Plans for two large residential subdivisions in Apopka are moving forward

A pair of residential developments in Apopka are promising to bring more than a total of 380 new homes along Orange Blossom Trail and the Wekiva Parkway.

Earlier this month, development plans for a 282-lot subdivision and 101-lot subdivision went before Apopka’s Development Review Committee.

The largest project, called Park View Preserve, sits on about 90 acres and features 282 single-family detached lots with a minimum lot width of 34 feet. According to the most recently submitted site plan, about 30 acres in the community will be reserved for public open space.

Developer Jose Cantero of Winter Garden-based Cantero Holdings LLC told GrowthSpotter he went before the DRC for the first round of comments. The application shows the developer is seeking approvals for a zoning amendment.

GL Summitt Engineering, Inc. is the civil engineer.

If all goes smoothly at hearings, Cantero said he anticipates construction of the homes to begin within the year. Without disclosing a name, Cantero said he’s working with a national homebuilder to deliver the lots once they’re platted.

The developer bought the the Golden Gem property at 3845 and 4011 Golden Gem Rd. in 2005 for roughly $1.7 million.

Cantero is also in the midst of entitling about 116 acres of vacant land along Avalon Road and just south of Lake Star Road, in Horizon West. Those plans include more than 380 residential units and up to 28,000 square feet of commercial space.

Meanwhile, in Apopka, a 101-lot residential subdivision along Orange Blossom Trail is also underway.

Plans for the project went before Apopka’s DRC this month seeking final approvals. The residential subdivision is part of a mixed-use project that includes entitling about 3.5 acres of commercial space at the subdivision’s entrance along Orange Blossom Trail.

The project, dubbed Windward Hills, was first announced by GrowthSpotter in late 2017 when FHC Development paid $1.75 million for 67 acres in Apopka.

At the time, FHC Development CEO Frank Cawthon Jr. told GrowthSpotter he prefers to market and sell the entire residential segment to one homebuilder, and intends to sell the commercial portion shortly after the residential homes begin construction.

Cawthon was not immediately available to comment on recently submitted plans. Appian Engineering is the civil engineer.

Windward Hills is located at 4145 W. Orange Blossom Trail, and sits within Apopka’s Kelly Park Interchange Form-Based Code area, meaning developers are required to rezone the land to a Mixed-KPI zoning before receiving any development approvals from the city.

The development is among the first to rise near the Kelly Park Road interchange — one of four interchanges opening in part of the $1.6 billion, 25-mile Wekiva Parkway project that will complete the beltway around northwest metropolitan Orlando.

It also sits near where Orlando Health announced plans to build a medical campus at 5401 Effie Drive. Just across the envisioned hospital site, Orlando Beltway Associates is prepping roughly 50 acres of land to hold about 140 single-family homes and 60 townhomes.

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.