Del Webb has been developing retirement communities for the past 70 years. Sage Communities, a new player in that type of a housing product, just started. Together they have joined forces on what will be called Oak Creek, for which a groundbreaking ceremony was held Friday morning at 7701 Bayshore Road in North Fort Myers.
Tomahawk Construction began site work on Oct. 28, and the first homes should be ready by the summer.
Del Webb and Pulte Homes will build 821 single-family homes for ages 55-plus. They will range from 1,500 to 3,500 square feet. Adjacent will be 184 one-story rental homes for the same age group. Those will be built by Stevens Construction.
The homes start in the low $300,000 range in the Del Webb at Oak Creek.
“This is a monumental step for me,” said Randy Thibaut, who was speaking in his role as CEO of Sage Communities. He has been involved with the property as a land broker and CEO of LSI Companies for 18 years.
“This whole deal started with a handshake,” said Rich McCormick, Florida area president for PulteGroup. “Not too many deals get done that way anymore.”
The site is just west of Interstate 75. After most of the homes are finished, there will be a commercial component fronting Bayshore Road. All the property closed in August for $24.6 million, property records show. It’s slated to be about a $50 million construction project.
The two products at one location will make for some great retirement options, McCormick said.
“We think there might be some great synergies, where some people might want to rent first and then look at buying,” McCormick said. “Or they might have older parents, to live next door to them. And so the two communities, while separate, will be connected by walking trails and should complement each other extremely well.”
