The community center, which allows the St. Johns County Council on Aging to expand its services for the elderly, was slated to be completed by late November.

Expanded services for the elderly in St. Johns County could be coming at the right time. The county's population of adults 65 years and older is expected to reach 40,822 in 2010 and climb to 49,868 in 2015, according to the University of Florida's Bureau of Economic and Business Research.

COA center is work in progress - St. Augustine Record - July 4, 2009

TALLAHASSEE — A development boom is brewing under the radar of Floridians distracted by deteriorating real estate values and record foreclosures. The state is processing an unprecedented number of proposals for new homes and commercial development. If approved, these projects could pump more than 600,000 rooftops onto a market suffering from a surplus of product and slowdown in population growth.

Dr. Paula Stowell, a family physician and psychiatrist, was quite pleased earlier this month when she offered $200,000 to the bank for a house in Crescent Beach listed at $239,000.

The offer was accepted.

But even better, Stowell said, was that the two-story house built in 1932 had been previously sold for $540,000.

[Robin] Arnold is only one of the many St. Johns County real estate agents and mortgage brokers who said they've noticed a "surge" in real estate showings and sales for December and January.