| Wellen Park | |
| Settlement Type: | Planned community |
| Coordinates: | 27.0497°N -82.3211°W |
| Etymology: | German: wellen|translation=waves
|
| Pushpin Map: | USA Florida |
| Subdivision Type: | Country |
| Subdivision Name: | United States |
| Subdivision Type1: | State |
| Subdivision Type2: | County |
| Subdivision Name1: | Florida |
| Subdivision Name2: | Sarasota |
| Timezone1: | EST |
| Utc Offset1: | −05:00 |
| Timezone1 Dst: | EDT |
| Utc Offset1 Dst: | −04:00 |
| Postal Code Type: | ZIP code(s) |
| Postal Code: | 34223, 34293 |
| Area Code: | 941 |
| Subdivision Type3: | City |
| Subdivision Name3: | North Port |
Wellen Park (formerly known as the West Villages[1]) is a planned community located in Sarasota County, Florida, United States. The majority of Wellen Park is located along US 41 and River Road within the city limits of North Port, with some portions of the community extending into unincorporated Sarasota County.[2]
The land was part of unincorporated Sarasota County and used for ranching and agriculture in the 1930s, becoming known as Taylor Ranch.[3] [4] The property was sold in 2002 and became Thomas Ranch.[5] In 2002, approximately of Thomas Ranch was annexed by the city of North Port, as per a request from the landowners at the time.[6] [7] Following this annexation, the land was sold to developers, who planned on creating a large-scale master-planned community similar to other communities in Florida such as The Villages, Lakewood Ranch and Babcock Ranch. The developers broke ground in the mid-2000s amid a housing boom, however the Great Recession halted further development until the mid-2010s.
In May 2014, a partnership, including Mattamy Homes and Vanguard Land and other developers, invested about $100 million to purchase approximately that represented the remainder of the former Berry and Taylor family ranch, rebranding the community as the West Villages.[8] [9] The community was to include several new neighborhoods, and a shopping center. Over the next 6 years, construction boomed with the addition of multiple new neighborhoods, a shopping center, and infrastructure.
In April 2020, the master-planned community was renamed Wellen Park. The new name is meant to serve as a cohesive branding for communities to be built in the future, as over of land is still undeveloped.[9] The community will be geographically organized into Districts, with current districts including the West Villages, Downtown Wellen, and Playmore.
Wellen Park includes the following neighborhoods:[10]
See main article: CoolToday Park. In early 2017, the Atlanta Braves professional baseball team announced the selection of North Port, Florida, as the site of CoolToday Park.[11] Sarasota County has approved its funding earmarking about $22 million in tourist development taxes. The city of North Port will provide $4.7 million and the Florida Sports Foundation is slated to contribute $20 million.[12]
The developer donated the land. The Atlanta Braves are making the upfront capital contribution and annual lease payments. By hosting the stadium, Wellen Park intends future activities, events and opportunities for its residents as well as visitors from throughout the region and the country.[13]
Much of the planned community is situated within the West Villages Improvement District (WVID), a specialized taxing district whose purpose is to provide infrastructure, including community development systems, facilities, services, projects, and improvements to the District.[14]
The District was established by Florida Legislature on June 17, 2004.[15] A five-person board governs the District, which oversees approximately .[14]