An apartment complex is in the works for a vacant site within the Orange County portion of Tupperware, as the recently passed mobility fee hikes in nearby Osceola County continue to push multifamily interest elsewhere.
Abdul Alkadry of Harris Civil Engineers, on behalf of property owner O’Connor Capital Partners, recently requested a pre-application meeting with Orange County planning staff to discuss a proposed 314-unit multifamily community at the northeast corner of S. Orange Blossom Trail and Mary Louis Lane. A site plan for the community calls for six residential buildings with between 38 and 70 units each, along with a clubhouse, a pool, a dog park, and 554 surface-level parking spaces.
In 2020, O’Connor paid Tupperware Brands Corporation $87 million for 740 acres surrounding the nearby Tupperware SunRail station in Osceola and Orange Counties. A few years later, O’Connor received approval for a land-use change for up to 1,354 apartments and 253,480 square feet of commercial space on 202 acres in the Orange County portion. As a result, the land was split into a mixture of preservation space and three developable lots.
The recently proposed apartment project would be located on Lot 1, which consists of 16.4 acres. Meanwhile, Flournoy Development Group plans to build a 350-unit multifamily community on Lot 2, located at the northwest corner of Mary Louis Lane and S. Orange Avenue. Cooper Reece, Vice President at Flournoy Development, previously said that he expects the company to break ground on the project sometime this year.
Additionally, Dominium plans to build a 528-unit affordable apartment community on Lot 3, which consists of over 26 acres at the northeast corner of Mary Louis Lane and S Orange Avenue. Dominium intends for the complex to be entirely affordable, with units set aside for residents earning 60% of the local area median income (AMI).
Peter Bergner, development director for O’Connor Capital Partners, confirmed that there isn’t yet a developer under contract for Lot 1. However, he said that development on the Orange County side of Tupperware is “moving quicker because of the Osceola County impact fees.”
Last year, Osceola County commissioners approved new mobility fees, which resulted in the rate for new apartments increasing 81% from $7,754 per unit to $14,040 per unit. The new fees will take effect on June 18, and the last day to submit an application and qualify for the current, lower mobility fee rates was May 19.
Some developers have already canceled plans for new projects in Osceola County after considering the increased mobility fees. For example, The Altman Companies doesn’t plan to move forward on a proposed 300-unit apartment complex south of Altis Grand Twin Lakes and west of the Tupperware SunRail station.
Tim Peterson, Altman’s chief investment officer, said that plans for the apartments are now on hold, in part because of an oversupply of new multifamily development in the market. He also blamed the increase in impact fees, “which has made development of new apartments in that area just not feasible right now.”
Elsewhere in the Osceola County portion of Tupperware, some development is proceeding. Genesis US Properties plans to build Blue Osceola Apartments, a 448-unit apartment complex planned for a 16-acre parcel on the northeastern corner of S. Orange Avenue and Tupperware Boulevard directly next to the SunRail station.
Additionally, Fore Property Company is currently building a 309-unit apartment project called Parkway Crossings, and Spirit Realty, now merged with Realty Income, previously filed plans for a 348-unit apartment project on vacant land next to the old Tupperware headquarters.
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