Duke Woodson, retired partner with Foley & Lardner LLP, represented business and governmental clients throughout the state in real estate development matters. He handled all aspects of real estate development, including purchase and sale, land use and zoning, permitting, and environmental issues.

His governmental clients have included the Greater Orlando Aviation Authority, the Lee County Port Authority, the City of Ocoee, the City of Casselberry, and the U.S. Department of Agriculture Natural Resource Conservation Service. Non-governmental clients have included major agricultural interests such as Heller Bros., A. Duda & Sons, Pacific Tomato Growers, and Pacific Land Co.; residential developers such as The Viera Company, M.L. Carter & Associates, and Alliance Residential; and commercial developers such as CSX. Nonprofit clients have included Audubon, the Nature Conservancy, and The Friends of the Wekiva River. He regularly appeared before the St. Johns, South Florida, and Southwest Districts on permitting matters for governmental as well as non-governmental clients.

His airport experience has included permitting new runways and terminals in Orlando and Fort Myers, and all aspects of Federal Aviation Administration regulation, including noise and height restrictions. His work for CSX has included land use approves for an intermodal terminal and associated development in Winter Haven.

A significant portion of Mr. Woodson’s practice involved the sale of environmentally sensitive lands to government. These sales were on behalf of private clients and involve traditional real estate transactional work, as well as a governmental component in working with Water Management District, FDEP staff and local government on acquisition issues. He has represented clients in the sale and purchase of over 85,000 acres of land with a value exceeding USD$200 million.