:quality(70)/cloudfront-us-east-1.images.arcpublishing.com/tronc/43BQWFLSONCY5I2PFPSOZ3RSVA.jpg)
Orlando-based Primeland Development is planning to build its second Sycamore-branded resort in Central Florida, while soon approaching vertical construction on its first $90 million Sycamore Resort in Kissimmee.
Primeland President Karen Costa told GrowthSpotter the development company is prepping about 20 acres of land on the southern shore of Lake Bryan for a future Sycamore hotel/condo resort community.
Meanwhile, site work is underway on the first resort that’s set to rise on roughly 10 acres about a mile away from the Margaritaville Resort in Osceola County. The 378-unit project is expected to open next summer and consists of six residential buildings and a 25,000-square-foot amenity center.
Pre-sale prices at the Sycamore Resort started at about $195,000 for a one-bedroom unit, plus $20,000 for the furniture package. After launching sales in mid-2019, Costa said the resort is about 40% sold.
Bumpus & Associates is the project architect for both locations.
Sycamore-branded resorts operate as a vacation condo/hotel business and are approved for EB-5 investors. Its architecture and designs are fashioned after natural elements, she adds.
“Our projects center around the idea of earth elements. The first Sycamore was based on the trees and earthy elements … With the one on Lake Bryan, we want to work with water elements,” Costa said.
The company is working with civil engineer Jamie Poulos with Poulos & Bennett, who will go before Orange County’s Technical Review Group later this month and discuss preliminary plans to build 382 condo-hotel units across three buildings ranging between six and eight stories in height.
Conceptual plans for the second Sycamore resort show a six-story building with 142 units. The second and third buildings are eight stories in height and feature 120 units each. Investors can choose to purchase one-bedroom and two-bedroom units, as well as suites.
Amenities listed in plans include a second-floor lobby, bakery and office space. Residents will also have access to a fitness studio and spa, as well a resort-style pool and pool deck overlooking Lake Bryan.
Costa said she is in the midst of seeking financing for the project, but wouldn’t comment further because she said site plans are still in a premature planning phase.
The project site sits southeast of Disney Springs, at and around 8101 Lake Bryan Beach Boulevard. Records show property owner, 33511 LLC, purchased the land in 2012 for $550,000.
Primeland Development wasn’t the first developer to try and build something on the Lake Bryan property.
In 2018, property owner, 33511 LLC, came close to selling the land to Auro Hotels, which proposed a 150-unit “glamping” resort — a term used to describe the combination of glamour and camping — but plans fell through.
Other developers have had more luck building around the lake. Luxury multifamily developer ContraVest is near completing its 266-unit Addison on Lake Bryan multifamily community at 12570 Splendid Place. The developer paid $7.5 million to acquire the 14-acre property in 2019.
The seller was an Egypt-based real estate development and investment firm, called the Amer Group, which plans to sell off its remaining roughly 40 acres on the lake for a future resort and commercial/retail space.
To the north, Raj Goyal and his wife, Viktoryia Goyal, attempted to sell about 172 acres of land at and around 13300 S. International Drive. The property, which features two-thirds of a mile of frontage on the lake, is entitled for 2,100 hotel rooms or timeshare units and over 300,000 square feet of commercial uses. It hit the market in 2019 asking for $87 million.
The land has yet to sell and currently enjoys agricultural tax exemptions.
Have a tip about Central Florida development? Contact me at arabines@GrowthSpotter.com or (407) 420-5427, or tweet me at @amanda_rabines. Follow GrowthSpotter on Facebook, Twitter and LinkedIn.