be the proposed public park next to the condos.

According to Keller’s account of the meeting, it was reported that a traffic study revealed that the project would generat an additional 59,130 vehicle trips on Shadow Woods Lane per year. There are only six homes on Shadow Woods Lane.The county would install sidewalks and pave the gravel street.

According to the Nassau County Property Appraiser website, the land at 1356 Shadow Woods Lane was purchased by Amelia Baptist Church on Jan. 3, 2023 for $4.4 million from the estate of Maria Ann Sellers.

In their original application to the county, Amelia Baptist Church said, “The redevelopment of the church offers the opportunity for the church to continue to give back and serve the County residents as well as create a mixed-use project. To that end additional land was acquired in 2022. The land was owned by two ABC founding members, Larry and Maria Sellers, who helped to establish Amelia Baptist Church several decades ago. After the death of both parents, the four sons expressed their parents’ wish to offer our church the first right to purchase the land and family home.

“ABC entered into negotiations to sell a portion of its property to a third party. This sale would allow redevelopment of the church facilities and provide a compatible residential waterfront community.”