Tag: apartments

Downtown Avalon Park Wesley Chapel Begins Leasing

Although The Grove has a big head start staking its claim as Wesley Chapel’s “official” downtown — with the expansion of “The Village,” the addition of the KRATE Container Park and the addition of new apartments and Grove Mini Golf, plus a new SuperTarget store, a new competitor has finally joined the discussion:

The Avalon Park Group has announced today that it is partnering with Nye Commercial Advisors, LLC, to lease 23,720 square feet of commercial/retail space in the 73,067 mixed-use Building, “DT1,” located in Downtown Avalon Park Wesley Chapel.

DT1 is the first of three buildings planned for the first phase of the long-awaited downtown section of this master planned community. The three-story building now under construction is comprised of the 23,720 sq. ft. of commercial/retail space that will be located below 40-unit multi-family, for- rent apartment homes.

The additional components planned for Phase 1 include a 97,000-sq.-ft. mixed-use building with 21,000 sq. ft. of commercial/retail space below 60-unit multi-family, for-rent apartment homes, a 103-unit multi-family building and a two-acre town park, which is expected to break ground later this year.

“Our relationship with the Nye team goes back more than 30 years, when we initially purchased the property,” says Beat Kahli, the president and CEO of Avalon Park Group. “Nye’s deep roots in the Wesley Chapel community, and their commercial expertise, make them the perfect partner to bring needed commercial uses to Downtown Avalon Park and eastern Pasco County.”

*This is a recent construction photos showing the progress of Downtown Avalon Park Wesley Chapel.*

Upon completion, Avalon Park Wesley Chapel will encompass more than 1,600 acres and will be home to approximately 400,000 sq. ft. of retail and 100,000 sq. ft. of office space in its unique downtown. The initial construction in Downtown Avalon Park Wesley Chapel began in 2018, with the addition of the Pinecrest Academy K-7 Charter School. Pinecrest Academy also is now building its second phase, which includes the addition of approximately 600 6th-8th grade student stations.

“Wesley Chapel continues to grow each day,” says Brent Nye, the executive director of Nye Commercial Advisors. “We welcome the opportunity to bring the businesses and services needed to Downtown Avalon Park Wesley Chapel, which will serve as a downtown for the entire region.”

Nye also says that although they are primarily seeking 3-5-year leases on these first available retail spaces, “We are open to different lease terms.” He adds that no outparcels have been included in the current plan, but, “some land is available and we are open to discussion about that but since we have higher-than-typical suburban densities on our land, one-story uses may be a challenge.”

He adds that although Avalon Park Group is handling the leasing of the 40 residential apartment units separately itself, those units are being built concurrently with the retail spaces below them and are expected to open around the same time, which should be by sometime during the first quarter of 2024, “if everything goes according to plan.”

Please note that certain types of retail uses may not be allowed, including “adult entertainment” uses, and bars and some other retail uses may first have to be approved by Avalon Park Group.

As stated in the official Avalon Park Wesley Chapel website — AvalonParkWesleyChapel.com:

“Do you dream of living where you work and working where you play? Then bring your business home to Downtown Avalon Park Wesley Chapel.

*The rendering above depicts what life will be like in Downtown Avalon Park Wesley Chapel when it is completed.*

The distinctive small-town flavor and the convenience of downtown living merge in downtown Avalon Park Wesley Chapel to create the perfect place to spend an hour or the entire day. Downtown Avalon Park Wesley Chapel will bring conveniences like dining, shopping, schools, grocery stores, and your neighborhood doctor within a short walk or bike ride of your home.

In this town, there’s room for every entrepreneur — storefronts, shops, and office bays downtown, as well as rent-by-the-day workspaces for home-based businesses. There will be schools and medical centers where neighbors work. There’s a local Marketplace where chefs serve and musicians play; a commissary kitchen where makers create; and a General Store where artisans will share their wares. And, all of it will lie along the sidewalks of this picturesque town.

Best of all, Avalon Park Wesley Chapel also will offer complimentary advertising and marketing services for our neighborhood businesses, helping you build relationships with the residents in our neighborhood and beyond.

Whatever you need, make your business the talk of the town in one of Central Florida’s fastest-growing areas.”

