Review
"A persuasive call to citizens and government to insist upon a greater public interest." --
Tallahassee Democrat, June 6, 2004"A thought-provoking look at an unfolding chapter in the history of a state and country." --
H-Net, May 2004"Does not whitewash over the reasons the company is controversial today, and yet it does not read as a diatribe." --
E-Streams, August 2004...what some might call a First World political economy and political ecology. --
The Professional Geographer, February 2005A lively and well-researched narrative... --
Florida Historical Quarterly, Vol 83, No 3A masterful, bold, and compelling account. --
Southeastern Naturalist, Issue 4/1 2005Anyone concerned with land use and growth management, Florida’s fragile wildlife and natural resources will learn a great deal... --
The Polish American Journal, January 2005Highly recommended. --
Choice, October 2004 Vol. 42, No. 2More than just a story of recent and projected change in this neglected region... --
The Professional Geographer, February 2005
Book Description
"Green Empire has implications far beyond Florida's panhandle. The book reminds us that throughout much of America…. the fates of open landscapes are intricately tied to the missions of the people and corporations that own the land."--Bloomsbury Review
"A groundbreaker in Florida's environmental history. . . . Should be on the bookshelf of anyone interested in the history and future of development in Florida and elsewhere."--Gulf South Historical Review
"A persuasive call to citizens and government to insist upon a greater public interest."--Tallahassee Democrat
Since the Great Depression, the St. Joe Company (formerly the St. Joe Paper Company) has been Florida's largest landowner, a forestry and transportation conglomerate whose influence has been commensurate with its holdings. The company owns nearly one million acres, mainly in northwestern Florida, where undeveloped coastal and riverside landscapes boast some of the state's most scenic and ecologically diverse areas.
For 60 years, the company focused on growing trees, turning them into paper, and managing its ancillary businesses. In the late 1990s, the company shifted directions: it sold its paper mill, changed its name, and launched a concerted drive to turn its natural-resource assets into greater profits. Today the St. Joe Company is a critical and fiscally powerful force in the real-estate development of northwest Florida, with access to the most influential people in government.
Based on hundreds of sources--including company executives, board members, and investors, as well as outside observers--this factual and balanced history describes the St. Joe Company from the days of its founders to the workings and dealings of its present-day heirs. For anyone concerned with land use and growth management, particularly those with an interest in Florida's fragile wildlife and natural resources, Green Empire will illuminate the issues surrounding the relationship between one of the most ambitious players in Florida's real-estate market and the state's last frontier.
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