Freddie Schinz, the developer of the Blue Heron Beach Resort near Disney Springs, plans to build apartments on land directly south of the high-rise hotel, continuing a trend of property owners and developers in the surrounding area shifting their focus from hotel to multifamily uses.
Robert Paymayesh of PE Group, LLC filed an application to Orange County last week on behalf of Schinz, requesting approval to build 250 apartments on a roughly 5.5-acre property between Lake Bryan and S. Apopka Vineland Road. The application didn’t include a site plan, but it notes that only 2.81 acres are considered developable due to a stormwater pond on the northern half of the property. To allow for the requested density, Schinz proposes a building height of 85 feet.
Schinz, who owns Destin-based Tiforp Development Corporation, previously requested a land-use change in 2023 that would have allowed the construction of 200 apartments. Last year, he filed another application requesting to remove entitlements for 280 hotel rooms on the property and add an approved use of up to 350 multifamily units.
The property is the last vacant property within the roughly 10-acre Lake Bryan Square PD, which consists of a 1.5-acre parcel with a one-story retail building fronting S. Apopka Vineland Road, along with the Blue Heron Beach Resort, which opened in 2006. The resort has a pair of 17-story towers that hold a combined 283 condo-hotel units, and includes amenities such as a pool, a fitness center, a book and game room, and a tiki bar.
The apartment project would be located directly north of the upcoming MB Resort, an 18-story condo-hotel tower which will consist of 199 units on 4.4 acres at 13651 S Apopka Vineland Rd. Mexican developer MB Signature Properties is scheduled to break ground on the tower next year and open the resort in 2028.
MB Resort, however, bucks a trend of property owners in the Lake Bryan area that are shifting from hotel and timeshare projects to multifamily uses. For example, Ohio-based Silver Hills Development filed an application with Orange County in 2022 requesting to amend the land use from hotel to multifamily on 14.6 acres at 13725 and 13775 S Apopka Vineland Rd., directly south of the planned MB Resort.
The application requested to swap out entitlements for 555 hotel rooms to 588 multifamily units and 23,530 square feet of commercial space. The developer later filed plans for “Lake Bryan Condos”, which would include a 12-story tower. In February 2023, the Orange County Board of County Commissioners unanimously voted to approve the requested land use change. However, the county hasn’t issued any permits for the property yet.
New York-based Alpine Residential filed plans in 2023 for 177 multifamily units on a 6.5-acre property at 14430 S Apopka Vineland Rd., next to the Caribe Royale Resort. The property had entitlements for a 280-room hotel, but the developer submitted an application in 2022 seeking approval for multifamily instead.
Amir Dhanji, who owns a vacant, 5.6-acre property at 14180 S Apopka Vineland Rd., previously explored changing the land use at the site. The property has entitlements for hotel and retail, but Dhanji is exploring a possible land use change to apartments, short-term rentals, or medical uses.
“Right now, what’s in demand is a lot of multifamily and a lot of Airbnb,” Dhanji previously told GrowthSpotter. “With hotels, it’s kind of tricky. With the construction costs that we are in right now, it just doesn’t make sense.”
Intram Investments, the master developer behind the nearby 829-acre World Gateway PD, previously removed entitlements for 798 hotel rooms in favor of 900 more multifamily units. The PD currently has county approval for 4,680 hotel rooms, 864 timeshare units, 2,385 multifamily units, 240,000 square feet of retail, 171,530 square feet of office space, a 20,000-square-foot sit-down restaurant, and a 5,000-square-foot fast-food restaurant.
Additionally, The Bainbridge Companies is getting ready to break ground on the final phase of Bainbridge World Center, located just east of Lake Bryan at 14051 International Dr. The first phase included 341 units, and the second phase is set to deliver another 415 apartments. Bob Thollander, president of development with Bainbridge, said that the area is a great location for new multifamily development.
“Being on the north side of the 417 Beltway, there’s an on-ramp right there, just to the east. You can get off there, or you can jump on. The other thing is, World Center Drive in the other direction will get you right on the I-4, and if you go up I-drive you can get to the 528, so we think accessibility wise, it really opens up a lot of opportunities for people,” he said, while pointing out that close proximity to job center such as Lake Nona and the theme parks are also major drivers of multifamily demand.
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