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Interesting story in Thursdays Leesburg Daily Commercial about the proposed interchange at CR468 and the Florida Turnpike.




Proposed interchange could lead to development

Published: Thursday, March 21, 2013

WILDWOOD

Staff Report

Another Florida Turnpike interchange -- this one at County Road 468 in Sumter County -- also is being planned to serve a potentially explosive growth area where more than 3,000 acres could be developed near that highway connection.

The biggest backer of the interchange is The Villages, which wants to extend and widen Morse Boulevard south to State Road 44 to link up with CR 468. The Villages is willing to pay the state half the money needed to build that interchange to improve access to the retirement community, which has several new communities planned off of SR 44 near Wildwood.

"The new connection created by the Morse Boulevard Extension will create a useful alternative to U.S. Highway 301 or U.S. Highway 27 for area residents and business interests desiring to access Florida's Turnpike," according to a project study done on behalf of The Villages by Kimley-Horn and Associates for the Florida Turnpike Exchange.

"The extension of Morse Boulevard to SR 44 is planned to be completed concurrently with construction of the proposed interchange," the study added. "Sumter County also plans to widen CR 468 from two lanes to four-lanes divided between SR 44 and the proposed turnpike interchange."

Sumter officials actually are looking at the possibility of four-laning CR 468 even further -- from U.S. 301 near Coleman to the proposed interchange. That's because on the south side of CR 468, stretching from U.S. 301 to nearly County Road 501 south of the proposed interchange, is a development of regional impact called Wildwood Springs, which could contain as many as 3,000 single- and multi-family homes on 1,046 acres.

Reader & Partners of Orlando also plans to develop more than 200,000 square feet of retail and office space here, along with greenbelts and interconnected community parks. A study done by Sumter County two years ago said Wildwood Springs could be built in three phases over 10 years, beginning in 2015.

Maury Carter & Associates of Orlando is currently marketing an additional 2,443 acres on the east side CR 468 and the north side of the turnpike. The price was recently advertised at $40 million, or $16,373 an acre.

The company said the tract is currently in the process of getting approval for a development of regional impact, which would make it easier to sell the property.