SITE IS ADJACENT TO USF POLYTECHNIC CAMPUS
As Polk County’s chambers of commerce, governmental units and planning organizations focused increasing attention on the regional implications of the recently announced Tampa-Polk-Orlando High Speed Rail plan, a major landowner on Florida’s High Tech Corridor announced major plans for one of the leading sites proposed for Polk County’s HSR station.
The site, at the eastern intersection of I-4 and the Polk Parkway, is adjacent to the new USF Polytechnic campus and minutes from the Polk Commerce Centre and the county’s new Lake Myrtle Sports Complex, is located within the Williams Development of Regional Impact (DRI). More importantly, according to USF Polytechnic CEO Marshall Goodman, “This site is central to all of Polk County. It’s the most accessible location being considered.”
Through it’s local spokesman, Charles Gray, of Gray Robinson PA, Attorneys, the Williams Acquisition Holding Company, Inc., owner of the DRI, plans to develop the site as the USF Poly campus opens its doors for 5,000 students in 2012 on a Calatrava-designed campus expected to ultimately host 16,000 students. The DRI project is planned to include 4,300 residential units, 1.3 million square feet of commercial space, a research/development park with 2.9 million square feet of space, 350 hotel rooms and a village center, similar to the successful Lakeside Village development on Lakeland’s southwest side, 240,000 square feet of retail space, 200,000 square feet of office space, 400 residential units and a 100-room hotel.
The Williams group is currently in negotiations with P3 DevCo for development of the property surrounding the proposed future High Speed Rail station site. Williams also previously negotiated with several national community developers for the development of the entire Williams DRI. Negotiations, however, were postponed pending completion of the construction of the Polk Parkway interchange, the East/West road and Phase I of the USF Polytechnic campus.
Williams sees 2012 as a pivotal year for the site and the region, Gray said. That year will see the completion of the Florida Turnpike Enterprise’s massive Pace Road interchange project on the Polk Parkway and completion of the 5.8 mile 4-lane highway (the East/West road) connecting the Pace Road interchange on the east and State Road 33 on the west. The County has completed construction of the 4-lane Pace Road from Berkley Road to the interchange.
This regional roadway will serve the University, Polk County and the county’s 17 municipalities. With the location of the High Speed Rail station at a site in the center of Polk County’s segment of I-4, the new transportation mode will be positioned to serve the USF Poly campus, the Williams DRI, the Polk Commerce Centre DRI, the Lake Myrtle Complex, Fantasy of Flight, and Merlin Entertainment’s recently announced LegoLand theme park in Winter Haven, as well as the major population hubs in Lakeland.
The terms of any joint venture or potential sale of any portion of the Williams property for development will not be completed until the High Speed Rail station location is determined. According to Gray, if the station is located on the Williams property, Williams is prepared to make available a 20-acre site for the station.
You can view a Williams Co./USF Polytechnic Site Map Here
Thanks for including the site map information. It is kind of hard to visualize without something in print. I had no idea that all of that was on the drawing board. This when it materializes should have a significant positive impact for us in this area. Lets keep up our support for this as the site for the bullet train stop in Polk County. It appears to be the best choice for all of us including Lakeland.
What great infrastructure. I wish we had such forward thinking in Sydney. Our local government released a transport plan. It leaves much concern for the future.