Evening with the Developer.
 

Main take aways for me.

Agreement to purchase land south of 44 across from Buena Vista completed today.

No tunnel under 44. Will likely be a bridge.

Shooters World will be build in the Brownwood area.

Petsmart in Buffalo Ridge.

The old Perkins on 466 is becoming a Metro Diner.

The resident survey will have more open ended questions and will not necessarily be anonymous.

A new area just off of 42 which will consist of 7 five acre plots.

I would like to see a family tree to see connection between all the players.

Think it's funny when we bought in Bonita 2009 we were told 466A will be the end. Now it's currently Rt 44. Future will be God knows where. My only wish is I'm still around to see where it ends. Everyone is so worried about how we'll get to wherever ? Haven't seen anything the developer and his family have done turn to crap. All I can say is sit back enjoy the ride and watch the show. I'm sure it will be an interesting show !!

More takeaways from the Evening With The Developer:
- Habanero's Mexican Grill coming to Southern Trace.
- Metro Diner coming to former Perkin's location.
Bownwood:
- 2-story office building for TV offices will be built. They will move from Lake Sumter Landing.
- A Center for Advance Medicine (250,000 sq ft) will be built.
- The Brownwood Hotel & Spa (150 rooms) will be built and connected to Center for Advance Medicine.
- Amway Hotel Collection will run hotel. Amway will also run Waterfront Inn (LSL) and TownePlace Suites (Sp Srng).
- Brownwood Hotel will have a Wolfgang Puck restaurant.
- Shooters World coming to Powell Road and Rt 44A.
- Today TV bought land south of Rt 44 at Buena Vista Blvd.
- Two golf cart bridges over Rt 44 are planned - one at Buena Vista and one at Morse Blvd.

Sounds good to me. Thanks for the update. Things to look forward to !!

My phone was binging continuously with push messages from the villages daily sun with all of this. I guess my house in Hillsborough is now in the center of the villages!

Thanks for the interesting reports. We will look forward to watching all the developments take place.

I thought it was a little funny that Mark Morse says his family gets most of his ideas for us villagers. Most of the time I hear most people complain TV is getting too big from crowded restaurants, traffic, etc.!

Put me in the camp that allows people to move to this wonderful place. The more the merrier. IMHO

I agree with the statement that I want to be around to see the finished product, whenever that may be.

They wanted Habanero's Grill in and Crisper's out, I guess raising the rent to $9,000 a month will get that done. Not a fan of Crisper's myself, so maybe it's a good thing. Don't think Beef O'Bradys is too happy.

Mark, Tracy and Jennifer are children of Gary Morse who died three years ago. Gary Morse was the son of Harold Schwartz the founder. Gary's parents split when he was little and his mother remarried a man named Morse. I have heard that at the time when so many Jews were dying in Germany she thought it safer that Gary had a less Jewish last name so he was given the name of his stepfather.

Jennifer Parr has three children; Megan, Paige and Harper Boone. Megan of Blacklist fame, Paige the polo player and Harper in charge of renovation of historic area. Mark has two daughters, one in charge of theatre stuff and the other in charge of commercial development. Tracy has a daughter (maybe more children) but the one daughter works in design in all new buildings built, together with Tracy.

Jennifer Parr also showed a picture last night of her son Jay who is now a Villages sales rep.

Thanks Champion. I had thought it was a grandson.

They jacked up Perkins' rent also so they left. Now have to go up to 441. The one Perkins has been jammed.

I disagree with your conclusion. Their five year lease was up and Perkins is closing restaurants all across the country, see here;
Perkins restaurants closing across country. - Bing

This link might help you:
The Villages of Lake-Sumter, Inc. in The Villages FL - Company Profile

I'm sorry to see Petsmart coming to Buffalo Ridge. It will hurt the small individual pet supply stores in the area, who are already paying such high rentals. There is already a Petsmart on 441, and many online sources for pet food. We don't need another Petsmart. Let the little pet supply stores thrive.

Is this inside information or a wag?

Did I misunderstand? I thought Mark Morse said there would be both tunnels and bridges for golf carts to come north from Finney, Southern Oaks, etc.

Looks like bridges over 44, tunnels under 468 and 501. Subject to change, I'm sure.

Villages Transit
 

Did Mark Morse mention anything about his proposed transportation system?


Skip

Thank you!

Whoa, what about Walmart driving the local family businesses out of business?

Lat I checked, Walmart sells pet supplies !

I am not aware of any small pet supply stores in the Buffalo Ridge area. There is a store located in the Spanish Plaines Shopping Plaza. I am concerned about all the businesses in this plaza as the Publix is being remodeled.

