Leesburg Is in Line for Estimated $20M Condo Project

Orlando-based Royal Palm Homes has submitted preliminary development plans to the city that call for three eight-story buildings totaling 189 units that would sell for $200,000 to $400,000. Area construction sources tell GlobeSt.com the project can't be built for less than $100,000 per unit or a total estimated hard construction cost of $20 million. The average living area in the condos would be 1,600 sf to 2,400 sf.

Before the project can get started, the city will have to approve the developer's rezoning request on the 30-acre site south of Dixie Avenue and Lake Street and north of Lake Harris. Royal Palm Homes has built a comparable condo community in Casselberry and has another condo venture, the 18-story Sanctuary, under construction in Orlando at East Church Street and Eola Drive.

Royal Palm Homes and Orlando-based Historic Creations Inc. last week jointly purchased a 2.6-acre tract at Orange Avenue and Colonial Drive in Downtown Orlando for an estimated $4 million or about $1.5 million per acre. At an estimated $90.90 per sf, the per-sf-price is a record for Downtown dirt, as GlobeSt.com previously reported. Doing business as Midtown Development LLC, Royal Palm and Historic Creations haven't announced plans for the Downtown site.