Texas’ first Latitude Margaritaville development, a resort-style retirement community, may be coming to Texas City, according to the Houston Business Journal.
“Texas City continues to be a destination for high quality new developments, and the city is intrigued by the opportunity to be home to Minto Communities’ first Latitude Margaritaville,” said Texas City Mayor Dedrick Johnson.
Inspired by island-escapism singer Jimmy Buffet’s 1977 hit “Margaritaville,” the communities are specifically for adults over age 55 to relax and let loose.
“Jimmy Buffett and Margaritaville enjoy an enduring connection to the Gulf Coast, and this Latitude location will become another great destination to continue that tradition,” Scott Rogers, Minto’s Texas vice president of acquisition and development, said in a statement.
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Minto Communities USA, a Florida-based real estate developer, announced in April 2022 that it planned to open communities in Houston, Dallas and Austin.
Minto develops Latitude Margaritaville properties under license from Margaritaville Holdings. A few locations are already open in Daytona Beach, Florida; Panama Beach, Florida; and Hardeeville, South Carolina.
The communities feature a resort-style pool, live entertainment, a fitness center, signature Margaritaville food and drinks as well as arts and learning programs.
Latitude Margaritaville President William Bullock said the idea to expand to Texas came a couple of years ago after seeing the number of Texans that traveled to Florida annually.
Final sites for future locations have not been determined yet but according to Bullock, the site in Houston will likely be “further out” from downtown.
He added that the site would likely need between 1,000 and 1,500 acres to fit nearly 3,000 homes.
Bullock said the homes could be priced in the $200,000 to $400,000 range.
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According to Visit Florida Annual Report data, Dallas-Fort Worth ranked No. 6 in the top origin markets of Florida’s domestic visitors.
Florida tourism saw a record number of visitors in 2021, despite the international travel lockdowns during the pandemic.
Domestic visitors totaled 117.4 million people, which is 96 percent of 2021’s overall visitor volume. The number surpassed pre-pandemic levels from 2019.
Texans traveling from Dallas-Fort Worth accounted for a 2.8 percent share of Florida’s domestic visitors in 2021, a 1.3 percent increase from 2020. Since Dallas is 650 miles away from the Florida Panhandle, it has a strong market of drivers and flyers for visiting, the report states.
Houston ranked No. 15 on the list, bringing in 1.5 percent of Florida’s domestic visitors, a 0.2 percent drop compared to 2020.
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“We’d walk around the parking lots and see a lot of Texas plates. But they weren’t buying homes,” Bullock said. “That’s something unique about Texas. They don’t want to leave; they want to age in Texas. So we began looking at the possibility of bringing Latitude Margaritaville to them.”
The Houston, Dallas and Austin areas were chosen because of the temperate climates and proximity to airports, nearby hospitals and medical offices, as well as retail and businesses.
It is unknown when the community may break ground in Houston.
shaniece.brown@chron.com