City moving forward with new Boys & Girls Club facility

The city of Winter Garden and the Boys & Girls Clubs of Central Florida, at the Thursday, March 14, City Commission meeting, agreed to enter into a 35-year ground lease agreement for property located in historic east Winter Garden.

The agreement governs and defines the terms of the relationship involving the property at 459 Ninth St., Winter Garden.

The Boys & Girls Club will develop, improve, operate and maintain the new planned facility. 

The facility will be developed in two phases on the city-owned property, currently zoned Residential District. 

As part of the agreement, the city also agreed to contribute $1.5 million toward the construction of the project’s second phase.

The building, situated on 2.44 acres, will be 9,980 square feet and will have 39 parking spaces.

Economic Development Director Marc Hutchinson said the operating presence of the Boys & Girls Club in Winter Garden will address well-needed services and programming for local students from K-12. The facility also will provide additional multi-use meeting space for the use and benefit of the community, including residents and non-profit organizations. 

“The Boys & Girls Clubs of Central Florida have a remarkable and well-documented track record of success,” he said. “This operating and ground lease agreement represents a significant partnership that will directly enrich and impact families in our Winter Garden community.”

District 3 Commissioner Mark A. Maciel thanked city staff for their hard work and said the project has been “a long time coming.”

“I know we get a lot of comments that the city is buying property in east Winter Garden, and this is an example of what we do with that property when we purchase it,” Maciel said. “We get this property so we can do great things for the community with it.” 

A construction start date has not yet been established. A few finishing additional steps need to occur, including a split lot approval process to properly redefine the property and premises upon which the new structure will sit.