Комиссия округа Лейк одобрила строительство нового жилого комплекса Panther Run на 2600 домов

Getting your Trinity Audio player ready... Lake County Commissioners cleared the way last week for the Panther Run master-planned community to move forward in southern Lake, which could bring thousands of new homes to the Four Corners area. Doug Bruk, the COO of developer GT USA, told GrowthSpotter the plan is to break ground in 2027 with site development work kicking off in the spring, followed by residential development next summer. “We’re extremely proud of Panther Run and what it will mean to the surrounding communities,” Bruk said. “We have received a lot of interest from residents and businesses as well.” The re-zoning allows 2,600 homes to be built across a dozen conservation neighborhoods in the Wellness Way area and in the community’s mixed-use center. In addition, 1 million square feet of employment and retail space will be available by late 2028. The 3-1 vote followed more than an hour of often-contentious debate, sparked by Commissioner Anthony Sabatini’s effort to thwart the rezoning of what he called irreplaceable agricultural land. “That’s not a good idea, and it goes completely against what the (comprehensive) plan says, which is that agricultural use was always supposed to be a contemplated use within Wellness Way — always — and it still is,” he argued. Denying the rezoning would have capped the number of homes allowed on the property at 210. Commissioners Sean Parks and Leslie Campione called his arguments nonsensical, pointing out that the land in question abuts S.R. 516, a new toll road expressway linking Wellness Way to S.R. 429 and the Disney theme parks. Campione said the Wellness Way land isn’t designated as “rural” or “rural protection” in the county’s comprehensive plan. It’s part of an overlay that was adopted 10 years ago to direct both residential and commercial growth to this specific portion of the county. Attorney Tara Tedrow, representing the developer, argued that while the property has an agricultural tax exemption, it hasn’t been a “working farm” for many years. She said GT USA paid the record-breaking $165 million for the land because it was entitled for exactly the type of development they are proposing. “There’s no beautiful butterfly gardens. There’s no bees. There’s cows — they’ve been there for decades. The land is cleared,” Tedrow said. “Where we are developing is cleared uplands on the property. It is fertilized, it is mowed. This is not a native habitat of beautiful sanctuaries. All of the beautiful sanctuaries and native habitat are within the preservation and protection areas.” The development plan preserves over 70% of the acreage as open space, conservation lands and wildlife corridors. Neighborhoods within Panther Run will include 11 miles of trails and 20 community parks. Bruk said the initial stages of development, which includes clearing, grading and road construction, will take about 16 months. The first homeowners could move in as early as the summer of 2028. The section east of the future CR 455 extensionis set to become a “ Reverie ” branded 55+ community. Tuesday’s vote underscored the County’s commitment to smart growth,” Tedrow said. “Over 3,000 jobs will be produced in strategic corridors where the developer is required to build nearly five miles of roadways that the County has needed for years.” GT USA has also agreed to sell 50 acres in the city center to the Lake County School Board for a new $214 million high school to serve the fast-growing Wellness Way area. Another 8 acres are being set aside for a public safety complex that will have a fire station and sheriff’s substation. Both of those sites will be completed in 2030. Have a tip about Central Florida development? Contact me at  [email protected] or (407) 420-6261. Follow GrowthSpotter on  Facebook and  LinkedIn.