PUTNAM COUNTY, Fla. — Welaka is a town of 717 people, one traffic light, and access to the St. Johns River.
And now, Welaka Mayor Jamie Watts has confirmed Bass Pro Shops is indeed going to build in and near his small town.
"It is a reality. It is a reality for Welaka," Watts told First Coast News.
Welaka sits just south of Palatka in Putnam County.
"It’s going to obviously be some sort of resort. It’s not going to be a Bass Pro Shops store," Watts said.
Bass Pro Shops has resorts, such as the Big Cedar Lodge in Missouri. One night’s stay in the cheapest room there runs almost $300 this summer.
There is no construction to see yet in Putnam County.
Watts calculated how much land Bass Pro Shops has bought in Putnam County.
Pulling out a map, Watts said, "If you look at the size of the town here in orange, and then you look at the land that’s been acquired, this is larger than the town of Welaka." The size of the town on the map was a fraction of the size of the land Bass Pro Shops had acquired.
Watts has tallied Bass Pro Shops has purchased 4300 acres. First Coast News has determined that is larger than all the Florida Disney parks combined. First Coast News has also calculated the Bass Pro Shops land in Putnam is more than four times the size of the town of Welaka.
So Watts has been preparing the town for big things.
One of those is a bigger wastewater treatment plant. Watts said Bass pro Shops has spoked with the city about infrastructure and waste water treatment options. Welaka received more than $13 million from the state for a bigger wastewater treatment plant.
"Originally the town of Welaka’s water and sewer ran just within the boundaries of the town," Watts pointed to a map. The town is 1.5 square miles. "We’ve now expanded it (the wastewater treatment plant's abilities) all the way up here to Cisco Dirt Road." That includes the Bass Pro Shop property, he said. In total the new wastewater treatment plant can serve an area 26 square miles in size, Watts noted.
The police department is also growing. Two years ago there was one officer., who was the police chief. Now there are two officers, and the city wants to hire a third and a fourth.
The mayor and city council are also working on the land development code, asking residents for their ideas to revitalize the downtown area.
"We need to create our plans," Watts said, "because we want the developers to follow our plans instead of coming in and turn the city into something we don’t recognize."
Watts said he has had nice conversations with Bass Pro Shops founder Johnny Morris. Watts welcomes the company because he believes it will work to maintain the environment.
So, when asked if this tiny rural town is about to change, Watts answered, "No. I don’t want it to change. We’ve put policies in place to prevent that."