Sales jump 43% year over year at Charlotte, Lee eco-friendly community

Babcock Ranch, the solar community that straddles Lee and Charlotte counties, set a sales record the first quarter this year as plans develop to improve connectivity.

The developers behind the sprawling 17,068-acre self-sustained master planned community say the community saw 359 home sales in the quarter, a 43.6% jump from last year. It also made up 30% of the annual goal of 1,200 sales.

In March alone 138 homes sold, “the busiest month since the town’s 2017 debut,” according to statement.

Given its continued growth, there are planned improvements coming to State Road 31 to make it easier to access Babcock Ranch.

The two-phase project, according to a community newsletter, includes replacing the Wilson Pigott Bridge over the Caloosahatchee River and widening a 1.4-mile stretch of State Road 31 between Palm Beach Boulevard and Bayshore Road from two lanes to a six-lane divided roadway.

The newsletter says developer Kitson & Partners funded the first $85-million phase of the project, which includes building a new four-lane replacement road between Bayshore Road and Lake Babcock Drive.

The eco-friendly Babcock Ranch is 45 minutes from downtown Fort Myers. It is made up of energy-efficient homes with an 870-acre solar panel farm powering it and its own water reclamation facility.

About 50% of the community’s acreage is preserved.

Along with the houses, there are a school and a downtown as well as a 23-acre sports complex and interconnecting parks with pavilions, playgrounds, multipurpose fields, a fishing lagoon and an observation tower.

A church is currently under construction inside the community and there are plans for a second Publix Super Markets store to open soon.