Groveland Considers $200 Million Development, Major Land Swap
The proposal could influence the city’s long-term growth and land-use decisions, though no specific properties, agreements or confirmed impacts were provided.
Groveland is considering a major land swap connected to approximately $200 million in proposed development.
The proposal could eliminate $25 million in previously approved incentives, return key downtown property to the city and bring new medical, educational and commercial development.
Groveland residents, taxpayers, businesses and property owners, particularly those near downtown and the proposed Sampey Road development.
The previously approved plan for roughly 530 downtown residential units would be replaced in part by 94 single-family homes on Sampey Road alongside proposed healthcare, education, hotel and mixed-use development.
Groveland and the developers must work through due diligence, land-swap terms, infrastructure responsibilities, zoning and development approvals before the proposal can become a reality.
LCN REPORT | GROVELAND
WHAT HAPPENED
A proposed land swap could significantly reshape plans for downtown Groveland while opening the door to approximately $200 million in new development elsewhere in the city.
Under the proposal from Avalon Park Group and Carabao International, Groveland would regain property tied to the previously approved Carabao Commons project. In exchange, development would shift in part to city-owned property along Sampey Road.
THE DETAILS
The original Carabao Commons plan called for approximately 530 residential units, 45,000 square feet of commercial space and a 25,000-square-foot community center in historic downtown Groveland.
The new proposal would instead place 94 single-family homes on roughly 34 usable acres along Sampey Road, along with an urgent care facility, a separate emergency department, hotel, mixed-use building and an Academic Village envisioned for K-12 education, higher education, technical training and workforce certification.
As part of the proposed exchange, developers would also give up $25 million in previously approved economic incentives.
WHY IT MATTERS
The proposal represents more than a change in where homes would be built.
If ultimately approved and developed as envisioned, it could substantially reduce the residential intensity of the existing Carabao Commons plan while adding healthcare, education, hospitality and commercial uses to Groveland.
Returning the original property to city ownership would also give Groveland greater control over what happens next on a key piece of its historic downtown.
WHAT RESIDENTS SHOULD KNOW
No final land swap or $200 million development has been approved.
The Sampey Road property is currently used as a city spray field, and Groveland says alternatives for retiring that use and remediation will need to be evaluated.
The land exchange would not occur until the Sampey Road property receives the necessary zoning and development entitlements. Residents should also watch how infrastructure responsibilities, land values and redevelopment plans for the returned downtown property are addressed as negotiations continue.
WHAT HAPPENS NEXT
Potential next steps include a working session with city leadership, due diligence on the Sampey Road property and development of a non-binding term sheet establishing proposed exchange terms and infrastructure responsibilities.
Additional zoning, entitlement and development decisions would still be required before the broader proposal could move forward.
THE BOTTOM LINE
Groveland is considering a major reset of a previously approved downtown development deal.
The proposal could replace a 530-unit downtown plan with 94 homes on Sampey Road, eliminate $25 million in previously approved incentives, return property to city ownership and support an estimated $200 million investment involving healthcare, education, hospitality and commercial development.
Those numbers make the proposal significant—but the deal remains in the planning and negotiation stage, and several major approvals and details still stand between the concept presented to the City Council and actual construction.
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