A Tampa-based homebuilder wants to do away with plans to build timeshare units near Ruby Lake, and instead build up to 400 multifamily units along with additional commercial space.
The change is being sought by Bering Homes, which recently reactivated the shelved Tierra Del Sol resort development near ChampionsGate in Polk County.
Planner Jim Hall of Hall Development Services filed the Land Use Plans on behalf of Bering LLC, led by Chad R. O’Brien. It’s set to go before Orange County’s Development Review Committee this week.
If approved, plans would allow for up to 400 multifamily units and 15,000 square feet of commercial space. The request would replace previous entitlements calling for 420 timeshare units with 30,000 square feet of commercial space.
A conceptual site plan for the property shows the development is geared to townhome construction. Representatives for Bering Homes could not be reached for comment.
Sunterra Corp. owns the 17.7-acre site at 11907 Ruby Lake Rd. It sits within the Lake Buena Vista North Overlay District, just west of Palm Parkway. Before being acquired for $700 million by the timeshare company Diamond Resorts in 2007, Sunterra operated a portfolio of nearly 100 vacation-ownership resorts around the world.
Bering Homes is also asking Orange County to change the Future Land Use Designation of the property from Activity Center Mixed-Use to Planned Development Commercial/Medium-High Density Residential.
The area has seen a flurry of new development over the past couple years, mostly from Pulte Homes. The home developer has amassed more than 157 acres of land bordering the lake for projects including Pulte Phillips Grove, Pulte’s Ruby Lake and Overlook at Ruby Lake.
In Polk County, Bering Homes received county approval in December to build up to 252 short-term rental townhomes, as part of a larger 159-acre resort project at the corner of U.S. 27 and Bella Citta Boulevard.
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