Watching Wellen Park Grow Up: The Benderson Project and a Big Year Ahead

When my family and I moved here back in 2017, this place wasn't even called Wellen Park yet. It was the West Villages, and if you wanted to describe it to friends up north, you'd say something like "it's between Venice and North Port, past the river — there's not much out here yet, but just wait."

Well, the wait is over. And 2026 might be the biggest year yet.

Benderson Is Coming to Wellen Park

The news that has everyone talking: Benderson Development — the same company behind University Town Center in Sarasota and Cocoplum Village Shops in North Port — is building a 52-acre mixed-use commercial district right here in Wellen Park, at the corner of U.S. 41 and West Villages Parkway.

We're talking about roughly 500,000 square feet of retail, dining, entertainment, and services. Benderson purchased the land from Mattamy for about $23.4 million, and while the tenant list hasn't been announced yet, they've said to expect a mix of national brands, regional operators, and local businesses. Construction is expected to get underway in late 2026 or early 2027, and land clearing was already slated to begin this spring.

What I appreciate most is that this isn't going to be a generic strip mall dropped into our community. Benderson has said the project is being designed specifically to complement the Wellen Park lifestyle — walkable, golf-cart friendly, with outdoor gathering spaces that fit the active, social character we've built here. Anyone who has spent an evening at Downtown Wellen knows exactly what that vibe is, and it's encouraging to hear a developer of this caliber say they want to expand on it rather than compete with it.

For those of us who remember driving to Sarasota or south Venice for just about everything, the idea of a first-class regional shopping and dining destination five minutes from home is remarkable.

Wellen Park High School: Ready for Its First Bell

And then there's the milestone I might be most excited about: Wellen Park High School opens its doors this August for the 2026–2027 school year.

If you've driven past the site lately, you've seen it — the three-story, 325,000-square-foot academic building rising on an 81-acre campus. This is a $250 million investment in our community's future, and it shows. The school will feature a performing arts center, STEM labs, a media center, a full athletic complex, sand volleyball courts, and even a student-run coffee shop. Students will have opportunities to earn college credit and take part in hands-on, applied learning.

Go Eagles! The red, white, and blue colors and the mascot were chosen with community input, which feels fitting for a school that so many of us have watched come together brick by brick. Registration is already open through Sarasota County Schools, and the campus will help relieve crowding at Venice High and North Port High while giving Wellen Park families a true hometown school for the first time.

Nine Years of Saying "Just Wait"

When we bought here in 2017, we were betting on a vision. Back then it was mostly models, master plans, and a whole lot of open land. Since then, we've watched Wellen Park become one of the top-selling master-planned communities in the entire country. We got Downtown Wellen with its lakefront restaurants and Sunday farmers market. We got CoolToday Park and Braves spring training. We got trails, neighborhoods, friends, and a real sense of place.

Now we're getting a major commercial district from one of the most respected developers in the nation, a second Publix on the way at Willowbrook Center, and a brand-new high school that will anchor this community for generations.

Growth isn't always easy — there's more traffic than there was in 2017, no question. But when growth is planned this thoughtfully, it doesn't just add rooftops. It adds life. It adds opportunity. It adds the kind of amenities that make you proud to tell people where you live.

Nine years ago, I told everyone, "just wait." These days, I don't have to. Wellen Park has arrived — and honestly, I think the best is still ahead.

— A proud Wellen Park resident since 2017