Camden mill site under new ownership
Aug. 11—Two decades after the largest civilian employer in Camden County declared bankruptcy, costing more than 900 employees their jobs, the site of the old Gilman Paper Co. will soon be home to a new tenant.
The upcoming groundbreaking for Cumberland Inlet will officially usher in a new era for the 721-acre tract near downtown St. Marys.
Plans by Atlanta-based Jacoby Development Inc. for the site include a full-service public marina, a town center with a boutique hotel and restaurants, luxury apartments, vacation rentals, an eco-tourism resort and areas of conservation, all designed to blend in with the natural surroundings of St. Marys.
James Coughlin, executive director of the Camden County Joint Development Authority, said he has a "very high" confidence level the project will be built as planned.
There have been several unsuccessful attempts to develop the site in the past, including Jacksonville, Fla.-based LandMar's plans to build an upscale residential development and another developer's plans for the Port of St. Marys Industrial & Logistics Center.
Coughlin cautioned there are a lot of moving parts that make it a difficult project.
"It is a complicated site and it will take time," he said. "The very first step is to clean up the property."
Construction of the marina will begin the first quarter of 2023 under a revised permit that moves the boat repair facility to an area less visible.
The paper mill layoffs occurred in 2002, several years after the death of Howard Gilman. The foundation managing the Gilman estate had to sell what was at the time the largest independently owned paper mill in the nation.
And several years after a Mexican company purchased the business and renamed it Durango-Georgia Paper Co., the owners left town unexpectedly and later announced the company would close permanently in 60 days.
The groundbreaking ceremony will be held at 10 a.m. Aug. 26 at the mill site in downtown St. Marys.
