Rick Scott Helps Launch Mega-Site on First Coast

Governor Rick Scott came to the First Coast on Tuesday as McCallum Sweeney Consulting certified the Crawford Diamond Industrial Park in Nassau County as a mega-site, making it the second one in the state. Besides having 1,800 acres, the site has rail access, making it attractive to businesses looking to tap into nearby Jacksonvilles increasingly important role in logistics.

This property is the first of its kind in the area and is a game changer for Northeast Florida and our state, Scott said. In just over two years, we have already created over 330,000 private-sector jobs and our unemployment rate has dipped to 7.2 percent well below the national average.

This is a very rare and valuable site and an ideal location for any large-scale manufacturer or distributor, Scott added. This site also has direct rail access to JAXPort and sits near five deepwater ports, four marine terminals, two interstate highways and an international airport. This is the perfect place for any company wanting to do business across the nation and worldwide. Projects like this will help us continue to create jobs and opportunities for Florida families.

Paul Boynton, the chairman, president and CEO of Rayonier which helps run Crawford Diamond, also stressed how the sites location will help attract businesses.

With the intersection of two class one railroads, and close proximity to both I-10 and I-95 and four deep water ports, Crawford Diamond is one of the top industrial sites in the State of Florida, said Boynton. Rayonier is confident that the business-friendly environment championed by Governor Scott and the proactive development policies of Nassau County will attract companies to the property. Crawford Diamond has great potential to be an economic game changer for the County and Northeast Florida.