(Bonifay, FL) - The Panhandle of Florida has always been a tourist destination for the sugar white sandy beaches and emerald colored gulf waters. However, recognizing the need for a unique family-oriented adventure destination sparked the imagination of premiere Florida land developer, Blue Dolphin II, Inc., who intends on providing millions of Floridians and tourists a new reason to travel further inland.

Over the past several years Blue Dolphin II, Inc. has acquisitioned thousands of acres of land on the coast of Florida’s great Northwest to develop one of the largest safari parks in the USA. “We came up with the concept of giving entertainment to local Floridians as well as to generate more tourism for the state,” said Barbara Farris, President of BDII, Inc. “[This is a] large scale development that will take five years to complete.” From the moment of ground breaking it will take up to 24 months before the park will be open to visitors – due in part to the animals need to acclimate to their surroundings.

The “Jim Fowler’s Life in the Wild” theme park – spanning 1000+/- acres of natural habitat located in Bonifay, FL - will be the first attraction to the park to combine recreation, adventure and education. Jim Fowler is a beloved household personality from his frequent appearances with his exotic animals on the “The Johnny Carson Show” and as the co-host of Mutual of Omaha’s “WildKingdom.” He has spent a lifetime studying, appreciating and celebrating the natural world and is ready to partner with BDII, Inc. to bring his vision to Florida.

“I’ve had a passion for presenting wildlife in a different way than the normal zoo. I’m much more in favor of using nature and creating adventure,” stated Jim Fowler. “I’ve been doing that for about 20 years. I’ve been involved in creating what we call Ecological Parks. These are places where you don’t just walk down a trail and see a field mouse. You have things that are really exciting and adventurous to you so that you can open up your mind and learn about the important things.”

The park will have an exceptional educational wildlife adventure center that will set new standards for attractions that present both native and exotic species of animals and nature to the public. Visitors will be transported in specially made vehicles to take them on a safari trek to observe animals in their natural state – free roaming. Visitors will have the option to spend the night(s) in the park in luxurious accommodations uniquely designed to look like Tarzan’s tree house. In cooperation with Parks and Wildlife Services, Inc. and the Fowler Center for Wildlife Education, Inc. – a non-profit corporation, animals and people will begin to share the natural world together in a more positive manner.

Blue Dolphin II, Inc. is planning for an easy lifestyle community, as surrounding developments will be engineered to retain the beauty of wild Florida. There will be other attractions as development continues during the next several months and years such as, an Amphitheater that will have an estimated 30-40 music acts perform throughout the year and a Celebrity Coast Theme Park – which will have family oriented attractions for all ages.

“If you’re going to do an attraction that has a good demographic area like I-10 or in that area of [Northwest] Florida, it’s good to have a variety of activities for people. I think that we can use the natural world as a base and yet we can still have exciting things that enter the world of recreation,” said Fowler. “I met with [Ms. Farris] and she had similar attitudes and was looking for a site somewhere to express some of her ideas. So it was a natural fit.”

Blue Dolphin II, Inc, is an acquisition and development company, creating high quality properties, appropriate to their settings, while at the same time being extremely functional. BDII, Inc., offers a wide range of engineering services from – planning and program development, through design and construction documents, to on-site inspection. Founded in 2005, the company operates in Crestview and Bonifay, Florida.