St. Joe sells 40,975 acres for $55.9 million

[Kurt]

That's $1,364/acre

(April 1, 2011) - The St. Joe Company (NYSE: JOE) announced today that it has completed the sale of a 40,975 acre timber deed to an investment fund managed by Resource Management Service ("RMS") for a price of $55.9 million.

"This sale allows St. Joe to accelerate the monetization of a small portion of our standing timber, while retaining the ownership of the underlying land and the long-term options to capitalize on future real estate development opportunities," said Hugh Durden, interim Chief Executive Officer.



Under the terms of the timber deed, RMS has the right to harvest or sell the standing timber on specified stands for a period of up to 20 years. The ages of the timber deed stands range from 15 to 30 years, and are located in Gulf and Calhoun counties, Florida. As individual tracts of land are released by RMS following final harvest, the use of the land reverts immediately back to St. Joe for subsequent reforestation and ongoing timber production, rural land sales, or real estate development.


"The professionals at RMS have a strong track record of sound timberland management, and we look forward to working closely with them in the coming years," said Will Sonnenfeld, Senior Vice President Forestry and Land Sales.


More information regarding the transaction will be available in a Form 8-K to be filed with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission.



About St. Joe
The St. Joe Company, a publicly held company currently based in WaterSound, is one of Florida's largest real estate development companies and Northwest Florida's largest private landowner. St. Joe is primarily engaged in real estate development and sales, with significant interests in timber. More information about the Company can be found on its website at www.joe.com.


About RMS
RMS is a vertically-integrated, privately-held timber investment manager serving institutional investors, including pension funds, endowments, foundations and family offices. RMS manages timberland assets throughout the U.S. South, as well as in Brazil and China. With current assets under management of approximately US$4 billion, RMS is one of the largest timber investment managers in the world. More information about the Company can be found on its website at www.resourcemgt.com.

 

[GoodWitch58]

Economic Yearbook 2011 - Florida's Biggest Private Landowners - from Florida Trend, Florida's Source For Business News

Interesting interactive map of who owns Florida lands...

 

[Kurt]

Wow

Prodded by a church leader and cattleman named Henry D. Moyle, the Mormon Church bought the original 54,000 acres of Deseret Ranch in 1950. Today, the ranch is the largest cow-calf operation in the United States, with 44,000 head of cattle on 290,000 acres. Ranch manager Erik Jacobsen, a cowboy with an MBA from Brigham Young, says the church's long-term goal for the property is to maintain cattle, citrus and other agricultural operations, while "being a voice for responsible growth" in the region. The ranch's sister company, Suburban Land Reserve, is working on long-term development plans for Orange County's Innovation Way area that will include homes and commercial space as well as a research park.

 

[Kurt]

[Photo: Mosaic Co.] Publicly held phosphate company (NYSE-MOS)
Florida acres: 254,000
Headquarters: Plymouth, Minn.
Formed in 2004 by a merger of Cargill Crop Nutrition and IMC Global, Mosaic is the largest phosphate supplier in the world and mines 100% of its phosphate from Florida. In January, Cargill announced plans to sell its 64% stake in Mosaic. The tax-free transaction is meant to satisfy terms of various charitable trusts and foundations set up by Cargill family heirs. Richard Mack, executive vice president and general counsel, says the sale should give the company the liquidity and flexibility it needs to plan and invest in the long-term future of its Florida lands.


Roughly two-thirds of Mosaic's Florida holdings have been mined.



The company expects to keep mining a portion of the remaining third for the next few decades as it develops new business models, which will include creating upscale eco-resorts on reclaimed land. Mosaic's first move is the luxury resort Streamsong, pictured above in an artist's rendering. The resort is under construction in southwestern Polk County on 16,000 acres of former phosphate land near Fort Meade and the Hardee County line.

 

[ASH]

St. joe didn't sell the land

To clarify, St. Joe sold the timber off the acreage for $55.9 million. The land still belongs to St. Joe to do whatever they wish after the timber has been harvested. Seems like a cheap way to clear the land for an upcoming development.
The company that bought the timber has 20 years to log it off.

 

[Smiling JOe]

That timber contract is higher price per acre than some timber LAND prices in North Walton. People can say what they want about JOE land being worthless, but if you really look around, they are well-poised to be sitting very pretty for long term.