Back to your original point. Small stores need to find their niche to compete against big box stores. Ace Hardware provides exceptional customer service and does well against Lowes and Home Depot. If the pet store can provide excellent customer service and be competitive on price, they should make it.

The real threat to both small and big box stores is the online business. For example, we just purchased Science Diet Dog Food from Chewy.com for $9.00 less that the cost at Petco. Shipping was $4.00 and provided second day delivery. If we had spent $3.00 more, the shipping would have been free. Point is when "the boss" says we need dog food it is much easier to just log into Chewy.com and place my order rather than take the cart or car to Petco.

Shipping is never free! Someone has to pay the drivers from UPS, FEDEX and he Post office.

Shipping isn't free, but when there is a huge mark up on goods in a brick and mortar store, it is often more cost effective to pay the shipping and get a lower overall price from an online outlet. That is why Amazon is so successful.

Marking an item to a sale price of higher than you paid for it is the basis of retail sales. After the help is paid, the goods are paid for, the energy to run the business is paid for and the other over head expenses; taxes, rent, upkeep, insurance, etc. what is left is the margin of profit.

A pair of socks is purchased from the knitter at one dollar and sold for two. Out of the dollar all expenses above are entered in, not forgetting the people who will return them after they wear them saying they didn't fit and the ones that are stolen by people who think they can take what they want from others.

Here's a breakfast menu item from Metro Diner that should hold you over until dinner:

https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/201...e0ac306dc8.jpg

Sent from my VS995 using Tapatalk

Chi-Town, I hope that's a JOKE!

There is an excellent pet supply store just down the road from Walmart--Paws For A Moment. I don't consider Walmart to be a threat to the small pet stores because they sell low-quality pet food. But PetSmart has some higher-end food that could give this place a run for its money.

As for online shopping, it is giving every brick & mortar store a problem. Some people, however, prefer having a store to walk into and browse. I hope these smaller pet supply stores survive the onslaught of the chains into the area.

Hard to believe. But true.

Breakfast Menu - The Metro Diner

Sent from my VS995 using Tapatalk

Was told by managers at 466 (who got jobs as did all the rest 0n 441). Plus talking with them since. Claim they are looking to find land to build a new one but down South and not on Village's property.

Used to like going for Pie Monday and BOGO Wednesday sometimes, still go for Sunday Breakfast after Mass. Was Jammed when the Snowbirds were here.

The funniest line concerning this topic goes something like "the developer said his actions show he is listening to residents. :D

And so the logical progression is" let's build more and more so we have more and more residents so we can listen more and more":D

You have to love the marketing

From The Villages Daily Sun Facebook page:
If you couldn't make The VHA's 2017 "An Evening With The Developer," we've got you covered. <snip> If you're not a Comcast customer, we've got it online for you here: The Villages Daily Sun: Video

[QUOTE=champion6;1397226]More takeaways from the Evening With The Developer:
-- The Brownwood Hotel & Spa (150 rooms) will be built and connected to Center for Advance Medicine.
/QUOTE]

I'm trying to understand why a luxury hotel would be connected to a medical center.

[QUOTE=Shimpy;1398146]It's a convenience after you get sick from the bill at Wolfgang Puck's restaurant:1rotfl::1rotfl::1rotfl:

It's an emerging concept......Marriott did that with one of their hotels and I believe the Inn at Virginia Mason in Seattle is also conntected. It provides a place for patients and/or families to stay when they do not require admission but do require treatment. I assume they also believe that staying in a hotel envoronment rather than a hospital environment helps with attitude. Don't know that it is a wide spread concept but why not give it a try.

My experience in Tampa has been that the three Perkins restaurants nearest to me in north Tampa have closed in the last few years in spite of the fact that they all appeared to be quite busy.

Other chains immediately occupied the spaces.

In the late 80's I was a patient at The University of Pennsylvania Hospital (HUP) and would go to lunch with my wife at a hotel restaurant across the street that was connected via an overpass. The food and atmosphere were much nicer.

[QUOTE=Shimpy;1398146] Worked for a hospital that was designed by Hilton. Hospital Rooms look like luxury suites with in room spa like living, and 800 tread count sheets. The atrium was unbelievable. Food was like a five-star restaurant. It's not unusual now to have a hotel connected to a hospital that might do dialysis, chemo that requires outpatient connections for weeks at a time. It's nice to have a convenient place to stay. Theory is a place that is like home promotes better healing.

Here is a picture of us Gantners at The Evening with the developer. It was almost as good as being able to shake one of their hands.

Maybe some day.