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When Gary Kenny bought a vacation house near Walt Disney World in 1996, he went home to Ireland and told his friends about it. Since then, the longtime warehouse developer has turned his fascination with central Florida into a multimillion- dollar business with offices in Orlando and Dublin.
Kenny's company, Feltrim Development, raised $25 million this year from Irish investors to continue buying land in the Four Corners area where Orange, Osceola, Polk and Lake counties meet. Feltrim has 1,000 acres under contract or ownership and expects to buy another 900 by the end of the year, Kenny says. Feltrim's most publicized project is Tuscana at ChampionsGate between Celebration and Haines City. He paid $14 million for 29 acres there and is expected to wrap up construction by May. About 70% of the buyers are from Ireland.
Farther south in Lake Wales, Kenny plans to turn an old orange grove into a European-style community where people live in condos and walk to shops, cafes and offices. He's also looking at building 450 homes around Lake Annie in Dundee between Haines City and Lake Wales and is considering a project in downtown Lakeland. Although Feltrim maintains an Orlando presence, Kenny says he sees more opportunity in Polk County. "I could operate in downtown Orlando, but land is expensive. If I'm buying land in Polk County at $40,000 an acre and something goes wrong, it's a lot easier to hold on."
