JACKSONVILLE AND NORTHEAST FLORIDA SPONSORED SECTION 15
St. Johns County is one of the fastest-growing
counties in the U.S., and its economy has had no
problem accommodating the rapid growth.
While the population keeps rising — growing 24%
since 2010 — St. Johns County’s unemployment rate
keeps shrinking, and no county in Florida had a lower
jobless rate than St. Johns’ 2.7% at the end of the
summer 2017.
Northrop Grumman is St. Johns County’s largest
corporate employer, as the aerospace firm added 400
jobs to the 1,000 it already had after a recent expansion
of its facility at the Northeast Florida Regional Airport
in St. Augustine.
The county’s biggest attraction has historically been
the nation’s oldest city, St. Augustine. But golf may be
rivaling history as the county’s claim to fame.
Golf fans already travel here to visit the World Golf
Hall of Fame outside of St. Augustine and the golf
resorts of Ponte Vedra Beach, but golf is also a major
corporate presence in the county.
The PGA TOUR last year revealed plans to consolidate
its headquarters operations from 17 buildings
throughout the county to a single location in Ponte
Vedra Beach, creating 300 additional jobs on top of the
800 it already has.
The PGA TOUR represents the largest corporate
headquarters in the county, says Melissa Glasgow,
director of economic development for St. Johns
County. “If plans play out as anticipated, the project
will represent a very innovative public-private partnership
generating extraordinary long-term benefit for
a single project,” she says.
Golf Scores Long-term Benefits
New Industrial Projects on Tap in St. Johns County
Burkhardt Distributing
While St. Johns County attracts attention for its
leisure activities and community development,
the county is also attracting new industrial
projects.
Two projects in process are expansions of beer
distributor Burkhardt Distributing Co. and MAS
HVAC, which designs and builds commercial air
handlers.
Burkhardt has been operating in St. Johns
County since 1989 but because of its growth, it
needs a bigger facility. County commissioners
approved $426,141 in incentives to help the
company build a new $11-million, 113,000-sq.-ft.
facility that will become its headquarters and
distribution center.
The company, with 84 employees, may also
expand the building further as it grows.
MAS HVAC is currently headquartered in
Green Cove Springs, but will move to a 32,400-
sq.-ft. facility in St. Johns once that building is
completed.
MAS HVAC will receive up to $160,000 in tax
incentives for the $4.15-million project.
The company had 17 to 18 employees when its
incentive application was approved but said it
expects to double that after the move, with jobs
that pay an average of $61,000.
THE PLAYERS Championship