An Orlando gastroenterologist and real estate investor has filed plans with Osceola County for a mixed-use development on the E192 tech corridor in front of NeoCity.
M. Asif Mohiuddin, who has a practice in St. Cloud, paid $1.2 million in 2016 the 3-acre lot with plans for a development to compliment the park. It’s just west of NeoCity Way, the entrance leading to the BRIDG center and new office building. He told GrowthSpotter he decided to invest in the area because he sees potential for synergies with BRIDG, especially in the bioscience research space.
“I’m a physician, but I also have an entrepreneurial personality, and I took a leap of faith that it would work out,” he said.
Mohiuddin’s plan also calls for the first new hotel to be developed in the NeoCity submarket, and he’s looking for a joint venture partner with hotel experience.
“We definitely will be looking for a national brand hotel,” he said.
The site is directly across from Osceola Heritage Park, which hosts the annual Mecum Auto Auction, Runaway Country music festival and just landed the Orlando City Soccer Club and Orlando Pride training complex.
Osceola’s Development Review Committee last week approved Mohiuddin’s Site Development Plan (SDP) calling for a two-phased project beginning with a 54,705-square-foot, mixed-use building fronting on U.S. 192 with a required one-way reverse frontage road.
The 3-story building would have retail on the ground floor, office spaces on the second floor, and a dozen studio apartments on the third floor. He said he envisions the offices functioning as an incubator for health-related research companies.
Hanson, Walter & Associates is the civil engineer. With SDP approval in hand, Mohiuddin said he can now begin the search for an architect. He wants his project to be an extension of the NeoCity campus. As the son of an architect, he has a keen appreciation for the modern design employed at the BRIDG center.
“We want to be harmonious with the building behind us,” he said. “We want to mirror that modern look.”
Phase 2 would comprise a 4-story, 112-room hotel with structured parking and approximately 86,000 square feet. Mohiuddin said the hotel element could be advanced and developed concurrently with the right JV partner.
Osceola County has identified hotels as a priority for the E192 corridor, particularly in the “Tech Transition Zone” that fronts NeoCity and OHP. The county’s OHP master plan identified two possible infill hotel pads at the intersections of Fortune Road and Bill Beck Boulevard.
Schoolfield Properties has filed plans for an 18-acre mixed-use development called “Valencia Village” at the district’s other main gateway entrance on Denn John Lane, across from Valencia College.
A conceptual plan for Valencia Village was anchored by a 72,000-square-foot retail and office building with structured parking fronting on E192 across from the college. The plan also showed inline retail buildings, a possible grocery store and possible hotel and residential components.
NeoCity has served thus far as a magnet for several multifamily projects, including Neo Square and Park Square Homes’ The Neo, which also has a retail element.
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