There’s still more planning and discussion that needs to occur before a 128-acre shuttered Orlando golf course sees a major redevelopment.
That’s according to Jakub Hejl, president of Miami-based developer Westside Capital Group, which has proposed what may become a $1 billion investment in the Rosemont community featuring green space, public art, a city center, new retail and high-end residences. The project would replace the Lake Orlando Golf Club, located at 4224 Clubhouse Road, which closed in 2014.
Hejl told Orlando Business Journal he expects to submit plans to the city of Orlando in July, but didn’t elaborate on a potential construction timeline.
Ultimately, Westside Capital Group aims to double or triple property values in the area in the next decade, according to its website.
“We are early in the planning phase and currently seeking community input,” Hejl said.
That said, Westside Capital Group has already assembled a development team including Maitland-based Charlan Brock Architects; Homestead, Pennsylvania-based GAI Consultants; Orlando-based Lowndes and Winter Park-based Compspring.
In addition, Westside Capital’s related Lake Orlando Land Owner LLC secured the golf course land in July 2019 for roughly $1.8 million, or about $14,062 an acre, Orange County records showed. Florida Land Investments LLC was the seller. The land was valued at nearly $1 million in 2019.
The area has attracted residential and industrial interest in recent years, said Andy Slowik, director of land brokerage at Cushman & Wakefield, who isn’t involved in the deal. In fact, he and Margery Johnson, senior director of land brokerage, recently sold 26 acres south of Rosement to Alpharetta, Georgia-based developer Starlight Homes for a townhome project.
Slowik said the area is attractive due to its proximity to downtown Orlando. In addition, golf courses have shuttered across the region and Florida — the golf capital of the world — in recent years due to overbuilding. That’s given developers opportunities to build new projects on these shuttered courses.
“Golf course redevelopment is certainly a trend across the state,” Slowik said.
Source: OBJ
