The latest plans to redevelop the land across from SeaWorld would call for demolition of the former Travel+Leisure headquarters building to make way for a new apartment building.
The revised plans would deliver almost 700 new apartments over two phases to Orlando’s bustling theme park corridor once the mostly vacant office tower is razed.
Engineering firm Kimley-Horn filed plans April 22 on behalf of the developer, Epoch Residential of Winter Park, for the project on about 14 acres at 6277 Sea Harbor Dr. The proposed SeaWorld Vacation Village site is currently home to a parking garage and the 8-story Sea Harbor Office Center built in 1984.
Efforts to reach Kevin LaRue, director of real estate at Epoch, were not successful. The company develops and manages luxury communities, and its 11 in Central Florida are in Altamonte Springs, Clermont, Kissimmee, Lake Mary, Maitland, Orlando and Winter Park. Epoch also acts as a third-party general contractor to build apartment projects for other developers.
Plans for the Orlando property show two five-story residential buildings wrapping and bookending the existing parking garage on the east and west sides. The western building would have 360 units, while the east building would have 319 surrounding a central courtyard. The units would have one or two bedrooms, with larger ones possible.
The proposal retains the existing five-story parking garage near the center of the development on its north side. It would provide 1,166 regular spaces and 38 for individuals with disabilities. An additional 88 surface spaces are planned on the property, along with 15 for bicycles. The plans also show the upper three floors of each building extending over the entrance roads that provide access to the parking garage.
Directly south of the garage is a 1.16-acre area of open green space, with smaller areas across the property. Each residential building has a courtyard listed as a private amenity area. The westside building also surrounds a second amenity area on three sides. Plans don’t provide details of any amenities offered for residents. Codes require at least 1.42 acres (10%) of open space and the development would provide 1.5 acres.
Other firms involved in the project are FK Architecture in Maitland, UES Professional Solutions in Orlando as geotechnical engineer, and Southeastern Surveying and Mapping Corp.
Until recently, the office building on the land was the corporate headquarters for Travel+Leisure. The timeshare company relocated to downtown Orlando last year, leaving the building with an 81% vacancy rate. Visit Orlando maintains an office in the building.
The property, which also has a surface parking lot and a private road connection to Westwood Boulevard, has been on the market and is currently under contract, according to JLL. The sale is expected to close in the next few months. As of 2025, the Orange County Property Appraiser’s website listed it with a market value of $53,063,445.
Northridge Capital, which owns the building, is seeking a Change Determination Review that would entitle it for 1,124 multifamily units, but that level of density would require construction of more structured parking. If the county approves the requested 15% parking reduction, the submitted plan would exceed the minimum number of parking spaces required.
The zoning within the I-Drive Overlay would allow both short-term and long-term rentals. The site is within walking distance of the Orange County Convention Center.
SeaWorld, which owns nearly 40 acres of vacant land next to the site, is also contemplating multifamily development as a potential use for its surplus land. The theme park company quietly withdrew plans last year for two park-adjacent hotels nearby.
The I-Drive District is Orlando’s most desirable multifamily submarket, leading the region in both new construction and absorption, so apartments have long been considered a development option for some of the SeaWorld surplus property. Just a block north of the Sea Harbor site, Atlanta-based RangeWater Real Estate has filed development plans for a 250-unit apartment community at 6305 Westwood Blvd.
SeaWorld had filed plans in late 2023 and early 2024 for two hotels, including a full-service, 504-key hotel at the corner of I-Drive and Central Florida Parkway. The second hotel, dubbed “Project Canopy,” would have had 250 rooms, a full spa and tree-top restaurant within the Discovery Cove section of SeaWorld. It was slated for 50 acres of vacant land and surface parking.
But in May 2025, the company withdrew the applications for both hotels. Carlos Varela, director of design & development for the three Orlando parks, told county planners the hotel projects were “paused indefinitely.”
Brian Bell can be reached at bbell@orlandosentinel.com. Have a tip about Central Florida development? Email Newsroom@GrowthSpotter.com. Follow GrowthSpotter on Facebook and LinkedIn.
