HERE THEY GROW

By Mick Lochridge

There was a time when homebuyers looking to move to Seminole County chose between Altamonte Springs (shopping galore), Lake Mary (gated golf communities), Longwood (upscale enclaves) or Casselberry (affordable starter homes). Sanford might make the list if you wanted to live in the county seat or craved adjacency to Lake Monroe.

Oviedo and Winter Springs? Those were small, isolated places. Oviedo was still a celery and citrus town — it was, after all, known as the Celery Capital of the World — and boasted a two-block business district with one independent bank, founded mainly for the convenience of local growers. 

Winter Springs had the Tuscawilla Golf Club, but not much else to give it any identity. In fact, it had been founded with the nondescript name “North Orlando” in 1959.

In recent years, the south-central part of the county, where Oviedo and Winter Springs have melded together to become a mini-metro area, has become a hot spot for growth, even as many of the county’s more mature suburban areas approach buildout.

Only a few miles from the University of Central Florida, the country’s second-largest university, Oviedo and Winter Springs have earned national recognition as great places to live by retaining their small-town charm while offering big-city amenities.

It helps that residents enjoy easy access to an interstate system that puts them on the road to just about anywhere they’d want to go. 

That network makes it easy for commuters to get to work, for fans to reach sports and performance venues, for travelers to reach Orlando International Airport or Orlando Sanford International Airport, for families to visit the tourist attractions, and for sun worshippers to hit the beaches. 

Consequently, the population of the two cities and the surrounding unincorporated area has climbed more than 5.5 percent since 2010. Projections call for an 18.8 percent jump in the next 10 years, according to the Seminole County development services department.

For contrast, remember this: In the ’70s, Oviedo’s population was 2,000. The mayor was also the barber, and held court from his tiny shop on Broadway Street, the Depression-era main drag that also encompassed City Hall, a feed store, a dry cleaner, an auto-parts shop, a Baptist church and the iconic Townhouse Restaurant. 

Today, the city’s population is more than 37,000. Much of the business activity has moved from the “old” downtown to Oviedo on the Park, a 50-acre town center on the north side of Mitchell Hammock Road, east of State Road 434 and bordered by the Kingsbridge West subdivision to the east.

While Oviedo’s downtown was, at best, modest, Winter Springs didn’t even have a business district. Apart from the golf club, there were some scattered subdivisions and a convenience store of indeterminate origin. 

Today, the city’s population is more than 35,000. And the “downtown” that once was missing entirely is now the Winter Springs Town Center, a massive mixed-use development at the intersection of State Road 434 and Tuskawilla Road.

What a difference a few decades makes. Neither city even had a chamber of commerce until 1982, when a handful of Oviedo businesspeople started one. In 2008, the Oviedo chamber expanded and became the Oviedo-Winter Springs Regional Chamber of Commerce, which now has more than 600 members.

Oviedo and Winter Springs also have the advantage of being part of the Seminole County school district, considered one of the best in the state by a variety of measures.

Money magazine has ranked the district among its Top 100 School Districts in the U.S. Newsweek rated the county’s high schools among the top 3 percent nationally based upon the number of students enrolled in advanced placement or international baccalaureate classes. 

Last year, the district earned an A overall from the Florida Department of Education — the only Central Florida district to receive the top mark. The grades are based primarily on how well students performed on the Florida Standards Assessments tests.

Superintendent Walt Griffin noted that 50 out of 61 county schools earned As and Bs. And for the first time ever, all the county’s high schools earned As. 

“An A in every high school is an accomplishment,” Griffin notes. “We did it while increasing offerings in academics, STEM, the arts and athletics for students.” 

So it’s no surprise that people — especially families — want to move to the Oviedo-Winter Springs area, says Todd T. Sykes, president and CEO of the Oviedo-Winter Springs Regional Chamber of Commerce. 

