New houses sprouting out of the ground in Jupiter

Most houses are on canals (Photo by Bill DiPaolo)

3 THINGS TO KNOW

New houses coming out of the ground at Sonoma Isles in Jupiter

WHAT’S HAPPENING?

First called Lakewood, now renamed Sonoma Isles, the 275 houses in the gated development on 260 acres of former farmland are selling at a starting price of about $650,000. The single-family houses, most of them on canals about 100 feet wide, are between 2,500 and 5,000 square feet.

WHAT’S NEXT?

Plans for the property on northwest corner of Indiantown Road and Florida’s Turnpike also call for a restaurant, office, drug store and 150,000 square feet of research and development office space. Formerly known as Parcel 19, the development is being built what was one of the largest vacant tracts in incorporated Palm Beach County.

WHAT IT MEANS TO YOU

Developers expect the strong market in luxury homes, and the proximity of Sonoma Lakes to the Loxahatchee River and Riverbend Park, to be strong selling points. The project was originally planned to include a 20-pump gas station and have 350 homes. Facing opposition, the developers scaled back the plan.