CENTER OF ATTENTION

Before iconic American artist Norman Rockwell ever put brush to canvas, he planned every stroke. He took photographs of subjects, staged vignettes using live models, labored over detailed preliminary pencil drawings and conducted meticulous research to ensure historical accuracy.

Developer Scott T. Boyd may not consider himself to be an artist, per se. But he does consider the 750 acres that comprise Hamlin, the vibrant heart of the 3,700-acre Horizon West Town Center, to be a verdant and lake-dotted blank canvas on which he can create a masterpiece of a different sort.

Hamlin is rapidly morphing from an expanse of old groves into what will soon become a regional shopping and entertainment destination to rival anything else in Central Florida.

How about a movie in a state-of-the-art cineplex, followed by a late-night dinner at a gourmet restaurant? Or window-shopping along a lively, tree-lined street bordered by intriguing boutiques? 

Or a leisurely stroll along a scenic boardwalk that hugs the shores of a pristine lake? Or a bracing jaunt through a series of beautifully landscaped parks linked by a pedestrian trail network?

Then, when it’s time to call it a night, perhaps home is just minutes away in a brand-new lakefront neighborhood, where the top builders in the U.S. have pulled out all the stops with eye-popping designs and state-of-the-art technology.

“That’s the opportunity we have here,” says Boyd, president of Boyd Development, which is developing Hamlin in partnership with Dallas-based Stratford Land. “Certainly there’s nothing of this scale in Central Florida, and definitely not something with so much waterfront.”

Over the next few years, Boyd hopes that Central Floridians looking for a relaxation destination — or a place to settle down where every imaginable amenity is nearby — will reflexively say, “Let’s head to Hamlin.”

And it’s happening more quickly than anyone would have thought possible just a few years ago, as the economy accelerates and southwest Orange County booms. 

Hamlin, a mixed-use development named for the tangy kind of oranges once cultivated on the site, boasts three miles of frontage along beautiful Lake Hancock. 

Valued at $1 billion, Hamlin was kick-started last year when the New Independence Parkway interchange was opened off State Road 429. New Independence Parkway was extended east for nearly a mile to Schoolhouse Pond Road, which leads to the community of Independence. 

A new four-lane road, dubbed Hamlin Grove Trail, was built parallel to State Road 429, and runs south from New Independence Parkway to Summerlake Park Boulevard, which leads to the community of Summerlake. 

Boyd Development funded most of the $19 million in road, utility and landscape improvements. Not only was accessibility to State Road 429 improved, which is good for residents, but some valuable commercial parcels were created.

Already underway in the 64-acre northwest quadrant of the interchange is a 400,000-square-foot retail complex that will include a 193,000-square-foot Walmart Supercenter as well as about a half-dozen “junior” anchors and outparcels with shops and restaurants. 

A second retail complex, this one 200,000 square feet, is underway in the 66-acre southwest quadrant. It will be anchored by a 54,000-square-foot Publix supermarket. Walmart, Publix and most other businesses in the northwest and southwest quadrants are slated to open by mid- to late 2016.

Concurrently, plans are being made to extend Hamlin Groves Trail north, beyond New Independence Parkway, where it would veer to the east and tie into Tiny Road. The extension, about a mile-and-a-half in length, will help accommodate traffic that new development around the interchange will generate.

The southeast quadrant will encompass a 52,000-square-foot cineplex boasting 12 screens and luxurious stadium seating. The theater operator, which hasn’t been announced, will be one of the largest in the U.S., says Boyd, who hopes the lavish complex will be open by Christmas 2016.

Just beyond the theater, about a half-mile to the east, will be the jewel of Hamlin — a charming lifestyle center built around 28 acres surrounding Lake Hancock. There, say Boyd and partner Ken Kupp, visitors will enjoy an Old Florida ambience and plenty of inviting parks and public areas.

There’ll be an array of retail and dining options as well as a boardwalk and a small marina so the area can be reached by boat. The boardwalk will link to a multiuse trail system — which will eventually be connected to the existing 22-mile West Orange Trail — and a lakefront park accessible by foot, bike or golf cart.

A walkable main street, originating near the new Publix, will connect the interchange area to the Lake Hancock lifestyle center. The street, as yet unnamed, will be lined with architecturally eclectic buildings and public spaces, say the developers.

