Destin Real Estate Developer and Political Campaign Donor Bobby Guidry, along with his associates Pat Barcus and James Elder, could be up to $83.3 million richer after a vote of the Florida Cabinet on Tuesday Morning in Tallahassee.
The State’s executive branch, which consists of the Governor, Agricultural Commissioner, CFO, and Attorney General, met to discuss land acquisition by Florida’s Internal Improvement Trust Fund. In addition to deeding land for the future location of the Donald J. Trump Presidential Library in Miami, the Cabinet took a vote to use leftover money from the last fiscal year to purchase eight pieces of land around the state, including four acres of beachfront property on Norriego Point in Destin.
Currently, the State estimates the value of the land, according to their records, at about $83 million, which means the cabinet’s vote essentially sets the proposed purchase price of the land from one of Guidry’s companies at that amount.
“With today’s acquisitions, we will further protect Big Cypress National Preserve through the Caloosa Big Cypress Corridor,” Governor Ron DeSantis said to the cabinet chamber as he referenced the location of six of the eight properties on the docket for purchase, “And that was championed by our former Senate president Kathleen Passidomo.”
Passidomo, a South Florida Republican, made headlines in the panhandle earlier this year when she voted against a bill brought by State Sen. Jay Trumbull (R-Panama City) to alter public access laws for South Walton County Beaches.
While the entire cabinet voted in favor of the decision to move forward with the process, Florida CFO Blaise Ingoglia, who replaced now Congressman Jimmy Patronis in the position, expressed his opposition to the purchase of the Destin land specifically.
Ingoglia asked if he could vote on the Okaloosa Beach Item, referred to as 4F in the agenda packet, individually. Governor DeSantis told him it was not possible.
“We’ll take [your comments] as a yes and your objection is noted on that one – thank you very much,” DeSantis concluded.
On August 19, 2025, Okaloosa County Commission Chairman Paul Mixon wrote a letter with the support of the rest of the Board of County Commissioners to the Florida Department of Environmental Protection asking for their support in eventually acquiring the Norreigo POint property from Pointe Mezzanine and Bobby Guidry. As we previously reported, Guidry donated $8,000 through his various companies to Mixon’s successful campaign for office. He also donated $6,000 to District Five Commissioner Drew Palmer’s campaign.
“To demonstrate our commitment, Okaloosa County is pledging a minimum direct investment of $3 million, with an overall contribution exceeding $5 million. This includes a combination of funding, grants, in-kind services, startup and operational costs, and other associated expenditures needed to successfully launch and sustain the new park,” Mixon wrote.
The Okaloosa County Property Appraiser’s office notes that the land Guidry’s company, Pointe Mezzanine LLC, owns on Norreigo Pointe is worth roughly $10.5 million.
As we’ve previously reported, Guidry was both the single largest donor to local political campaigns in 2024’s election cycle, as well as a felon convicted of bribing former Louisiana Governor Edwin Edwards for a riverboat gambling license in the early 1990s.
The property was previously reclassified and therefore does not show a purchase price or previous owner. Pointe Mezzanine’s packet for the Florida Cabinent Presentation, which you can see here, used more than ten examples to set the suggested price for the land purchase.
At this rate, Guidry’s company will make roughly eight times the stated current value of the property on the real estate transaction.
The Okaloosa County Taxpayers will not find themselves as financially incentivized to see this deal go through.
Either way, no government will receive any tax revenue from the parcel.
RELATED: Okaloosa School District Looks to Cut Costs As Budget Deliberations Begin
At its current appraised value – the land brings in roughly the following amounts from Pointe Mezzanine in taxes – totalling $130,846.80 in annual taxes:
County: $40,223.40
School District: $56,479.50
Northwest Florida Water Management District: $228.90
Destin Fire Control District: $16,957.90
Destin: $16,957.50
Should the land be sold at the proposed rate of around $84,500,000 to another buyer and be appraised at that amount, the landowner would pay in about $1.1 million per year in taxes:
County: $323,702.60
School District: $454,525.50
Northwest Florida Water Management District: $1,842.10
Destin Fire Control District: $136,467.50
Destin: $136,467.50
The difference for the Okaloosa School District alone, which has lagged behind in teacher pay and uses schools that are approaching their end of useful life dates, would be staggering.
With the additional proposed taxes, the district could outfit every student at Niceville High School with a new Chromebook laptop every year. They could purchase roughly four new school buses, or even build a new Elementary School every 36 years with the tax money from that parcel alone, according to analysis from the Florida Senate.
The Florida Cabinet’s decision means the state has 120 days to execute the purchase of the land. After that time, the amount the government will be excpeted to pay for the land is no longer locked in.
Pro Communi Bono
St. Francis De Sales, Ora Pro Nobis!
Register or login with Mid Bay News and never get another pop up on our site!
