RealWealth Investors Celebrate the Nation’s Largest Crystal Lagoon

This is the 1300th episode of our news podcast! And to celebrate we are featuring another big win for our RealWealth investors -- the public opening of a man-made crystal lagoon in the Tampa Bay area that's now the nation's largest! The 15-acre Mirada Lagoon is part of a massive development project in Pasco County that was syndicated by us at RealWealth. It was supposed to open a few years ago, but thanks to the pandemic and supply chain issues, those plans were delayed until now! (1)   Hi, I'm Kathy Fettke and this is Real Estate News for Investors. Please remember to subscribe to this podcast and leave us a review.   We acquired the land for about 10 cents on the dollar nearly a decade ago, during the downturn. It was called Cannon Ranch at the time, and slated for 4200 homes on a golf course, but our team thought that consumers might be ready for something different. We brought on a partner, Metro Development Group, and decided to replace the golf-course plan with a huge 15-acre crystal lagoon.    We changed the name from Cannon Ranch to The Mirada. It's located near Wesley Chapel, north of Tampa, right next to another community with the nation’s first crystal lagoon, also built by Metro. It’s the 7.5 acre Epperson Lagoon. As reported by the Orlando Sentinel, Metro has now opened a total of three lagoons in the Tampa Bay area. (2) The Neighborhood News says Metro is opening a fourth in Ft. Myers, with plans for several more in central Florida. (3)   What Are Crystal Lagoons?   So exactly what is a crystal lagoon? They’ve been described by some as nothing short of massive and stunning. (4) They have the ability to transform any ordinary piece of land into a safe, family-friendly beach. They are filled with crystal clear water that’s perfect for swimming, paddle boarding, kayaking and other water sports. They can be as deep as nine feet or as shallow as needed for young children. And there is no limit to their size.   The technology is also impressive. Crystal Lagoons use one hundred times fewer chemicals than swimming pools on a per-volume basis. Instead of chlorine they use an automated remote-controlled system that measures the water’s PH, temperature, and other factors to determine the exact locations that need disinfecting. Disinfectant is then used only in those places.   They also have a low-cost ultrasonic filtration system for solid matter that uses sound waves to push dirt into a giant suction cart that travels on the bottom of the pool. It’s very energy efficient and uses 50 times less energy than typical swimming pool technology.   And, they are good at conserving water. Despite the massive volume of water needed to fill one of these pools, they use 30 times less water than a golf course and 50% less water than a park of the same size. And, they use anti-evaporation technology that conserves even more water.   Mirada Lagoon - Massive and Stunning!   The Mirada is so big, it took 45 days and about 33 million gallons of water to fill it! It also needed about 17 million pounds of sand to create a mile-long shoreline around the lagoon. Amenities include a swim-up bar, a water slide, a “splash zone” for kids, and a floating obstacle course. Visitors can rent cabanas, as you might expect, along with paddle boards and kayaks to cruise around the lagoon.   Metro’s vice president of marketing and communications, Vaike O’Grady, says the Mirada Lagoon presented some unexpected challenges, like the Covid-related supply-chain issues and labor shortages, but overall, demand for crystal lagoons has been strong. She said of the company’s plans: “After we saw what the success was, we realized we could do this again and again because there was so much demand for it.”    The overall size of the Mirada development is about 2,000 acres. Although some residents already live there, plans call for a total of 4,500 homes from six different builders. O’Grady says prices will range from the high $200s to more than $1 million.   Popularity Growing for Crystal Lagoons   She says about 40% of the buyers come from out-of-state, and that many are finding the lagoon an affordable alternative to a home along the ocean. She says: “When they come here and they see they can have an inland lagoon lifestyle from prices as low as the high $200s, they’re blown away by the value.”    Crystal lagoons are becoming popular in many areas. Including the Palm Springs area of Southern California. That’s where Disney is building a community called Cotino with another mammoth-sized lagoon. It was initially going to be about twice the size of the Mirada, but plans have apparently been scaled back to about 24-acres, which is still substantially larger than the Mirada Lagoon.   As for how you can enjoy the Mirada Lagoon – members of the general public can purchase day passes. All-day passes range from $20 to $40. (5)   You can also learn how to buy real estate in places like this as a member of RealWealth. It’s free to join for access to our housing market data, investment counselors, and referrals to real estate professionals that you might need to help build a portfolio of rental properties.  Our business plan with this syndication was to finish out the lots and sell them in bulk to builders. Investors, who have a 15% preferred return, should expect to begin receiving their capital back early next year, along with profits. If you want to hear about our current syndication projects, go to growdevelopments.com.   Thanks for listening, and please remember to subscribe to the podcast!   Kathy Fettke   Links:   1 - https://www.tampabay.com/news/pasco/2023/06/06/largest-man-made-lagoon-country-just-opened-pasco-county/   2 - https://www.orlandosentinel.com/2023/06/07/largest-human-made-lagoon-in-u-s-opens-in-pasco-county/   3 - https://neighborhoodnewsonline.net/now-open-at-mirada-the-largest-manmade-lagoon-in-the-u-s/#:~:text=Yes%2C%20while%20Epperson's%207.5%2Dacre,now%20open%20to%20the%20public.   4 - https://www.crystal-lagoons.com/real-estate-projects/   5 - https://miradastaycay.com/