LENNAR BREATHES NEW LIFE INTO DORA PARC DEVELOPMENT

Perched on a hillside on the southeastern border of Mount Dora just a mile from downtown, sits Dora Parc, with its 38 home sites on 22 cleared acres.   After years of no sales, Lennar has purchased the property and is preparing to bring it to market with its own floor plans, pricing and marketing strategy.  

Site work originally began on the development in the summer of 2015 by New York City-based Empire Equities and A.R. Bailey Homes.  Later, four oversized and brightly-colored plastic penguins (yes, penguins) appeared as a conspicuous art installation at the entrance, a choice that perplexed area residents.   In what has been dubbed the “‘Curse of the Penguins,” there were no takers for the two model homes or any of the four upscale models that ranged from 2,574 to 3,365 square feet with prices from $429,000 to $526,000.   

Lennar did not purchase those original two models, but will be building its own model in March and offering seven of its own floor plans ranging from  a 1,914 square-foot, four-bedroom home to a spacious 3,922 square-foot home with six bedrooms and a basement.

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The original Empire Equities development also provided a plague of problems to neighboring Chautauqua homes after mud and runoff spilled  into some patios. 

Fast forward a couple of years and the penguins are gone and Lennar, a large Florida developer, may have the secret formula to turn the development into a thriving Mount Dora community.  The site plan will remain the same, however Lennar is currently changing the grading and adding retaining walls. 

At time of publication, pricing has yet to be determined, but it will be the “Lennar Everything Included” pricing model.   Dora Parc is located on south Clayton Street at the Orange County line. 

For more local news and events for Mount Dora, Tavares & Eustis, click here.

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