A large man-made lagoon being built within a new residential development in West Jacksonville could be open to the public as early as 2027.
Metro Development Group, based in Tampa, has started construction on its Diamond Springs community, located just west of Cecil Airport.
The company bought about 1,056 acres in the Westside back in 2021 for $34.56 million, using its affiliate, Hawk Normandy LLC.
The community will feature around 2,700 homes and a lagoon designed for activities like paddle-boarding and kayaking, according to Lisa Gibbings, Metro’s VP of marketing and communications.
Emory Alger, assistant project manager for Metro, said that the housing portion of the community is nearly move-in ready.
Several homebuilders—including Dream Finders, Lennar, DR Horton, and DRB—are already building houses in the area.
“There could be people moving in by the end of this summer once the Dream Finders and DRB homes open,” Alger said. “After that, I’ll be delivering more lots every 90 days or so, with a goal of about 800 lots completed by the end of the year.”
Metro is aiming to complete the lagoon by early 2027 and expects to break ground on it sometime in the first half of next year.
Once open, the lagoon will be available to the public, but neighborhood residents will have the option of buying annual passes, while non-residents will be limited to day passes.
Gibbings said they’re excited to bring this type of amenity to Jacksonville—something that offers a coastal-style experience inland, not just for the people living in the community but for others in the city as well.
As of March 18, 2025, heavy equipment was already on-site preparing the land for both the lagoon and the surrounding homes.
Plans include building at least 500 parking spaces around the lagoon, which will cover about 3–4 acres.
Metro still needs to submit details to the City of Jacksonville about how the lagoon will operate.
“There’s a lot of information the city wants to see,” Alger explained.
“They know about Beachwalk in St. Johns County, but we’re using a different system, so they want to review our water usage and other technical details.”
Beachwalk is a nearby development with a similar setup, featuring a Crystal Lagoons lake as a central attraction.
Information from: https://www.bizjournals.com/jacksonville/news/2025/03/19/recreational-lagoon-2-700-homes-planned-west-jax.html
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