Ocoee complex will feature 16 baseball fields

This will bring the second largest regional sports and entertainment complex.

By Andrea Mujica
| 6:15 p.m. December 15, 2022

West Orange Times & Observer
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The commission approved all items on the consent agenda. These included the approval of the cost proposal for the disaster debris removal services with CrowderGulf LLC; the approval of the acceptance of the Victims of Crime Act grant agreement that would be awarded to the Ocoee Police Department to fund a victim witness advocate position; and the approval of the contracted sidewalk repairs by using the existing contract with APEC LLC the city of Kissimmee is utilizing to expedite said sidewalk repairs.
The commission approved the first reading of ordinance for the Howard Property to be annexed into the city and to be rezoned to R-1AA (single family dwelling district) develop a single family subdivision. The commission also heard the first reading of an ordinance for a substantial amendment to the Ocoee Town Shops PUD to convert it into a Wawa gas station with a smaller square footage and use the remaining space for future retail/restaurant developments. Finally, the commission performed the first reading of an ordinance for the adoption of the five-year schedule of the capital improvements that are part of the comprehensive plan amendment. These items will be brought back to the commission for the second reading of ordinance and public hearing during the Jan. 17, 2023, meeting.
The commission approved the payment of an outstanding balance owed to Jennifer Yon Agency and HighPoint Church regarding the Ocoee Remembrance Event and the Unity Festival. The total amount owed was $27,637.34. Out of those $27,637.34, the amount owed to Yon Agency was $19,637.34 and the remaining was owed to HighPoint Church.
The commission approved a resolution to amend the bylaws of the Human Relations Diversity Board.

The Ocoee Commission approved the memorandum of understanding between Montierre Development, PLLC and the city of Ocoee during its Tuesday, Dec. 6, meeting.

This will bring the second largest regional sports and entertainment complex, which will consist of 16 baseball fields, nine batting cages, multi-purpose fields, a recreation park and playground areas, a splash pad area, and a welcome center.

A mixed-use center will be built next to the sports complex consisting of two hotels with about 400 rooms, seven retail or restaurant buildings, about 20,000 square feet of office space and two parking garages that will fit up to 1,600 parking spaces.

Montierre needed to acquire about 148 acres of land along the Ocoee- Apopka Road. According to the agenda, the development will combine what is formally identified as the “Rogers Property” located on Ocoee-Apopka Road with the lands located adjacent to it known as the Chevron Property.

“When we purchased the Rogers Property, the intent was a sports field; we had just not been able to do it,” Commissioner Rosemary Wilsen said. “But, that’s the property, and the plan when we bought it was for that purpose, so this is exciting to me, and I’m hoping we can move forward with this.”

The sports complex will bring a number of benefits to the city of Ocoee, such as an influx of new jobs, enhancement of the environment located within the property, the infrastructure will bring with it the widening of Ocoee-Apopka Road and Fullers Cross Road, increased tax revenue, pay back from the Rogers Property and continued revenue stream as the city will received an annual percentage in profits once the facility is operational.

“I just think that it’s something that we would enjoy,” Mayor Rusty Johnson said.

“This will be driving a lot of guests to the city of Ocoee,” Montierre CEO Jaime Douglas said. “It will be the top destination with anyone associated with travel baseball and beyond, a point of focus for the community. … That’s why we named it the Ocoee Sports Complex.”

“I can attest to the popularity of travel baseball for the youth,” Commissioner Richard Firstner said. “So, I can see this generating the interest of a lot of people in the country. People spend money on this like there is no tomorrow.”

The development will come at no cost for the city. The only request from the commissioners was for the developers to hire local contractors and local professionals who can aide in the construction of the complex to bring that extra number of jobs to the city starting as early as 2023.

The project is set to break ground in late 2023 and is scheduled and expected to be completed in 2025.

author

Andrea Mujica

Staff writer Andrea Mujica covers sports, news and features. She holds both a bachelor's degree in journalism and an MBA from the University of Central Florida. When she’s not on the sidelines, you can find Andrea coaching rowers at the Orlando Area Rowing Society in Windermere.