City leaders in Bunnell are hoping to see economic growth if — and when — a developer builds hundreds of homes in a community that has been mostly stagnant for almost a decade.

  • Grand Reserve has been mostly stagnant since 2011
  • D.R. Horton approved to build more than 700 homes in neighborhood
  • Bunnell leaders hope new homes spurs economic growth

Grand Reserve, which is located in a corner between U.S. 1 and State Road 100, has hundreds of vacant lots. The area has been that way for about 10 years.

"When the market went south, all the builders pulled out," said Dan Davis, the city manager of Bunnell. "We just had no more hammers flying anymore; no more roofs going up."

There are just a handful of homes sitting on the golf course. The last home was built in 2011.

"The only thing we can do is try to get economic development, try to get businesses to come to Bunnell," Davis said. "And this, just to have residents — just to have a builder that's willing to come in and start buildings homes again — this is exactly what we need."

The city recently approved permits for D.R. Horton to build more than a dozen model homes. The building plans show there is now a potential to grow the neighborhood by more than 700 single-family homes.

"Until D.R. Horton purchased and showed interest in the property, there weren't any developers who were planning to do any building in the neighborhood," said Kristen Bates, acting director of community development.

Bates said the homes will be a nice size for residents, adding that D.R. Horton is offering homes as small as 1,500 square feet and also larger than 2,000 square feet.

Davis said he hopes the new development brings new property tax dollars after years of no new revenue, tight budgeting and tough cuts.

"There were a lot of positions cut, there were a lot of programs cut," he said. "So, it's been very tough. There's hardly a day that goes by that I don't have to face some kind of decision of how am I going to make this work with hardly to no money at all."

The homes will cost in the $200,000 range. Davis said that's an estimated $2,000 in property taxes per home per year. After the money is divvied up between the county and cities, Bunnell will get about $800 per home.

That money will eventually help build new sidewalks, improve roadways, restore community programs and, hopefully, more jobs.

"Every little bit helps," Davis said. "Hopefully more police officers. We've been short on officers for a while, so the income will help us with our personnel needs. When we have the chance to actually get more revenue, it's much needed."

Construction on the model homes can begin as soon as D.R. Horton gets its materials. A few model homes are expected to be vertical within a couple of months.