Southwest Florida's Newest Town

We had a loan application appointment this last weekend with a nice couple out in Golden Gate Estates. Knowing their location (east of Naples) was close to the Fakahatchee Strand State Park, I decided to tag along as getting out into the Everglades is one of my favorite things to do. It was an early morning appointment, so I had a chance to enjoy the beauty of the place before it got too hot. On the drive back, we noticed the signs for Ave Maria and decided it was about time for us to check out Southwest Florida's newest town.

Ave Maria is the brain child of Tom Monaghan, founder of Domino's Pizza and the Chancellor of Ave Maria University. His conception of having the first Catholic University built since Sacred Heart in 1963 has finally come to fruition. Planning for the town began 5 years ago when The Ave Maria Foundation partnered with Barron Collier Companies to create the new town centered around the 5,000 student University. Construction started in February 2006 and as of this writing, is rapidly moving towards completion.

Ave Maria Town Center

Totaling approximately 5,000 acres, a quarter of which will be designated for the University, Ave Marie is intended to be a fully self-sustaining city. Designed to be a "walking" town, the core of which is the soaring Oratory surrounded by retail and commercial space, and residential condominiums. Three additional commercial centers will provide essential services, along with medical, dining, and entertainment. Of significant note is the fact almost half of the town area is devoted to parks, lakes, and open spaces.

The town should have more than 11,000 new residential units and will offer many amenities including championship golf and tennis, a water park, sports/recreational fields, an amphitheatre, fitness facilities and miles of walking trails. There are distinct and separate communities being built with Pulte Homes providing nearly 60% of the new construction. Two other builders, DiVosta and Del Webb also have planned communities within the new town.

The latest update is that all the core retail spaces are filled and over 250 homes are completed and the residents have moved in. The town is attracting both young families and retirees and the commercial spaces are expected to be built out by the end of this year. The University will welcome some 600 students for this fall's semester and the town's kindergarten through K-12 parochial school has 140 students currently enrolled.

The town is expected to provide nearly 12,000 new jobs and more companies are being attracted to the area every day. Paul Marinelli, the CEO of Barron Collier Companies announced earlier this month that Arthrex, a medical technology company will be opening their manufacturing operations in Ave Maria in early 2009.

To say that Ave Maria is impressive is an understatement. While we had followed its progress in the newspapers, seeing it in person was quite an eye opening experience.

If you would like more information on Ave Maria including its home builders, contact us and we'll be happy to assist you.

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