Overview
On July 11, 2103, Georgia Attorney General Sam Olens ruled against environmentalists and Jekyll Island residents who seek to limit development on Jekyll Island under a long standing 65-35 rule limiting development to 35% of Jekyll Island. The controversy relates to how that ratio is calculated given tides and marsh areas. You can review the complete Attorney General Opinion here. Surfrider Foundation Atlanta Chapter has shared our concerns with the Jekyll Island Authority and other environmental groups working on this issue. We also did an 18-mile stand up paddle trip around the island to raise awareness for this issue.
Update
September 2013 : A draft of the new master plan approved by the Jekyll Island board in includes a recommendation for state lawmakers to limit total development to 1,675 acres under a "fixed acreage" agreement. The draft says most of that acreage has already been used, and only 66 acres would remain open for future projects. Future commercial development would be restricted to an even smaller portion, just 20 acres.
Surfrider Foundation Atlanta Chapter considers this a good result. However, if the Legislature fails to set a fixed acreage for development next year and the 35 percent rule is left intact, the larger land area would boost the amount of land open to construction on Jekyll Island to 326 acres.
More Info from our friends at GreenLaw--http://www.greenlaw.org/info/102364