Osceola County is launching a second NeoCity technology park in St. Cloud, in the latest piece of the county’s aggressive, publicly-subsidized job development efforts.

The county has contemplated “NeoCity South” since acquiring 323 acres last year on the Cross Prairie Parkway at the new Florida’s Turnpike interchange with W. Nolte Road from D.R. Horton. Development Services Director Raymond Stangle announced the decision last week while speaking to the Osceola County Association of Realtors, according to a report in GrowthSpotter.

“We’ve got NeoCity moving forward at a brisk pace, and we’ve got lots of interest there,” Stangle said. “And now we’re taking our next step to look at the 300 acres and partnering with St. Cloud in creating NeoCity South … We’re very excited about building on our brand and bringing jobs to Osceola County.”

The county is nearing a deal for the development of a smart city center at its main NeoCity campus, anchored by a new $225 million performing arts center. County Manager Don Fisher said co-developers Sciame Construction and Edward J. Minskoff are expected to submit development plans for phase 1 by December.

South Korea-based tech company ELSPES is in negotiations to build its global headquarters and U.S. manufacturing facility nearby, for an investment of $370 million. The development agreement is expected within two months, according to Fisher.

According to the Memorandum of Understanding adopted last November, ELSPES would invest at least $170 million to build and equip the 75,000-square-foot facility. Construction was scheduled to start in 2025 so the first 100 employees could start in 2026 — with another 200 by 2028 — with an average salary of $85,000. The second phase of development would bring another $200 million in manufacturing equipment and 300 jobs to the facility by 2034.

Osceola Commissioners paid $17.3 million for the NeoCity South acreage, which is west of the turnpike, between Tohoqua and the Heritage at Crossprairie urban center.  Fisher told GrowthSpotter at the time of the purchase that the county wanted to preserve the land as a potential industrial site and prevent it from becoming another residential neighborhood or apartment complex.

The property is just east of a future high school at Tohoqua, and it’s north of the Heritage urban center at Crossprairie. WMG Development bought the 95-acre Heritage site in June for $20.4 million and plans to start work early next year on the horizontal construction, which includes extending Nolte Road to the new interchange.

Osceola County is also moving ahead with plans for another site in St. Cloud on which it is taking a similar approach to NeoCity South. A year ago the county paid $15 million for 61 acres between U.S. 192 and Neptune Road, and it is now negotiating with JCQ Services, an Orlando hospitality and theme park fabricator, for the site.

Fisher said the company has until December to reach a purchase agreement with the county. JCQ was the sole responder to the county’s request for letters of interest, and Fisher extended the negotiation period for a couple of reasons.

“We’ve been in conversations with them,” he said. “They don’t need the entire property, and the Turnpike needs a stormwater pond. So we’ve been in conversations with the Turnpike Enterprise about maybe some of the back side of that property being stormwater retention for the turnpike widening.”

The toll road is being widened from two to four lanes in each direction from U.S. 192 to Clay Whaley Road. That includes the new diverging diamond interchange at W. Nolte Road and removing the access ramps at Clay Whaley Road.

Fisher said the request from the Turnpike Enterprise came as a bit of surprise. “It’s being widened now, so I don’t understand why there wouldn’t be a pond already,” he said. “I think it’s going to line up well with JCQ not needing as much property, and my guess is that the Turnpike probably needs about 10-15 acres. So it’s still a pretty good pad that’s left.”

Have a tip about Central Florida development? Contact me at lkinsler@GrowthSpotter.com or (407) 420-6261. Follow GrowthSpotter on Facebook and LinkedIn.