After receiving approval to annex property into the City of Eustis earlier this year, MAS Development recently filed construction plans for a proposed 20-acre neighborhood set to rise near Lake Yale.
Grand Island Crossing is planned as a 84-lot single-family community located north of County Road 44 and east of Sparrow Lane, only a few feet across County Road 452 from the southern edge of the lake.
MAS filed its plans with the St. Johns River Water Management District earlier this month, with the preliminary subdivision map indicating the project will include development of 68 50-foot lots and 16 40-foot lots.
The South Florida-based developer does not yet hold the title to the land, but is under contract to buy the property from John and Betty Drawdy, represented by attorneys Madelyn Damon and Bret Jones.
In January, the Eustis City Commission approved ordinances securing a future land use amendment from Lake County Urban Low to Suburban Residential and a design district amendment to assign the site under the Suburban Neighborhood designation.
Based on the development agreement signed between MAS and the City of Eustis, the property for Grand Island Crossing is allowed to remain zoned as agricultural land until construction commences or the title is transferred from Drawdy to MAS.
The project adheres to stricter standards proposed by the City of Eustis in their most recent comprehensive plan, even though the plan itself is not in effect following the passage of Senate Bill 180 early last year.
That law prohibits municipalities across the state from adopting more restrictive or burdensome” land-use procedures before October 1, 2027.
But MAS Development voluntarily agreed to meet the standards sought by the City of Eustis, though not required to do so under SB 180 — an agreement welcomed by city officials.
“What’s cool about this applicant is that they said ‘we know that the law reverts us back to the old set, which was less restrictive and less nuanced, but we voluntarily are willing to agree with the city — through a development agreement — to adhere to those higher standards that you’ve created’,” Jones said during the first reading of project ordinances in September.
That means Grand Island Crossing will include enhancements to recreational facilities, a tot lot, and landscape buffers, and it will exceed the city’s open space requirement while not maxing out the allowed unit count or density under the voluntarily agreed upon Eustis development codes.
MAS has completed several projects across Central Florida in recent years, including build-to-rent communities in Kissimmee and Wildwood. The developer sold its Solamar Davenport townhouse project for $6.5 million to Fores Properties in late 2024 after repositioning from a build-to-rent project to a fee-simple community.
The company, based in Aventura, has also filed plans for an apartment complex on 11.6 acres along the south side of E. Lake Mary Boulevard, east of Skyway Drive and across from Boombah Sports Complex in Seminole County.
The proposed Grand Island Crossings site is about a mile southeast from a proposed 450-acre master-planned community with zoning approvals for an active adult community with a town center and family neighborhood on the shore of Lake Yale.
The Lake Yale PUD is planned to contain 1,660 homes on more than 450 acres north of County Road 452 and west of Fish Camp Road.
The Lake Yale PUD calls for an active adult community and an all-ages community with a town center on Lake Yale in Eustis. (Site plan by Halff)
Of the proposed 1,660 residential units, approximately 1,150 would be age-restricted and 450 would be traditional single-family and multifamily residences. At least 113 acres of the property would remain undeveloped and be open space and parks, according to the project’s comprehensive plan drafted up by Ocala-based consulting firm Ray & Associates.
In other Eustis news, construction is set to commence soon on a $40.48 million development project for Eustis High School that would integrate ninth-grade students back into the school’s main campus and add several new facilities.
Newly constructed elements of the high school campus will include a 56,000-square-foot classroom building, weight room, field house, bus loop expansion, restroom facilities adjacent to the existing sports track, and a new parking lot. The parking lot will rise on the footprint of a former campus softball field set to be demolished.
According to Kelly Randall, Lake County Schools Executive Director of Facilities, construction is expected to begin at the end of May and finish before the 2027-2028 school year. Zyscovich is the architect for the project, and Charles Perry Partners, Inc., or CPPI, is the general contractor.
Have a tip about Central Florida development? Contact me at jwilkins@orlandosentinel.com or 407-754-4980. Follow GrowthSpotter on Facebook and LinkedIn.