“Oviedo and Winter Springs both continuously receive local and national accolades for the quality of life provided to residents,” he notes. “It’s a great place to raise a family. And both cities have a thriving business community with close proximity to the University of Central Florida and many high-tech, high-wage jobs.”

That growth pressure is why there are more than 1,000 new homes in various stages of development in the two cities and the surrounding unincorporated area. 

“There’s no doubt Seminole County is experiencing more demand for high-quality new homes,” says Tatiana Souza, vice president of sales for Meritage Homes, which has five developments in the Oviedo-Winter Springs area. “People are looking to buy in quiet, family-oriented communities that fit their lifestyles.” 

OVIEDO

With a population of just 800 when it incorporated in 1925, Oviedo traces its roots to just after the Civil War. Settlers discovered fertile soil for growing crops such as celery and citrus, which they sold in Orlando and Sanford. The chief mode of travel to the area was by steamship docked at Lake Jesup. 

“Residents find Oviedo to be a safe and friendly community,” says Teresa Correa, the city’s development services director. Correa adds that the city is working with developers to diversify the city’s new-home offerings, so there’ll be plenty of choices in addition to traditional single-family communities.

Filling the need for those options are a number of well-known builders in Central Florida. Their projects feature single-family homes, townhomes and condominiums. 

You can get anything from a 1,400-square-foot condo for a little over $200,000 to a 5,000-square-foot estate home for north of a half-million dollars. Or you can rent an apartment.

Taylor Morrison (taylormorrison.com) started building its 96-home Southern Oaks community last year. Homes are priced from the $400s, with sizes ranging from 2,809 to 5,073 square feet. 

Buyers run the gamut from young professionals to active retirees, according to Larry Mull, vice president of sales and marketing.

“The demand in the Oviedo area is huge because new homes offer energy-efficient features, open-concept floorplans and home warranties,” Mull says. 

Gated Southern Oaks, Mull adds, offers the “quaint charm of an older neighborhood, but in a new home.” There also are covered school-bus stops and playground facilities on site.

M/I Homes (mihomesorlando.com) has almost completed one community and is launching a second one. Both are named for early settlers of Oviedo.

Homes at Aulin’s Landing, an infill community with just 40 homesites, are priced from $349,660 to $569,355. Sizes range from 2,195 to 3,642 square feet. 

A 10-minute drive away, M/I has started Foster’s Grove, where 94 homes are planned. Prices range from $368,990 to $484,990, with sizes ranging from 2,317 to 4,933 square feet. 

“Oviedo is a highly desirable area with A-rated schools and a good reputation as a family-friendly city,” says Jenifer Hoerstkamp, marketing coordinator for M/I Homes Orlando. 

She, too, says that buyers are in all age groups and life stages — and are just as likely to have relocated from somewhere else in Florida as out of state. Among the amenities at both M/I communities are tot lots for the kids.

Beazer Homes (beazerhomes.com) opened its gated Mitchell Creek townhome development in May. Prices in the 70-home community range from $217,990 to $227,990, with sizes ranging from 1,416 to 1,496 square feet. 

“We anticipate a good mix of buyers from the area as well as out of state,” says Theresa Tilton, vice president of sales for Beazer Homes Orlando Division. “We’re expecting a combination of young families, business professionals and second-home buyers.” 

Amenities at Mitchell Creek include a pool, cabana, tot lot and an open field/play area.

“Everyday conveniences are very close,” Tilton adds. “Residents are minutes from shopping, dining, medical care, dental care, pet care and more.” 

Tilton notes that Beazer’s overall strategy is to build in “A” municipalities that have strong reputations as great places to live. “The city of Oviedo fits that description perfectly,” she says.

David Weekley Homes (davidweekleyhomes.com) opened its Preserve of Oviedo on the Park in February. The 44-home community features two product lines, the Carriage and Garden series. 

Carriage homes are priced from the $350s and range in size from 2,034 to 2,806 square feet; Garden homes are priced from the $380s and range in size from 2,336 to 2,897 square feet.

