Paving the way for the massive expansion of The Villages southward to Center Hill, Wildwood commissioners gave final approval Monday to several ordinances, including the rezoning of 12,513 acres.
With the new area, Wildwood city limits now extend from Oxford along County Road 466 to State Road 48, which is as far south as Bushnell.
When the now mostly vacant land is fully developed as Villages neighborhoods, Sumter County’s population, now about 120,000, could reach 300,000 people by 2045, according to a study by the consulting firm Kimley-Horn & Associates Inc.
Ordinances approved Monday include:
- An amendment to Wildwood’s future land use map to include the new area;
- Rezoning of the 12,513 acres from agricultural to age-restricted development;
- Separation of the Villages of Southern Oaks into three project areas;
- Amendments to franchise agreements for solid waste pickup and other utilities to include the new territory.
The three Villages of Southern Oaks development areas include property along the Florida Turnpike south to the Village of Fenney, an area south of County Road 470 where the 8,000-home Landstone development was proposed a decade ago and an area south of the Coleman federal prison known as Stuart’s Ranch.
In Area A, 24,845 homes are planned as well as 2.5 million square feet of commercial space and 32,000 square feet of office and government space.
Area B, south of CR 470, is expected to include 18,413 home, 2.3 million square feet of commercial space and 110,000 square feet of office and government space.
A total of 16,191 homes, about 3 million square feet of commercial space and 80,000 square feet of office and government space are slated for Area C south of the prison.
In all, plans permit 60,449 homes in the three areas, which would nearly double the size of The Villages north of State Road 44 in 20 years. The Villages now owns 13,637 acres south of CR 470.
A separate agreement with Sumter County requires a fourth town square or comparable retail center and plans also call for a 432-acre industrial park south of Coleman.
The Villages of Southern Oaks will be served by a network of regional roads designed and built by The Villages with cost reimbursement from Sumter County within five years.
