Lee nonprofit breaks ground on $50M food bank that will double capacity

Manatee 

Construction underway for clubhouse in 55+ community in Manatee

PulteGroup has begun construction on a multimillion-dollar clubhouse in its Del Webb Sunchase community in Parrish. The north Manatee County 55+ gated community has 1,003 homesites. The clubhouse, dubbed Solara, will have a private bar and grill, a state-of-the-art fitness center, gathering rooms and spaces for social clubs and activities, according to a statement. Outdoor features will include resort-style and lap pools, pickleball courts, a putting green, yoga lawn, dog park and community garden — all connected by scenic walking trails throughout the neighborhood, PulteGroup says. Homes in Sunchase range from approximately 1,256 to 3,361+ square feet, feature open-concept layouts and are priced from the low-$300s to $600s.

Sarasota

Hotel proposed for land at Sarasota-Bradenton airport

The city of Sarasota is reviewing plans for a new hotel at Sarasota-Bradenton International Airport. Making its first appearance before the Sarasota Development Review Committee Nov. 19 was Kompose Hotel, a 60-room, four-story hotel on a 2.25-acre vacant lot between University Parkway and Rental Car Road. Accessory uses will include a business center, fitness center, and a 100-seat restaurant open to the public, according to the Sarasota Observer, sister paper of the Business Observer. A resubmittal to the DRC for further review is required, the Observer reports. The Kompose Hotel brand is owned by Kapstones, a privately held Sarasota-based real estate development and hospitality company. The site is located among existing hotels on property owned by the Sarasota-Manatee Airport Authority, which will lease the property to the hotel ownership. A hotel with the Kompose flag already stands along University Parkway near the airport entrance on a nearly adjacent lot. With the new Kompose Hotel planned, no information on the future of that branding was available, and Kapstones did not respond to a request for clarification.

Hillsborough

Developer sells lots for northeast Hillsborough community 

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Tampa real estate firm Eisenhower Property Group has announced plans for Morris Bend, a master-planned community on 398 acres in northeast Hillsborough County. The project will be in K Bar Ranch, off Morris Bridge Road. Morris Bend, according to a statement from EPG, will feature 471 single-family homes ranging from 50-foot to 60-foot lots, in addition to 188 townhome units. EPG has already closed on acquisitions to homebuilders Lennar, Taylor Morrison and Perry Homes for the sites. Lennar, according to an Eisenhower spokesperson, bought 165 50-foot lots, 118 60-foot lots and 188 townhome units. Perry and Taylor Morrison, meanwhile, bought a combined 188 lots, 119 50-foot lots and 69 60-foot lots. The spokesperson, in an email, declined to disclose the sales price. EPG will also be constructing the final segment of K Bar Ranch Parkway, which will connect with Morris Bridge Road. “Morris Bend represents the next step in our vision to continue to create exceptional communities in Hillsborough County,” EPG President and CEO Jeffery Hills says in the release. EPG was founded in 2004 and is now one of Florida’s largest developers, with more than 25,000 residential lots under development across dozens of communities. 

Nearly 70 acres south of Tampa sold for multiuse waste management campus

A 69-acre site in Ruskin, in southern Hillsborough County, has been sold for $3 million. The buyer, Sarasota-based developer Jebcore Cos., says it intends “to transform the site into a modern, multiuse waste management campus to support municipal solid waste, recycling, composting and construction and demolition debris operations.” Jebcore bought the site, 3030 Cockroach Bay Road, from Yu An Farms. The firm, in a statement. says it also invested $1.5 million in planning and due diligence, bringing the total investment to $4.5 million. The parcel is valued at over $40 million, reflecting its location and development potential, Jebcore says. With approvals now secured, Jebcore officials say the site will either be triple-net (NNN) leased to qualified operators or sold. “This project presented a unique opportunity given its zoning complexity, high barriers to entry and the scale of potential uses,” Clint Conway, managing member at JBCC Development, a company within Jebcore Cos., says in the statement.

Fort Myers 

Organization breaks ground on $50 million food bank that will double capacity 

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The Harry Chapin Food Bank, the largest hunger-relief organization in Southwest Florida, is building a state-of-the art 110,175-square-foot warehouse and distribution center at 5200 Martin Luther King Jr. Blvd. in Fort Myers. More than 125 community leaders, donors, business partners and elected officials gathered Nov. 19 for an announcement and groundbreaking for the project, named Hunger Action Center. Officials with the nonprofit, in a statement, say the $50 million project is the largest in the organization’s 42-year history and is designed to help “relieve Southwest Florida’s deepening hunger crisis.” The event coincided with the nonprofit’s transition from a private to public phase of its $30 million capital campaign, Feeding the Future, which is funding the initiative. The Food Bank is relying on public support to conclude the capital campaign; the Richard M. Schulze Family Foundation and Lipman Family Farms have made lead gifts, the organization says. Site clearing for the Hunger Action Center began this summer and construction is expected to run through fall 2026. Naples-based DeAngelis Diamond is the general contractor. The Fort Myers Hunger Action Center will increase food distribution capabilities from 45 million pounds of food to 80 million pounds and will complement the organization’s existing distribution center in Naples, the release states. The center’s features will include technological enhancements, including inventory tracking systems; 10 truck bays for delivery and distribution; a food pantry for people to shop for fresh produce and groceries; a community meeting space; larger, climate-controlled workspaces for volunteers and staff; and additional administrative space to support growth and leadership opportunities. It is expected to be completed by winter 2026. The Harry Chapin Food Bank distributed 39.5 million pounds of food — the equivalent of 32 million meals — at food banks and mobile pantries across Charlotte, Collier, Glades, Hendry and Lee counties in 2024. The need is projected to increase to 50 million pounds by 2030 and 100 million pounds by 2050. 

Polk County

Best Buy warehouse in Polk sold for nearly $50M

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A Best Buy distribution center and warehouse in Polk County has been sold for $49.5 million The seller of the property, a 650,808-square-foot single tenant facility in Polk City, is Phoenix-based Tratt Properties, though affiliates B.B. Lakeland LLC and B.B. Zion Holdings LLC. Tratt Properties, which announced the deal, says the facility, on a 45.7-acre site at 8906 N. Road 33, was a build-to-suit for Best Buy to consolidate and expand operations in the growing market. "This transaction reflects our ongoing strategy to identify and capitalize on high-performing logistics assets in dynamic markets,” Tratt Properties Principal Jonathan Tratt says in the statement. Tratt Properties buys and develops institutional grade logistics and e-commerce properties nationwide. The buyers, according to Polk County property records, are Polk Capital LLC and Camelot Holding LP — both traced back to John Safi and Danielle Safi of South Florida and California. Polk Capital LLC is managed by both John Safi and Danielle Safi and Safco Management Corp., all with the same Miami Beach address, Florida Department of State Records show. The address of the other buyer in Polk records, Camelot Holding LP, is on Santa Monica Boulevard in Los Angeles; Danielle Liliana Safi, an attorney, shares the same address, according to California state bar records. John Huguenard, Taylor Osborne, Morgan Davis, Luis Castillo and Stephanie Ruys, all with JLL Capital Markets, represented the buyer in the deal, which closed in October; Cody Brais, also with LL Capital Markets, represented the seller. 

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