New development in Freeport breaks ground

Add Us On GoogleAdd as a preferred source on Google

FREEPORT, Fla. (WJHG/WECP) -

All around Walton County, more people are moving in.

“We’ve had an influx of people, we’ve had over 17,000 new water/sewer customers in the last year,” Russ Barley, mayor of Freeport, said.

As one of the fastest-growing counties in Florida, even places not on the beach, like Freeport, are prime real estate.

“It’s exciting for me to see Freeport grow because I grew up here when there were dirt roads and only three to five hundred people,” Barley said.

Turning the dirt over on Owl’s Head Farms Thursday symbolizes a project more than a decade in the making.

“I realized it coming up here yesterday, I was thinking about what comments I might make and I realized I’ve been waiting for this day to happen for 15 years,” developer Douglas Duncan said.

Duncan said the community’s location at the entrance to Freeport makes it a great spot for new Walton County residents.

“We’re excited to be here, we’re right in the middle of the Highway 331 thoroughfare that’s almost in the center of Walton County,” Duncan said.

Barley said the growth will benefit the city’s economy.

“It’s good for everyone so they don’t have to go out of the county to work and it brings jobs close to home and it also gives them the opportunity to live here in their community,” Barley said.

In addition to more than 600 lots, Owl’s Head Farms will feature an amphitheater, farmer’s market, and retail stores.

The retail space will take up 100 acres of the 1,000-acre development.