Home buyers looking for the convenience and amenities that a mixed-use master-planned community offers may find what they’re looking for at Avalon Park West (APW), located five miles east of I-75 at S.R. 54 and River Glen Blvd. in Wesley Chapel. APW is part of the New River Township Development of Regional Impact (DRI), which is undergoing review for a revision requested by the developer, Avalon Park Group, to distinguish APW from the existing New River community.
If approved by Pasco County, the project’s eventual size of about 1,400 acres and 4,400 single-family homes and multi-family units, means the APW development is large in size, but the streets lined with homes featuring spacious front porches and set-back garages give it a “small town feel.”
The landscaping emphasizes natural features such as ponds and trails, while the amenities center offers a clubhouse, pool and playground. Frequent special events like movie nights provide recreation for residents. For people who just want to relax, yoga classes are available.
With New River Elementary within walking distance, as well as plans for a K-12 charter school, an assisted living facility, and plans for a future downtown area with 680,000 sq. ft. of retail and office space, APW is — according to marketing manager AnaLee Rodriguez — a community where residents, “live, learn, work and play.”
Rodriguez says Avalon Park Group has a clear vision of what the project should be.
“We’re building a small town,” says Rodriguez. “You can grow up in this community, go to school, work, start (and raise) a family here and, with the assisted living facility, you can even have older members of the family live nearby.”
The first phase of APW, known as Cypress Village, consists of 317 single-family homes. Builders for the first phase are Beazer Homes, Avex Homes, and D.R. Horton, which has already completed its involvement in Cypress Village.
Avex and Beazer are still building and selling homes on lots in 45-foot and 55-foot widths. Some floor plans have flexibility in how they can be configured, ranging from a 1,697 square-foot, single-story home with three bedrooms, two bathrooms and a two-car garage (listed at $216,990), to a two-story home priced at $289,990 for 2,974 square feet of living space that includes four bedrooms, two-and-a-half baths and a two-car garage. Homeowners association (HOA) and community development district (CDD) fees combined start at about $2,000 per year, based upon the home you purchase.
Home features vary by builder and model, but examples available include 50-gallon water heaters, high-efficiency HVAC systems, Energy Star-rated appliances, pre-wired security systems, ceramic tile flooring in wet areas and irrigation systems.
For residents like Jefson and Candice Louis, living at APW with their two children means more than having a nice home with a front porch view of the world.
“The community is family oriented with lots of activities,” says Jefson, who cites APW’s annual Fourth of July celebration as one of his favorite events. “It’s great sitting on your porch, watching the fireworks.”
Candice expresses appreciation for the neighborly attitudes of residents. “We meet together, take our children to the playground and eat together on Sunday. We have fun here.”
She’s also looking forward to the forthcoming commercial development that will complement the quiet residential area with convenient shops and services. “That’ll be a great addition,” says Candice.
Sidewalks and nature trails make APW a pedestrian-friendly community, which promotes relationships as well as exercise, according to Elisenda Lopez, whose family has lived there for about a year and a half.
“I like to walk in the neighborhood and run into my neighbors and have conversations with them,” Lopez says.
Cassandra Miranda’s family of five includes three daughters, whom she says benefit from the activities hosted by the community. “They have so many events for the kids to come out and meet each other.,” says Miranda.
‘Avalon Aglow!’
Many events at APW are not just for its residents, but are open to the general public as well, creating relationships with the greater Wesley Chapel community. In addition to summer’s Fourth of July Celebration, APW hosted last month’s third annual Wesley Chapel Jazz Festival (see pg. 3) and the public is invited to attend “Avalon Aglow” on Saturday, December 10, 5 p.m.-8 p.m., featuring food trucks, a snow slide and fireworks.
Inviting the public into the community demonstrates that while APW is designed to be self-contained, that doesn’t mean isolating the community from non-residents, according to APG senior VP Ross Halle.
“We don’t believe in separating people and things by walls,” Halle says. “We see our community as serving a much larger population than just the people who live there.”
To learn more about the homes and lifestyle offered by Avalon Park West, visit AvalonParkWest.com, see the ad on pg 15 of this issue or call 783-1515. The new information center, which should be open in December, will be located at 33613 S.R. 54. To attend a public event, go to the clubhouse area at 5227 Autumn Ridge. Dr.