A massive master-planned community moving through the approval process in Lake County may sound like Clermont news at first glance. But one part of the project makes Panther Run especially important for Horizon West residents: its proximity to the Orange County line and the potential connection to Old YMCA Road.
Panther Run is a proposed 2,241-acre mixed-use development in southeast Lake County, located north of Sawgrass Bay Boulevard and south of Schofield Road. The project is part of Lake County’s larger Wellness Way planning area and stretches west of Horizon West toward U.S. 27. Lake County’s public notice confirms the property is seeking rezoning from Agriculture to a Master Planned Unit Development.
Plans currently call for 2,624 homes, along with commercial and employment areas, tourism uses, parks, trails and other community infrastructure. Major homebuilders including Dream Finders Homes, Toll Brothers and Lennar have already secured positions within the development, while Pulte Homes is under contract for a tourist-home community.
For Horizon West, however, the most important part of Panther Run may not be what is being built inside the community. It is how this new development could eventually connect with the roads residents already use every day.
The Old YMCA Road Connection
Plans associated with Panther Run include improvements to Old YMCA Road on the Lake County side of the county line.
That matters because Old YMCA Road already continues into Orange County and sits within an area Orange County has identified for future transportation improvements associated with Horizon West.
Orange County’s official Avalon Road/CR 545 Preliminary Design Study proposes Avalon Road as a four-lane divided roadway within a 120-foot right-of-way. The county describes the roadway segments included in the study as a major component of the critical roadway network needed to support the Horizon West Planning Area.
Two of those planned segments are particularly relevant:
- Old YMCA Road to Schofield Road
- Marina Bay Drive to Old YMCA Road
That means a future connection near Panther Run is not appearing in isolation. Orange County has already been studying how Old YMCA Road fits into the long-term road network on the Horizon West side of the county line.
There is an important distinction, though: Panther Run’s current submitted plans do not identify improvements to Old YMCA Road inside Orange County.
Lake County approval of Panther Run would not automatically authorize construction of roadway improvements in Orange County. Orange County would still control the planning, design, funding and construction of roads within its jurisdiction.
In other words, this is a connection Horizon West residents should watch — not a road opening tomorrow.
What Could Panther Run Mean for Horizon West Traffic?
This is likely the biggest question for residents, and right now there is not enough information to responsibly say exactly how Panther Run will affect Horizon West traffic.
Panther Run will have several potential transportation connections as the Wellness Way area develops, including new roadway infrastructure tied to County Road 455 and State Road 516. Current plans include more than four miles of new roadway and a direct connection to SR 516.
That means not every vehicle generated by Panther Run would necessarily travel east into Horizon West.
The key question will be how future trips are divided among the available routes.
That answer is still developing.
According to reporting on the Lake County Planning & Zoning review, the project’s traffic impact analysis cannot yet receive approval until the applicant submits a revised study.
For Horizon West residents, that revised traffic study may ultimately be one of the most important documents connected to Panther Run. It could provide a clearer picture of how much traffic is expected to use Old YMCA Road, Avalon Road and Schofield Road compared with Lake County routes and SR 516.
Until that information is available, claims that Panther Run will either dramatically increase Horizon West traffic or significantly relieve congestion would be premature.
This Is Much More Than a New Subdivision
The scale of Panther Run also gives some perspective on how quickly the land immediately west of Horizon West could change.
The development calls for approximately 2,600 homes along with more than 1 million square feet of commercial and employment space. Project representatives estimate those employment areas could support more than 3,000 jobs.
Plans also include more than 11 miles of trails, 20 neighborhood parks and substantial preserved open space. Approximately 72.5% of the property is planned to remain as lakes, wetlands, conservation areas, parks and other open space.
Land is also being reserved for a potential future Lake County high school and an eight-acre public safety site that could eventually accommodate facilities such as fire and law-enforcement services.
The possible high school is worth noting, but it would be part of Lake County Schools, not Orange County Public Schools, and should not be viewed as additional school capacity for Horizon West.
Panther Run Is Not Finally Approved Yet
Another important distinction: Panther Run has not received final Lake County approval.
The project has cleared the Lake County Planning & Zoning Board stage, but the proposed rezoning still must be considered by the Lake County Board of County Commissioners.
Lake County’s published public notice schedules that hearing for:
September 1, 2026 at 9 a.m.
Lake County Administration Building
315 W. Main Street, Tavares
The request would rezone approximately 2,241 acres to a Master Planned Unit Development to facilitate the mixed-use Panther Run project within the Wellness Way Area Plan.
The developer is currently targeting an early 2027 groundbreaking, assuming the necessary approvals move forward.
Why Horizon West Should Be Paying Attention
Horizon West residents have watched development steadily move west for years. Panther Run is significant because large-scale development is now advancing on the other side of the Orange/Lake county line, while transportation plans on both sides increasingly point toward a more connected regional road system.
The biggest questions for Horizon West are still ahead:
How much Panther Run traffic will ultimately travel into Orange County? When will Orange County move forward with the Old YMCA Road and Avalon Road improvements already identified in its transportation plans? What infrastructure will be required before those connections are completed?
Those answers will matter much more to Horizon West residents than the simple headline that another 2,600 homes are planned in Lake County.
Horizon West Happenings will continue following the Panther Run approval process, the revised traffic analysis and any updates involving Old YMCA Road and Orange County’s future Avalon Road improvements as additional information becomes available.
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