PUBLISHER'S PICK: COMMUNITY

Southeast Orlando has emerged as the region’s strongest growth market for an array of reasons, not the least of which is its emergence as a high-tech employment center and home to the burgeoning Medical City complex in Lake Nona.

That world-class, $2 billion bioscience cluster includes the Sanford-Burnham Medical Research Institute, the University of Central Florida College of Medicine, the University of Florida Research and Academic Center and the Burnett Biomedical Sciences Building, which houses the MD Anderson-Orlando Cancer Research Institute. The Orlando Veteran’s Affairs Medical Center is under way.

The 690-acre Randal Park community is poised to boom along with the nearby research and treatment facilities. In addition, Randal Park is an easy 20-minute commute to downtown Orlando and even closer to UCF and the surrounding Central Florida Research Park. It’s also just a hop, skip and a jump from Orlando International Airport.

In fact, Randal Park is convenient to just about everything. It’s bordered on the north by S.R. 528, on the east by S.R. 417 and on the south by Dowden Road. One mile west is Narcoossee Road, which provides quick access to lively retail and dining centers, including a Publix at Lake Hart Village.

But just as appealing as the location is what developers have done with it. Randal Park boasts nearly 300 acres of lush conservation land. Plus, no home will be more than a block or two from one of eight neighborhood parks.

A five-acre Central Park will serve as a community lawn for picnics, sports or movies on the green. Miles of bike paths and nature trails also run through the neighborhood. And Old Florida-style Randal House, the community center, will have a spacious, resort-style pool, an open pavilion and facilities for birthday parties, yoga classes, book-club meetings or most any other reason friends and neighbors gather.

Randal Park is seeking major green development certifications from such organizations as LEED-Neighborhood Development, the U.S. Green Building Council, the Florida Green Building Council and more. Homes are being built to the highest standards of energy efficiency.

Randal Park’s youngsters currently are assigned to A-rated Northlake Park Community School, just three miles from the community. But in August they’ll be attending brand-new Randal Park Elementary School.

Lake Nona Middle School and Lake Nona High School, two of the newest in the county, are nearby, while Valencia College has opened a Lake Nona campus.

Demonstrating a major vote of confidence in the Central Florida housing market, Mattamy Homes late last year bought 560 lots in the 760-lot community, registering one of the largest residential land purchases in the region since the downturn. Mattamy, a Canadian company with extensive operations in the U.S., is known for quality construction and exemplary customer service.

“With the way the housing market has started to improve, we see Orlando becoming one of the strongest markets in the state of Florida,” says Steve Parker, president of Mattamy’s U.S. Group. “Our Randal Park investment will provide Mattamy with the inventory that’s needed to handle the demand we feel is going to occur as the market continues to improve.”

Mattamy will begin building Randal Park homes later this year. The company plans to offer four different product lines, including both single-family and multifamily homes. In the meantime, M/I Homes and David Weekley Homes, two of Central Florida’s most respected builders, are offering beautifully styled homes ranging in size from 2,036 to 3,359 square feet at prices starting in the $240s.

For more information
Visit randalparkorlando.com