For more info about Downtown Avalon Park Wesley Chapel, visit AvalonParkWesleyChapel.com or call (813) 783-1515. For Phase 1 commercial leasing info, call Nye Commercial Advisors at (813) 973-0214.

Business Notes — GOLFTEC & New Townhomes Coming Soon!

The game of golf received a boost during the pandemic, as more people took up the game, especially at places like Heritage Isles and Hunter’s Green Country Clubs.

So, it makes perfect sense that a golf store & hi-tech training facility would open nearby.

According to City of Tampa permitting records, GOLFTEC will be moving into part of the space formerly occupied by Pier 1 Imports in Highwoods Preserve off Bruce B. Downs (BBD) Blvd.

GOLFTEC, founded in 1995, will be taking over a portion of former home goods store, on the end closest to Westshore Pizza.

GOLFTEC offers golf lessons, golf instruction and custom club fittings in what it calls a state-of-the-art Training Center. It uses certified coaches and technology to help improve your golf game. For $125, locations offer 60-minute swing evaluations, where motion measurement sensors are attached to the student’s shoulders, arms and hips. The results are evaluated by coaches using hi-def video and other tech and if desired, a lesson plan is formed.

GOLFTEC has 15 locations in the U.S., as well as locations in Canada, China, Hong Kong, Japan and Singapore. Nearby, there are locations in Carrollwood and on Boy Scout Rd. in the Westshore business district.

NEW RESIDENCES: Cross Creek Blvd. is getting some of its first building projects in years, as dirt is being moved in two different spots for new townhomes.

We reported in February of last year that both projects had been approved after some debate. Combined, the two townhome projects, towards the eastern end of Cross Creek Blvd., will bring 95 total new residences to the area.

One parcel is located at 10801 Cross Creek Blvd, east of the New Tampa Dance Theatre, and directly across the street from the entrance to the Heritage Isles community. It will have nine buildings and 60 attached single-family residences.

Further east, a second parcel will consist of six buildings and 35 single-family residences.

apartments Golftec

Influx Of Apartments Good News For Job Seekers?

When District 2 Pasco County Commissioner Mike Moore argued for his apartment moratorium, he promised people that there were more than enough multi-family projects coming. He was opposed to land zoned for commercial and retail being turned into land slated for sprawling apartment complexes, saying there were plenty of entitlements for multi-family projects already in existence.

Moore may have had a point.

At the moment, there are more than 20 apartment complexes, ranging from the usual to those promising “luxury” and even “elegant” living locations in Wesley Chapel’s three zip codes — 33543, 33544 & 33545 (see map on pg. 7), that are either making their way through permitting, under construction or recently completed.

If you count other projects just outside the border of the Wesley Chapel area, that number grows. There are apartments coming to the Zephyrhills side of Eiland Blvd., just across the street from Wesley Chapel. In Land O’Lakes, Zephyrhills and San Antonio, that number exceeds 30 rental communities.

All in all, Wesley Chapel could be home to nearly 10,000 apartment dwellings in the next two years, if not sooner.

And, there are more projects not even in permitting yet, large multi-family communities headed to Wiregrass Ranch, the Two Rivers area on S.R. 56 and Epperson.

“The message I was attempting to send is justified by the number we’ve seen either come out of the ground or that are already (in permitting),” Moore says. “And there’s a ton more parcels that already have the multi-family zoning. There’s people holding out or not ready to develop and are holding on to those entitlements. That’s a lot more.”

While Moore continues to worry about apartment oversaturation, the debate still goes on in the County Commission. As recently as Oct. 11, members sparred over whether apartments were more important than jobs.

The Silverslaw Apartments (above) are being built just north of the Hyatt Place Wesley Chapel on the north side of S.R. 56 near I-75, and are one of many large rental complexes on the Wesley Chapel schedule over the nest 2-3 years. ***(Photo by John C. Cotey)***

District 3 Commissioner Kathryn Starkey argued that the county has “hundreds of thousands of jobs coming…these people will need someplace to live.” District 2 Commissioner Ron Oakley, who represents the northern and easternmost parts of Wesley Chapel, agreed.