“It will all be very pedestrian friendly,” notes Kupp, who adds that the lakefront area should open by the end of 2016. “The architecture will be varied. Some will hearken back to Florida vernacular, some will be industrial chic. There’ll also be plenty of green space and even a small splash park.”

Helping to guide the design process is Shook Kelley of Charlotte, North Carolina, a diversified urban planning firm that specializes in “perfecting a process for convening people around a physical place, space, idea, forum and experience.”

Boyd’s team isn’t developing the residential components in Hamlin, but it’s particular about who does. That’s why it’s pleased with what Taylor Morrison has done in Overlook at Hamlin and The Cove at Hamlin.

Overlook at Hamlin encompasses 381 homesites, many of which are lakefront. All homes are within walking distance of the planned boardwalk and retail district. 

With floorplans ranging in size from 1,600 to more than 5,100 square feet, there’s certainly something for everyone. Amenities include a clubhouse, a family pool, a splash park, a playground, an amphitheater and even a multipurpose sports lawn. Prices range from the $270s to more than $1 million.

The Cove at Hamlin offers homes ranging in size from 3,700 to 4,900 square feet as well as urban cottages ranging in size from 1,700 to 2,200 square feet. The newer community, with 250 homesites, features such amenities as a clubhouse, a family pool, a splash park, a playground and several inviting pocket parks. Prices start in the $250s.

At press time, Ashton Woods Homes had just bought 80 acres for The Preserve at Hamlin, which will include a combination of single-family homes and townhomes. Infrastructure work has just gotten underway, and prices have not yet been announced. The Preserve could accommodate up to 350 homes.

Boyd has already spent millions on monument-style signage, four-board fencing and landscaping with primarily indigenous plants. The expenditure wasn’t yet necessary, says Boyd, whose joint venture bought the land for $30 million in 2011. But he wanted to make a statement about the quality of the development to come.

Clearly, Boyd and Kupp view Hamlin as a legacy project. Boyd notes that the land was bought in cash, from one seller — insurance giant AIG — so it isn’t burdened by debt. And as a private venture, there aren’t far-flung investors demanding an instant return.

“We have the ability to create a great plan and to execute it,” Boyd says. “We can do something that will stand the test of time.” Plus, he adds, Boyd Development intends to remain and manage the property once it’s built out, which should take five to seven years. 

Hamlin may be the first out of the gate in the Horizon West Town Center, but plenty more is coming. 

The area could potentially contain 6,400 homes, 5.7 million square feet of office space, 2.1 million square feet of retail space, 384,000 square feet of warehouse and light industrial space, and 1,200 hotel rooms with a conference center. Health Central and Valencia College also own Town Center tracts.

The Town Center will be divided into four distinct districts, each with a specific use:

• Retail and Wholesale District. Will include big-box retailers, restaurants and businesses of all varieties.

• Corporate Campus and Mixed-Use District. Will include a mix of offices and homes in campus-like and neighborhood settings.

• Corporate Neighborhood Center District. Will include neighborhood retailers, service businesses and civic facilities. 

• Traditional Town Center District. Will include retailers, cultural venues, educational facilities anchored by Valencia College and a waterfront park as well as some 1,140 homes.

Hamlin spans all of the districts, except the designated Traditional Town Center. That’s slated for a non-Hamlin tract west of State Road 429 and north of Schofield Road. No details about what will go in the Traditional Town Center District have been announced. 

SYNONYMOUS WITH SWEET

So what is a Hamlin, anyway? Not surprisingly considering the history of the land encompassing Horizon West, it’s a type of orange. The Hamlin orange was first cultivated in 1879 by a grower named A.G. Hamlin in Glenwood, a small community in Volusia County. A cold-tolerant “early” orange, it became popular among growers after the great freezes of 1894-’95. Now it’s the world’s top early maturing sweet orange, and the most widely grown early maturing sweet orange in Florida. That’s because it can be harvested from October through December, typically before the onset of the state’s winter freezes. It’s not the biggest or the prettiest orange — it’s smallish with thin, smooth skin and the color is a little bland — but it thrives in humid, subtropical climates and produces delicious juice.