Plans for a US$3m (€2.17m, £1.8m), 8,000ft (2,438m) aquarium in St. Augustine, Florida have been put on ice after local residents opposed the project.

The aquarium would have been part of a development at Riberia Point – a former landfill site that was to be transformed into a new destination for family-friendly education and entertainment. The project also includes a children’s museum and a public park.

St. Augustine residents voiced fears, primarily over traffic congestion, at a community meeting and the project ultimately failed to gain public support.

However, developers Shawn and Kathy Hiester have proposed three alternative sites, all of which are in the same county, St Johns, but not all are in St Augustine.

Shawn Heister, principal of SPH Consulting, told the Jacksonville Business Journal: “The project is US$4.5m (€3.3m, £2.7m) of annual economic impact, so there’s a lot of interest on the part of a lot of folks that we do the aquarium project. So we’ll find the right place.”