Allentown could be home to a new RV park following a development proposal submitted to Santa Rosa County in early August.
Site plans show that the project entails creating an RV park with 49 stalls and a handful of new roads using an almost 10-acre site at 8855 Highway 87 N.
Ken Smith, the owner of truss manufacturing and metal fabricating company Blackwater Truss Systems, confirmed to the News Journal that he’s behind the proposal, but he declined to comment on the plans at this time.
Smith intends to build the RV park about 6 miles away from NAS Whiting Field over five phases of construction, if he can get approval from Santa Rosa County.
The plan calls for 10 stalls and one road to access the site to be developed during each phase except for phase five, which will have nine lots. The initial phase of the project also includes perimeter roads for the RV park.
County officials have approved three RV park projects so far in 2025 that are coming to Jay, Milton and Navarre.
Santa Rosa County property records show that Smith bought the land where the RV park is proposed for $315,000 in 2022. The parcel is nearly 80 acres overall and Smith only plans to use a 9.97-acre portion of it for the project at this time.
There is one planned entryway for motorists entering the grounds, which will lead them to the perimeter roads circling the RV park.
A row of 30 unpaved, overflow parking lots are also planned near a stormwater pond on the south end of the site.
The development proposal was filed to Santa Rosa County on Aug. 1 and a review date has not been scheduled at this time.
