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On Jan. 31, 2007, the National Audubon Society and The St. Joe Company announced a partnership to create a world-class, state-of-the-art Nature Center in Northwest Florida. The Center will celebrate and explore the cultural and environmental heritage of Northwest Florida by promoting education, research and stewardship programs focusing on the area’s habitat and wildlife. The Center also will showcase efforts to restore the area’s native pine flatwoods ecosystem.

A gateway to the West Bay Preservation Area

Fiddler crabs congregate in a marsh along the shoreline of West Bay. (Photo: Linda Macbeth)

The Audubon Center at West Bay will be located within the West Bay Preservation Area. The West Bay Preservation Area is being established as part of the West Bay Sector Plan, a long-term land-use plan for 78,000 acres in Bay County, Florida.

While an exact site for the Audubon Center has not yet been chosen, the location likely will be on land off of State Highway 79 facing the west side of West Bay. The West Bay Preservation Area comprises approximately 41,000 acres — nearly 66 square miles – of important watershed and habitat surrounding West Bay – one of the nation’s most biologically diverse estuaries. The area includes 33 miles of shoreline and an additional 44 miles of buffers along creeks and tributaries, such as Crooked and Burnt Mill creeks. The flatwoods and marshes found in the West Bay Preservation Area function as an important filtering system that protects water purity and maintains a healthy environment for many species of fish, wading birds, shore birds, water fowl and other aquatic life.

Celebrating Northwest Florida’s rich cultural and environmental heritage

The Audubon Center at West Bay will celebrate and explore the cultural and environmental heritage of Northwest Florida with education, research and stewardship programs focusing on the area’s habitat and wildlife. Serving as a gateway to the larger West Bay Preservation Area, the multifunctional center will highlight the unique landscapes of the St. Andrew Bay system and showcase efforts to restore the area’s native marsh, aquatic and woodland ecosystems. To that end, the Audubon Center will include a demonstration project that allows visitors to see first-hand the process of restoration.

While future planning will determine specific programs and activities, early concepts include both passive and hands-on nature-based activities, all with the purpose of connecting people to the land. The many possibilities include visual arts, exhibits, hiking and water trails, bird watching platforms, scenic overlooks and interactive programs. The Center’s design will be consistent with National Audubon Society standards and programs.

Making the Right Connections: Bringing People and Nature Together

Members of the planning team get a first-hand look at the probable site of the Audubon Center at West Bay. (Photo: Linda Macbeth)

The Audubon Center at West Bay will operate as part of the national network of Audubon Centers employing professionally trained staff and community volunteers.

The Nature Center will be designed to appeal to diverse audiences, including Northwest Florida residents, students, and visitors from around the nation and the world.

The Center will connect people with nature by introducing them to the region’s diverse habitat and wildlife. Audubon Centers are investments in the communities in which they are located. At a time when travelers are seeking more meaningful experiences, the Audubon Center at West Bay will provide a unique destination for people visiting Northwest Florida.

Audubon and the St. Joe Company are reaching out to residents, educators, donors, conservationists, institutions, government leaders, and others to identify partners and participants in the planning process. The costs of building and operating the Audubon Center at West Bay are considerable. Leadership gifts for the Center’s capital campaign are being identified at this time.

The Face of Audubon in Northwest Florida: Local Audubon Chapters
Audubon’s greatest strength is its local members, who make a difference every day in Florida’s communities. Get in touch with one of our vibrant Northwest Florida chapters.
Apalachee Audubon Society P.O. Box 1237 Tallahassee, FL 32302		Choctawhatchee Audubon Society P.O. Box 1014 Fort Walton Beach, FL 32549
Bay County Audubon Society P.O. Box 1182 Panama City, FL 32402		Francis M. Weston Audubon Society 15751 Bowlegs Reef Pensacola, FL 32507

Wisdom of the Long View: Why Audubon Supports the West Bay Sector Plan

The West Bay Sector Plan represents an unprecedented opportunity to make the most of a unique bit of native Florida. Having a large tract of undeveloped land on a pristine portion of Florida’s coastline set in a community of forward-thinking citizens can make this opportunity a reality.

The sector plan was a joint undertaking between Bay County and the St. Joe Company, which owns much of the land within the 78,000-acre planning area. Bay County was one of only a handful of local governments in Florida chosen to participate in a sector planning pilot program. Among the four sector plans in the state, Bay County’s is by far the largest and most ambitious.

The plan establishes a long-term blueprint for the development of all the land within the 78,000-acre area. A new airport to replace the existing Panama City-Bay County International Airport is planned for 4,000 acres. Other planned land uses include industrial, commercial and residential, with preservation being the single largest use. The setting-aside of 41,000 acres for the West Bay Preservation Area is among the most aggressive land-conservation efforts undertaken in Florida.

In addition to the sweeping Preservation Area, the sector plan is remarkable because it sets forth, many decades before build-out, how the land will be developed – or not developed. In that way, the plan ensures that compatible uses will adjoin one another, and that incompatible uses will not. The plan discourages urban sprawl by establishing a sequenced and patterned plan for development. In short, the West Bay Sector Plan is an example of the kind of planning and foresight that was lacking during much of Florida’s development, and it should be a model for future planning efforts in the state.

Audubon Center and West Bay: A Perfect Pairing

Audubon Centers are designed to provide educational, nature-based and hands-on experiences to people of all ages and to influence the uses of ecosystems where they are located.

While all Audubon Centers share some common elements and the common goal of bringing people and nature together, each is specific to its location. The West Bay area, —blessed with a variety of beautiful undisturbed coastal habitats, an abundance of native plants and animals and clear, clean water — is a perfect setting in which to celebrate the best of Northwest Florida.

From the Project Manager, Linda Macbeth

An effort such as this — establishing a state-of-the-art nature center — requires a strong commitment on the part of local leadership, both public and private, and relies heavily on the willingness of the entire community to become involved.

Based on the amazingly warm welcome this community has given me and the enthusiasm shown toward the Center, I feel confident that we will succeed. I am excited that so many of you are anxious to participate in the planning and development of the Center’s education, research and stewardship programs.

I look forward with pleasure to getting to know all of you as we work together to create the Audubon Center at West Bay. Please contact me at lmacbeth@audubon.org or (850) 527-1823 with your thoughts and ideas about the Center.