Benderson Development, working with The Villages, is planning Legacy Place, a 700-acre mixed-use project in Central Florida that will expand commercial and wellness offerings for the master-planned community. The site is positioned along a three-mile stretch of Florida’s Turnpike near County Road 470 and Central Parkway, and is intended to function as the southern gateway to The Villages campus.
The plan calls for a large-scale, phased development program anchored by a new hospital and supported by a broad mix of retail, dining and wellness uses. At full build-out, Legacy Place is expected to deliver 3 million square feet of space for shops, restaurants and wellness-focused offerings. The program will incorporate walkable public spaces and integrate the new AdventHealth hospital into the broader mixed-use environment.
The healthcare component will be a 25-acre, 80-bed hospital operated by AdventHealth, which is designed to serve both residents of The Villages and the surrounding Central Florida area. The hospital will include emergency and surgical services. Construction is slated to begin in 2027, with an opening currently projected for 2030, positioning the medical facility as a long-term anchor for the project.
Benderson intends to deliver Legacy Place in multiple phases, with the first elements expected to open in 2027. Those initial phases are planned to introduce portions of the retail, restaurant and wellness space, beginning the process of activating the site as a new southern entry point to The Villages. Over time, the goal is for the project to build out into a sizable commercial and health-oriented district integrated with the master-planned community’s existing fabric.
The Villages itself is an active adult master-planned community with more than 150,000 residents. Its campus covers over 30,000 acres across Lake, Sumter and Marion counties in Central Florida. By adding a significant concentration of commercial space and a new regional hospital along Florida’s Turnpike, Legacy Place is positioned to extend the community’s footprint and expand its range of services.
