450 acres on Fruitville hits the market

A Canadian homebuilder is selling a 450-acre tract on Fruitville Road — one of the largest sites to come to market in Sarasota County in the past decade — for $32.5 million.

Toronto-based Lindvest is selling the land after receiving entitlements from the county for 900 residences and as much as 100,000 square feet of commercial space on the property.

John Debitetto, the Land Solutions Inc. broker marketing the property for sale, says Lindvest is selling the land to focus on its Canadian operations. The Fruitville land is the company's only Florida holding.

Since its founding in 1998, Lindvest has built dozens of communities and mixed-use projects throughout Ontario, according to its website.

Lindvest's decision to sell the land also comes as Lakewood Ranch master developer Schroeder-Manatee Ranch has outlined plans to extend Lorraine Road from the planned community to Fruitville by mid-2017.

“When that occurs, that whole area will be a more favorable place to live,” Debitetto says. “It'll have much greater access. Two years from now, it will be in a superior location, with easy access to I-75 and the new mall.”

The property, which is 3.5 miles east of Interstate 75, is slated to contain 225 multifamily units within the overall 900, says Debitetto, who is director of sales at Fort Myers-based Land Solutions.