It’s not exactly Willy Wonka, but an actual chocolate factory is coming to the Lake County city of Groveland, along Florida’s Turnpike a short drive west of Orlando.

However, chocolate enthusiasts and those with a sweet tooth may be disappointed to learn that public tours of the Behr’s Chocolates factory aren’t currently planned, according to a report in GrowthSpotter.

“Most of what we do is private label, so we manufacture for a lot of the products you might buy at the grocery store. So those contracts often preclude us from being able to tour people through,” said Douglas David, owner of the business. “Our customers are pretty sensitive about their brands, so I don’t think there’s going to be a tremendous element that’s going to be public-oriented for this project.”

David owns David Delights LLC, which owns Behr’s Chocolates. He made the remarks at a recent meeting of Groveland’s Planning and Zoning Board.

Although public tours aren’t on tap, the chocolate factory will mean more jobs for the Groveland area — although it’s not clear yet how many more jobs.

Behr’s Chocolates plans to renovate and expand an existing 58,000-square-foot light industrial building on a 30-acre property that’s located at 21005 Obrien Road between the Turnpike and U.S. 27 on the northern edge of Groveland.

The company paid $4.85 million in April 2022 for two adjoining parcels at the site, according to the Lake County Property Appraiser.

At its June 19 public meeting, the Groveland City Council unanimously approved annexing and rezoning the property. They changed its zoning from “Lake County Light Industrial” to “City of Groveland Light Industrial.” They’re slated to take a second and final vote on the annexation and rezoning at their July 17 meeting.

“Groveland is not only a city of natural charm, but it has also become an attractive choice for companies seeking great industrial space,” Mayor Evelyn Wilson told GrowthSpotter. “It’s bringing new employment opportunities to our residents, and we love that.”

The Behr’s Chocolates owner anticipates bringing more jobs to the area because the company will be expanding its operations there. The exact number of employees is yet to be determined.

The company currently uses the Groveland site to distribute its products, but the building expansion is aimed at bringing in manufacturing as well as distribution.

“Our company has been very fortunate. We’ve grown a tremendous amount in terms of the number of employees since we started in 2004,” David said.

The company has about 120 employees, mostly located in Orange County with some others in St. Lucie County, he said. The company’s mailing address is in Vero Beach in St. Lucie County.

“This would be our seventh building since 2004,” he said. “We’ve moved a lot as we’ve grown.”

“Part of our idea here — and the reason we’re on 30 acres — is because we’re kind of tired of moving. We want to find kind of a permanent home and just have enough land to expand our operations as necessary.”

To read more about this project and other early-stage development in Central Florida, go to GrowthSpotter.com and subscribe.