A developer that shelled out a record price for land 15 minutes from Disney’s theme parks has scrapped plans for a resort district and instead dedicated prime property for a much-needed high school and public safety complex in the Panther Run master-planned community in Wellness Way.
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Ft. Lauderdale-based GT USA unveiled the new masterplan exclusively to GrowthSpotter on Monday.
Stretching 2,241 acres between U.S. Highway 27 and the Orange County line near Four Corners, Panther Run is approved for 2,600 homes and a variety of uses ranging from high-density employment sites to mixed-use centers with retail and entertainment options. GT USA bought the property in 2024 for $150 million, the largest land sale in Lake County history.
The proposed PUD replaces a 2025 concept that designated much of the multi-use center closest to S.R. 516 for the resort district, with entitlements for two 600-room hotels, a conference center, up to 700 apartments and 1,000 vacation homes.
Under new plans, the proposed $214 million high school will rise on 50 acres within the development. Eight acres will be set aside for the proposed public safety complex, comprising a new fire station and sheriff’s substation.
GT USA COO Doug Bruk said the public facilities are “sorely needed” by area residents.
Lake County Schools’ Executive Director of Facilities Kelly Randall said the district is currently in negotiations with GT USA . She noted that Wellness Way is projected to meet the threshold of 20,000 homes needed for a new high school. “We anticipate, at buildout, that the entire Wellness Way area will be around that many residents,” she said. “There’s about that many authorized units.”
Without another suitable high school in south Lake County, Randall said students living in the Four Corners area are forced to go as far north as East Ridge High School near State Road 50 in Clermont to attend.
“For the high school, we’ve had it in our plan for several years,” she said. “It’s something we’ve been working towards, and it’s fully funded toward the end of our current five-year plan. We are actively pursuing a site for that school.”
The previous plan earmarked 200 acres in Panther Run for the resort and tourist home development, but the new proposal reduces it to about 150 acres. The developer estimates that the more compact vacation home community, now under contract to Pulte, could generate $6 million annually in additional revenue to Lake County.
In an effort to ease traffic congestion near the Sawgrass Bay neighborhoods and south Clermont, GT USA will provide four miles of new roadway: a two-mile extension of County Road 455 to State Road 516, and a two-mile connector from US 27 to CR 455. A wildlife corridor with a two-mile nature trail is also planned for the development.
“We appreciate this opportunity to partner with Lake County on the execution of this portion of Wellness Way, where GT USA has designed a site with the stakeholder’s needs in mind,” Bruk said.
According to GT USA, about 72.5% of the property — comprising lakes, wetlands, conservation areas and a wildlife corridor — will remain undeveloped.
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Lowndes attorney Tara Tedrow, representing Panther Run, said the 2,600 homes planned for Panther Run — approved in the county’s comprehensive plan in 2016 — will impact less than a fourth of the property. Neighborhoods within Panther Run will include 11 miles of trails and 20 community parks.
About 16% of the property is set aside for residential use, with a variety of homes for buyers ranging from first-time homeowners to executives and retirees.
GT USA has deals in place with Ashton Woods, Dream Finders Homes, D.R. Horton, Lennar and Toll Brothers to serve as homebuilders within Panther Run.
Dream Finders is locked in for the section east of the future CR 455 extension, where it will introduce its first “Reverie” branded 55+ community to the Orlando market.
Throughout the early planning process for Panther Run, county officials frequently stressed the importance of creating job centers to bring high-paying jobs and tourists to the region. The county designated Wellness Way as one of four strategic corridors where employers could qualify for lucrative tax incentives if they invest at least $25 million and create high-paying jobs.
GT USA responded by including 1 million square feet of employment uses within Panther Run, attempting to attract employers in qualified target industries, such as manufacturing, medicine, finance, research and development, technology, advanced manufacturing, and the hospitality and tourism industries. According to GT USA, dedicating space to those industries will translate to over 3,000 jobs.
The Panther Run PUD will go before the Lake County Planning & Zoning Board during its upcoming Aug. 5 meeting and Bruk said GT USA expects to break ground during the first quarter of 2027.
GT USA will also host an open house on Aug.10 from 5-7 p.m. at the Clermont Arts and Recreation Center.
GT USA — the American division of Canadian homebuilder GT Homes — is far from the only developer making big moves along Wellness Way.
Developers spent over $440 million in 2024 on land just in the Wellness Way area, making it the most desirable acreage in Central Florida. Those include two of the largest homebuilders in the nation: Lennar and Pulte.
Lennar is actively selling in Wellness Ridge and in its first active-adult community: Sanctuary at Wellness Ridge. Pulte has three projects underway in the area, including Parkside Trails, which opened for sales in late 2024, and Lakehaven Estates, formerly known as the Schofield PUD, at the U.S. 27 interchange with S.R. 516. Pulte recently filed construction plans for Phase 2B — and the amenity center — of Lakehaven Estates with the St. Johns River Water Management District.
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