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Highlands Today

Grove Owners Want Development Of 4,600 Homes

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By Bill Rettew Jr. | Highlands Today

Published: December 17, 2007

LAKE PLACID — Eight grove owners north of town have banded together in a bid to trade oranges for homes.

At Monday's meeting, a professional urban planner presented town council with preliminary plans that call for the eventual construction of 4,600 homes on 1,500 acres.

Ground breaking for the proposed development, which stretches from the railroad bridge northeast to the shores of Lake Apthorpe, and on both sides of U.S. 27, is at least four years away, according to planner Augie Fragala, of Powell, Fragala & Associates Inc.

The citrus groves slated for development include: portions of the Smoak Family property; the Mason Groves; the Rogers Groves; Brian Paul Enterprises; the Malcolm Watters Groves; and the Marvin Kahn, Steve Davis and Lonnie Wells tracts.

The planner said the land owners involved are citrus growers and not real estate developers.

"They'll provide citrus as long as economically feasible," said Fragala. "They're stewards of the land and they'd rather grow oranges than roof tops, but they're prudent business people who want to maximize the land value."

Councilman Bill Brantley expects the historical district to stay downtown with a shift of the commercial district north of present town limits.

Fragala proposed 3 percent of the site for retail development, such as a supermarket and personal service businesses, including dry cleaners. Another 2 percent of the tract would become office space for physicians and other professionals.

"We all know change is inevitable," said Brantley. "The growth is coming and we're getting the reins on it."

Don Bates, Highlands County commissioner and Lake Placid resident, predicted on Friday that county residential land development will continue at the current level of 3 to 4 percent per year, as it has for the past 20 years.

"I hesitate to get too concerned about our quality of life," said Bates. "Over the long term, it will likely be phased in at a slow but constant growth rate."

No builders have yet been chosen and planning approvals are expected to take another two years, said Fragala. New major capacity water and sewer plants — with coverage inside town limits — would likely be financed in part by the grove owners, according to Fragala.

The planner said construction would likely start on the eastern portion of the property, with work progressing westward.

Because of established time limits, the planner projected 2,300 single family homes and multi-story condominiums for a 10-year time period.

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