A lack of commercial demand is fueling The Villages Developer’s desire to convert some business-oriented square footage to apartments at Spanish Springs Town Square.
The Lady Lake Planning and Zoning Board will hear The Villages’ proposal for a zoning change at 5:30 p.m. Monday, Sept. 14 at Lady Lake Town Hall.
Originally, it was announced that the shuttered Katie Belle’s was to be the future home of the apartments. The Planning and Zoning Board is being asked to consider the change for the entire downtown.
The desire for The Villages’ shakeup of its long-held lively downtown formula is being driven by the apparent lack of demand for commercial uses of the second story of the buildings at the square. However, multi-family uses are apparently in high demand.
“The applicant purports that this amendment is needed because there is not a strong demand for commercial uses on the second floor of the two-story town center buildings. However, multi-family is a high demand use for that location and the addition of multi-family to the town center encourages a more vibrant town center with the mixture of retail/restaurants, office and residential use,” according to a document prepared in advance of the Lady Lake Planning and Zoning Board meeting.
Little is known about the plan for the apartments. The request before Lady Lake officials is for the addition of “multi-family” as an allowable use in the downtown area.
It would appear that foot traffic is way down at Spanish Springs Town Square. Entertainment at Spanish Springs Town Square ended in March due to the Coronavirus. The Rialto Theater was shuttered for renovation prior to the COVID-19 pandemic. The Sharon L. Morse Performing Arts Center remains closed.