Eric Garduño, the government affairs director for the Bay Area Apartment Association, says Pasco County has always been near the bottom of statistics when it came to apartments per person. And the Tampa Bay area in general has always adopted zoning ordinances that favored single-family home developers over apartments.

“I think that’s starting to change in the sense that you can’t build single-family and single-family only to meet the housing needs as a community and a nation,” he says.

Wesley Chapel Blvd., which has expansion plans, is home to a number of large incoming complexes. The area around the bustling Grove Entertainment has close to 1,000 units on tap, including many that are already taking lease applications, and the corridors on S.R. 54 and 56 towards Zephyrhills have already attracted a number of projects.

“I think, generally speaking, policy makers really need to look at attracting jobs, and how that goes hand-in-hand with housing,” Garduño says. “You are starting to see it in a lot of places.”

apartments

Planning Commission Says No To Rezoning Efforts

In a sign that developers in Pasco County may be facing a new uphill battle when it comes to rezoning property in order to build apartments, the county’s planning staff and Planning Commission rejected an effort to do just that in the Seven Oaks development, just off S.R. 56 and Bruce B. Downs (BBD) Blvd.

First, the county’s planning staff recommended denying a substantial modification to the Seven Oaks MPUD Master Planned Unit Development (MPUD) Master Plan, and then, by a 3-1 vote on Sept. 8, Pasco’s Planning Commission voted down the plan to rezone 86,000 square feet of retail and office space for a 320-unit apartment complex.

Chris Williams, the director of planning for the Pasco School Board, had to leave before the Planning Commission vote but did voice his support for the developer’s plans.

Roberto Saez, MBA, CGC, AIA, a 14-year Seven Oaks resident, made the motion to deny. Saez formerly served as a senior construction project manager for Pasco County, and while he noted that the project was impressive, and something needed in the county, “this is not the right location.”

The proposed apartments would be located on a 10-acre parcel, currently zoned for commercial and retail development, adjacent to the Sam’s Club on S.R. 56. Ancient Oaks Dr. serves as the western boundary of the parcel, BBD as the eastern boundary and S.R. 56 as the southern boundary.

The proposed apartment complex would include a pool, a dog park and open space for gatherings in the southern portion of the complex.

But, opponents of the project note that there already are two apartment complexes in that area of Seven Oaks — Windsor Club at Seven Oaks to the east and Colonial Grand at Seven Oaks to the west. And, the Enclave at Wesley Chapel and Bonterra Parc apartments are both located right across the street, on the south side of S.R. 56. The residents also raised concerns about traffic issues on Ancient Oaks Blvd.

Joel Tew, the attorney for the developer DD/SR 56 LLC and Walmart, refuted each argument, and claimed the decision to recommend denying the rezoning appeared to be driven by politics, a reference to the county’s current multi-family moratorium.

Politics Or Public Benefit?

Pasco’s Board of County Commissioners, led by District 2 commissioner and Seven Oaks resident Mike Moore, issued a moratorium on accepting any new apartment applications back in May, after debating for months whether the county, and specifically most of the Wesley Chapel area, was facing too much of a glut of multi-family development.

While the Seven Oaks application was submitted prior to the moratorium going into effect, the political headwinds were still felt, Tew says.

“At the pre-app (meeting), staff told us that there was no problem with this application,” Tew said. “Staff said it was a great spot for this. It’s only now, due to a political directive, that staff at the last minute was told to oppose this application. That’s unfortunate.”

The county’s Planning and Development Department wrote that the project, as proposed, “is inconsistent with Comprehensive Plan Policy FLU 1.8.7, Economic Development, and Policy FLU 1.8.10, Preservation of Capacity for Employment-Generating Uses.”

“I
“In a normal world, if this project came in, it would be on (the) consent (agenda). You wouldn’t think twice about it. You’d be thanking the developer for building exactly the mixed-use project that this county has begged all developers to build.”
— Attorney Joel Tew

Nectorios Pittos, the director of planning and development for Pasco, said an independent third-party analysis that was conducted concluded that the proposed 320-unit rental apartment development would generate $188,375 in annual county revenue over a 10-year average, but the current MPUD entitlements for nearly 90,000 square feet of commercial use would generate $743,375 in annual county revenue.