That community is part of Oviedo on the Park, a burgeoning town center with an amphitheater, a lake, retail shops, playgrounds and neighborhoods. Oviedo’s municipal complex is also within the project.

Weekley selected the town center “because of the proximity to roads and airports, and the feel of a small town with the support of a much larger town,” says Brent Bartholomew, division president for David Weekley Homes in Orlando. Also, he says, city leadership seems committed to protecting the character of the city and the ambience of the project.

“We kept the preserve and pond intact, and kept as many old growth trees as possible,” Bartholomew says. “We modeled the architecture of the homes to seamlessly blend from the city’s property into ours.”

Meritage Homes (meritagehomes.com) is working on three developments in the Oviedo area: Oviedo Gardens, inside the city limits; and Bellevue and Hampton Estates, in unincorporated Seminole County.

Homes in Oviedo Gardens range in price from $414,990 to $513,990, with sizes ranging from 2,537 to 5,169 square feet. 

In Bellevue, prices range from $437,990 to $525,990, while sizes range from 2,537 to 5,169 square feet. In Hampton Estates, prices range from $491,900 to $564,900, while sizes range from 3,017 to 5,169 square feet.

Meritage “builds and sells single-family homes for first-time, move-up, luxury and active-adult buyers,” says Souza. In other words, for pretty much everybody.

WINTER SPRINGS

The histories of Oviedo and neighbor Winter Springs are linked by agriculture and commercial boat traffic on Lake Jesup. Settlers used the wharves on the lake to transport their products and passengers north across Lake Jesup, into Lake Monroe and up the St. Johns River. Many farmers brought their crops from nearby groves to the wharves.

North Orlando became Winter Springs in 1972. But if you haven’t been out that way in several years, you wouldn’t recognize it today.

According to Randy Stevenson, the city’s community development director, the population is expected to grow 14 percent in the next five years or so.

Winter Springs was picked by Money magazine as one of America’s Top 100 Best Places to Live in 2007 and 2011. It’s known for its lovely neighborhoods and its award-winning parks and recreational facilities.

The Winter Springs Town Center hosts several annual festivals, ranging from the Winter Springs Festival of the Arts to the Scottish Highland Games, which draws almost 30,000 attendees over a two-day period. 

Says Stevenson: “The city’s strategic location along U.S. Highway 17-92 and State Roads 434 and 417 provides quick access to other economic, educational, cultural and recreational assets throughout Central Florida.”

Meritage is one of the builders keeping pace with growth in Winter Springs. It has one development, Seven Oaks, in the city limits, while another, Tuscawilla Estates, is expected to get underway this year. 

Homes in Seven Oaks are priced ranging from $296,990 to $355,900, with sizes ranging from 2,000 to 3,467 square feet. Tuscawilla Estates, for which prices hadn’t been set at press time, will feature homes ranging in size from 2,754 to 5,254 square feet.

“Since starting construction in Seminole County in 2008, we’ve had a lot of success in the Oviedo and Winter Springs markets,” says Souza. “Buyers here are looking for energy-efficient homes that feature distinctive styles and quality construction — and Meritage prides itself on being able to deliver all of those things.”

So, whether you’re considering a home in Winter Springs or Oviedo, you’ll find an array of choices and price ranges. In addition, the region has created quite a positive reputation for itself over the past several years.

On top of its first-rate school system, Seminole County has an “open for business” climate, attracting corporate headquarters and other significant enterprises from around the world, says John Horan, chairman of the Seminole County Commission. 

He noted that the county also serves as headquarters for the Florida High Tech Corridor Council. That organization — together with the University of Central Florida, the University of South Florida and the University of Florida — promotes entrepreneurship and workforce development across the 23 counties in the region.

So what’s to love about Oviedo and Winter Springs? Perhaps the better question is, what’s not to love? 

“Our family chose to move here seven years ago because the area has a great sense of community,” says Sykes, who has two boys, ages 3 and 7. “You never run out of things to do living here.”