Following almost five years of discussions and anticipation — mixed in with a nice-sized helping of doubt — the long-talked-about Raymond James Financial campus is one huge step closer to becoming a reality at the corner of S.R. 56 and Mansfield Blvd.
Wiregrass Ranch developer JD Porter finally received the news two weeks ago that he has been waiting more than two years for, as the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers has proffered an environmental permit for the 65 acres of property just east of the Shops at Wiregrass mall.
“We were all thrilled, everyone in the family,’’ said Porter, the owner and operator of Wiregrass Ranch Inc. “We worked very, very closely with the Army engineers, and it is nice to finally reach a resolution.”
Porter joked in April at a Wesley Chapel Chamber of Commerce (WCCC) Economic Development meeting that he was tired of hearing about the delays involving Raymond James, but insisted (as he has many times in the past) that the facility was still imminent. He predicted then he would have the Army Corps permit in a few weeks, and though it took just a little bit longer he is now ready to proceed.
“Right now, we have all the permits in hand to proceed forward,’’ Porter said.
The St. Petersburg-based financial services company has been working for several years on the process with the Porter family and, in early 2011, agreed to purchase the land at an undisclosed price, provided the permitting could be completed.
The deal was approved by the Pasco County Board of County Commissioners (BOCC) later that year. In exchange for $15-million in incentives and tax breaks, the county would reap the benefits of what would eventually be planned as six four-story buildings totaling roughly 1-million-sq.-ft., and housing 750 employees by 2024, which will inject millions into the county tax rolls.
Although the Raymond James campus was originally scheduled to begin building in 2012, with the first 100 employees arriving by 2014, the project stalled.
In 2014, a few months after another financial firm, T. Rowe Price, jettisoned its plans to build on 72 acres near the Suncoast Pkwy., Raymond James postponed its project. But, the financial services giant did say it still had plans for the property.
Now, there is renewed optimism that Raymond James will make the impact promised years ago.
“I’m glad that’s over and done with,’’ said District 2 commissioner Mike Moore. “The economic impact will be huge for Pasco County as a whole. There will be nothing bigger in the county.”
Moore said Raymond James will become the largest non-governmental employer in Pasco. “And, anytime you bring in a large employer like that, things start to happen around it,’’ he says.
Bill Cronin, the new president and CEO of the Pasco Economic Development Council (EDC), said when he started in January, one of his first meetings was with Raymond James, citing the importance of getting the company here.
“The investment by Raymond James will be one that, when other companies look to grow here, they will see that someone else has blazed that trail for them,’’ Cronin said. “It will make my job a little easier, to show people there are others that have made this positive decision.”
He added, “Success begets success.”
The next step for Porter will be to re-negotiate the development agreement and adjust some of the original timelines with the BOCC, which will likely take place in the next month or so.
“That triggers the closing,’’ Porter said.
Porter thinks the addition of the financial facility is a major piece of what he hopes the Wiregrass Ranch area will become, as it should drive up home sales and makes the area more attractive to other businesses.
“I think whether we’re talking Raymond James, or the mall or Florida Hospital Wesley Chapel, the state college, you are looking at the kinds of things that define cities and define regions,’’ Porter says. “We’re lucky to land four of them in a short time, when some communities don’t have this after 30 or 40 years.”
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