Plans have been made for a new apartment community, Lakeside Gardens, located just south of Interstate 4, at the intersection of South Frontage and Son Keen roads, a part of town that has not yet seen as much development as other areas, but is expected to expand.
Lakeside Gardens will cover 28.1 total acres, with seven residential buildings. Nine acres are occupied by the existing lake. Amenities will include a dog park, clubhouse and pool, gazebo, playground and 24-hour fitness room.
Of the 125 units at Lakeside Gardens, 113 will have balcony views of the lake. Most units are one- and two-bedroom apartments, but there will also be some two-story townhouses with three bedrooms and garage parking.
The developer of Lakeside Gardens, David McMillan, first contacted city engineers about the project about six months ago, but progress was not made on the permitting process until this fall.
“Once we reviewed the application and plans, we said, ‘We want to issue them all the permits based on the information we have,’” Kris Desai, an employee of the city’s engineering department, said.
City engineers issued authorizations for the project Oct. 28, and met with McMillan for a pre-construction meeting Nov. 21. Contractors have already begun clearing the land.
One of the reasons it has taken months to start the Lakeside Gardens project is because of the lack of utilities in that area. The city is currently working on installing water lines for that area of the city, and Desai said the installation should be complete in the spring. Sewer lines are already in place.
McMillan and his brother-in-law own a small family firm that has developed several communities in Florida, but currently manages only one other community: The Gardens at Cross Creek, in New Tampa.
“We build them and manage them on our own, so we’re pretty active in our product,” McMillan said.
McMillan’s goal is to complete the clubhouse first, so that staff can be on-site in the spring and early summer to help potential new leasers and offer information.
MADISON PARK ROAD APARTMENTS
The apartment community on Park Road has been under new management since August. Madison Apartment Group manages nearly 70 communities in 14 states, including six communities in Florida.
Since the change in management, Madison Park Road has undergone a number of updates. The clubhouse has been repainted and new furniture and decor has been put in place. The fitness room has also been repainted, and there is new furniture in the outdoor pool area.
HUNTERS RIDGE AT WALDEN LAKE
Hunters Ridge has recently been acquired by Allison Shelton Real Estate Services, a management company based in Phoenix. Though the company has 66 properties in Arizona, it also manages a few communities in other states, including three in Florida.
The first project for Hunters Ridge was to repaint the exteriors of all of its buildings. Staff have been meeting with Allison Shelton representatives this week to discuss future improvements.
Contact Catherine Sinclair at csinclair@plantcityobserver.com.