Jim Jacoby, a developer who made millions building

Jim Jacoby, a developer who made millions building Wal-Marts on greenfield sites, has made a 180-degree turn in terms of environmental sustainability. Jacoby is the developer behind Atlantic Station, the intensive infill/brownfield redevelopment in Atlanta nearing construction, and now is planning the Marineland project, designed to be a showcase green development south of St. Augustine, Florida. A small town is planned to be built around a struggling 1930s marine biology center — known as Marineland —and an adjacent marine science center — the University of Florida Whitney Labs. Jacoby wants to refurbish Marineland, while building a neighborhood of 140 units and a main street and saving most of the site in open space. Residents would leave cars in communal parking courts, and most homes would be accessible only by narrow pedestrian paths. The project is also intended to showcase natural stormwater and wastewater management systems, and include trails through preserved woodlands.