Panther Run Wins County Approval: Inside Clermont’s 2,241-Acre Wellness Way Community
Lake County commissioners have approved Panther Run, clearing the way for the largest development in the Wellness Way corridor. The 2,241-acre master-planned community near Clermont pairs more than 3,000 jobs with an unusual promise: 72.5% of the land stays green. Here’s what the approval means for South Lake County buyers, sellers and residents.
A conceptual rendering of the planned Panther Run entrance, part of a community that will stretch from US Highway 27 to the Orange County line near Clermont.
Image: Panther Run. Conceptual rendering only; the final design may change.
What to Know
The Panther Run approval in brief
After years of planning, one of Central Florida’s largest land deals now has a green light and a construction timeline.
Approved 3 to 1. Commissioners rezoned the 2,241-acre site to a Planned Unit Development, advancing the largest project in the Wellness Way corridor near Clermont.
72.5% stays green. More than 1,170 acres of wetlands and lakes, plus about 456 acres of parks and trails, anchor a wildlife corridor and 20 community parks.
Ground breaks in 2027. Site work is planned for the first quarter of 2027, with 3,000-plus jobs and nearly five miles of new roads to follow.
Panther Run, a 2,241-acre master-planned community in south Lake County, has earned county approval and will move ahead as the largest development in the Wellness Way corridor. The plan keeps 72.5% of the land as green space, adds more than 3,000 jobs and nearly five miles of new roads, and reserves land for a new high school and a public safety complex.
Lake County commissioners voted 3 to 1 this week to rezone the property, allowing developer GT USA to advance a community that runs from US Highway 27 on the west to the Orange County line on the east. According to the official Panther Run announcement, the vote followed the county’s Wellness Way Area Plan, first adopted in the Comprehensive Plan back in 2016, and the project did not request entitlements beyond what that plan already allowed.
What the approval actually covers
The Panther Run PUD rezoning is the regulatory step that lets GT USA build what the Wellness Way plan envisioned: employment centers, neighborhoods, schools and conservation land on a single 2,241-acre tract near Four Corners. The project is approved for roughly 2,600 homes placed on under a quarter of the property, with the balance dedicated to lakes, wetlands, uplands and open space.
Commissioner Kirby Smith was absent and Commissioner Anthony Sabatini voted against the project, which still passed 3 to 1. County staff and the property’s former owner praised the developer for meeting and, in several categories, exceeding Wellness Way standards, especially on land set aside for employment and green space.
Jobs, roads and the pieces residents will feel first
Panther Run is planned for more than one million square feet of employment space, which the developer estimates will create over 3,000 jobs in the corridor’s designated employment sites. For existing residents, the most immediate change may be asphalt: GT USA is required to build nearly five miles of new roadways that connect surrounding communities and relieve congestion on roads the county has needed to expand for years.
The plan also reserves land for public facilities that South Lake County has been short on: a proposed new high school and an 8-acre public safety complex that could house both a fire station and a sheriff’s substation. A more compact vacation-home component is forecast to generate roughly $6 million a year in tourist tax revenue for the county.
Panther Run by the numbers
The figures matter because they set the template for how Wellness Way develops: conservation-heavy land use, employment alongside rooftops, and infrastructure built in from day one.
A conservation footprint bigger than the homes
The headline number is the split. Roughly three-quarters of Panther Run, more than 1,170 acres of wetlands and lakes plus about 456 acres of parks, trails and habitat, stays undeveloped. The design adds a wildlife corridor meant to close a critical gap in the statewide Florida Wildlife Corridor, along with 11 miles of trails for walking, jogging and cycling and 20 community parks.
A note on the name: while the community is called Panther Run, biologists point out that Florida panthers no longer range this far north. The name reflects the project’s conservation intent rather than current habitat.
A light real estate read for South Lake buyers
For buyers weighing South Lake County, Panther Run is a signal about where the Four Corners area is heading. Master plans that front-load employment, roads and schools tend to age well, because the daily-life infrastructure arrives with the homes rather than years later. Being on the US 27 corridor and roughly fifteen minutes from the Disney area keeps the location relevant to both commuters and relocation buyers.
For current homeowners nearby, the conservation-heavy layout is worth noting: keeping nearly three-quarters of the land as lakes, wetlands and parks limits density and preserves buffers a wall-to-wall subdivision would not. As always, the pace of homebuilding, the builder mix and pricing will shape what any of this means for a specific street or price point.
The Takeaway
Panther Run’s approval turns the decade-old Wellness Way vision into a funded, permitted plan. With more than 3,000 jobs, nearly five miles of new roads, a reserved high school site and a public safety complex, it is built to deliver the infrastructure South Lake County has been waiting for, not just more rooftops.
Watch the first quarter of 2027. If site work begins on schedule, Panther Run will quickly become one of the most-watched addresses in Central Florida growth.
FAQ
Has Panther Run been approved?
Yes. Lake County commissioners voted 3 to 1 to rezone the 2,241-acre property to a Planned Unit Development, allowing developer GT USA to move the master-planned community forward. Site work is planned for the first quarter of 2027.
Where is Panther Run located?
In south Lake County’s Wellness Way corridor near Clermont and Four Corners, stretching from US Highway 27 on the west to the Orange County line on the east, minutes from the Disney area.
How big is Panther Run, and how much of it is green space?
The community covers 2,241 acres, the largest land sale in Lake County history. About 72.5% stays green, including more than 1,170 acres of wetlands and lakes, roughly 456 acres of parks and trails, 20 community parks and 11 miles of trails.
What will Panther Run include besides homes?
Beyond roughly 2,600 homes, the plan adds more than one million square feet of employment space (an estimated 3,000-plus jobs), nearly five miles of new roads, a reserved site for a new high school, and an 8-acre public safety complex for a fire station and sheriff’s substation.
When will construction start?
GT USA plans to break ground in the first quarter of 2027, once the rezoning takes effect.
External Links & Related Reading
For readers who want the official plans and public record behind Panther Run, these are the key references.
Thinking about a move to South Lake County?
Growth like Panther Run reshapes what South Lake County offers buyers and sellers. When a move is on your radar, local context is everything.