The county, Pittos said, is placing a high priority on county revenue- and employment-generating land uses, which he says the current project would not do.

However, Tew, who complained he received the third-party analysis days before the hearing, disputed it by showing a chart of other similar multi-family projects and their tax bills. Extrapolating those numbers to the proposed 320 units, Tew said the proposed Seven Oaks project’s tax bill actually would generate $850,000 yearly, which, over 30 years, which would mean a $25-million windfall for the county’s coffers — and more revenue than the $22.3 million that a commercial project would generate over the same time period.

“I don’t know where they came up with those (lower) numbers,” Tew said.

Without the political overtones, Tew said, the proposed multi-family project would be a slam dunk.

“I ask that you look past the politics,” he said. “In a normal world, if this project came in, it would be on (the) consent (agenda). You wouldn’t think twice about it. You’d be thanking the developer for building exactly the mixed-use project that this county has begged all developers to build.”

Three Seven Oaks residents spoke against the project at the meeting, which was held at the Dade City Courthouse, while two others called in, also in opposition. John Thompson, one of those residents in attendance, said the project was like “fitting a square peg in a round hole” and that the area needed more room for small businesses, not more apartments.

County planners did offer another option for committee action — a continuance to the Nov. 4 Planning Commission meeting to allow the Planning & Development Department to “develop and include conditions of approval for vertically integrated mixed use building(s) that have commercial and office entitlements on the ground floor and multi-family entitlements on the upper stories.”

Tew rejected the alternative motion, saying the developer said there was “no viability” or market for such a project.

“Ironically, when I bring new clients in to meet with staff, this is exactly the kind of project they ask my clients to build,” Tew said. “When we find a hole in the donut that has everything around it, all of a sudden it’s not acceptable.”

Moore and the rest of the county commissioners will hear Tew’s apartment proposal in the coming weeks.

The county’s six-month moratorium, which went into effect May 4, has been extended another six months. Part of the plan is to determine exactly how many multi-family projects already exist in the county, and study whether the county, especially in areas like Wesley Chapel, has reached its saturation point.

Moore says he is not opposed to multi-family projects, just the efforts to rezone parcels approved for commercial and retail projects to build apartments. He says that there already is plenty of land with entitlements for multi-family projects, and cited a number of projects currently in progress.

apartments Mike Moore moratorium seven oaks

Commissioners Vote For Moratorium

As expected, the Pasco County Board of County Commissioners (BCC) voted unanimously to put a temporary moratorium on new applications and approvals for multifamily dwellings at Tuesday’s BCC meeting in Dade City.

The 180-day moratorium was approved by a 5-0 vote, following a reading of 50 emails submitted by residents that were unanimously in favor of the pause.

Commissioner Mike Moore, who represents District 2, which includes most of Wesley Chapel, spearheaded the moratorium. He claims that the moratorium area, which is between S.R. 52 to the north and S.R. 54 to the south, as well as U.S. 41 to the west and Bruce B. Downs Blvd. to the east, is oversaturated with apartments. Moore says the argument against more multi-family entitlements is centered on developers attempting to rezone property to build more apartments and townhomes, as opposed to using the property for its original commercial purposes.

Opponents of the moratorium, like Eric Garduno of the Bay Area Apartment Association, argued multi-family residences play a vital role with providing affordable housing in a market where the median home price is rising.

According to Realtor.com, the median list price of homes in Wesley Chapel is currently $320,000; according to Zillow.com, it’s $288,000.

However, the residents who emailed the county — mostly from Seven Oaks, where a proposed apartment complex on Eagleston Blvd. was the impetus for the moratorium — cited concerns about schools, traffic, road safety and the ability of the current infrastructure to handle additional people.

The county intends to collect data over the course of the 180 days, and will decide if there is indeed oversaturation, as Moore claims, and what should be done about it.

Garduno says he is confident the data will show there is a high demand for multi-family dwellings.

Moore, however, believes otherwise.

“We do need to analyze and look very closely at the impacts multifamily can have in the area when it comes to economic development, when it comes to public safety, traffic, schools, infrastructure,” Moore says. “This gives us the time to do it…we can really, really dig in and see what impact these are going to really have.”

apartments BCC Mike Moore