Neal Communities completes sales in Central Park

Seven years after Neal Communities opened Central Park in Lakewood Ranch, all 825 home sites within the Lakewood Ranch community have been sold.

It took nerve and a belief that the economy had made a turn for better when developer Pat Neal opened Central Park in July 2010 so soon after the Great Recession. Central Park was the first major neighborhood built at Lakewood Ranch north of State Road 70.

Neal bought 380 acres of pasture in 2004, envisioning building homes ranging in price from the high $300,000s to more than $1 million.

Faced with the reality of the Great Recession and a scarcity of consumers willing to make a major investment such as a home purchase, Neal announced that prices would start at $126,990 for his Spirit II, a 1,040-square-foot two-bedroom, two-bath model. Those kind of prices had not been seen at Lakewood Ranch since the early 1990s.

Similar to Central Park in New York, the neighborhoods within Central Park are named for well-known parks across the U.S., including Claremont Park, Gramercy Park, Piedmont Park and Longview Lake Park, among others.

“There’s a real sense of community that’s developed here and it continues to develop,” said Sue Balloch, who moved to Central Park four years ago. “Even after the community has been around for seven years, that strong sense of pride and camaraderie is still there. The park is the focal point of the Central Park community. I think the park more easily allows us to have a central place to do activities with our neighbors and creates a stronger sense of community.”

In addition to its park, Central Park features two dog parks, a kid’s adventure park, splash park, tennis courts, recreational fields for baseball, soccer and football, a covered pavilion and walking trails.

This story was originally published September 20, 2017 at 2:55 PM with the headline "Neal Communities completes sales in Central Park."