Circuit Florida, with condos and a private racetrack, is opening this year in Auburndale

Paul Nutcher, The Ledger
·4 min read

With a racetrack nearing completion, the team at Circuit Florida hopes race car enthusiasts will be seeing checkered flags by December at the Auburndale luxury racetrack resort.

The site along Interstate 4, buffered on two sides by warehouses including an Amazon distribution center, is a unique private club for racing aficionados that is jockeying for position in a growing market for private racetrack clubs across the country.

“They actually have residential zoning, which is a little unusual for a racetrack,” said Circuit Florida’s sales director, Jarrett Novack, of the racing club’s niche in the market. “There's only about two other racetrack properties in the country that actually have residential zoning alongside the racetrack. So it’s a very novel concept.”

Circuit Florida, set between warehouses and Interstate 4 off of State Road 559 in Auburndale, is billed as a luxury racetrack resort. It will contain a private racetrack with 75 townhome-style residences built around it, plus amenities. Some of the condos are nearing completion in August. The racetrack should open in December.
Circuit Florida, set between warehouses and Interstate 4 off of State Road 559 in Auburndale, is billed as a luxury racetrack resort. It will contain a private racetrack with 75 townhome-style residences built around it, plus amenities. Some of the condos are nearing completion in August. The racetrack should open in December.

There are two other private racing club facilities in Florida, one in Tampa and another in the Miami area. But having condos for sale along the track is the unique selling proposition for the club in Auburndale, he said. The Tampa facility is called The Motor Enclave, and the one in Miami is called The Concours Club. Out West, there is The Thermal Club near Palm Springs and the Spring Mountain Motor Sports and Country Club in Las Vegas. 

Circuit Florida has plans for 75 residential townhome-style condominiums that offer plenty of garage space below the living area upstairs. Up to three condo buildings will be nearing completion by August.

The racetrack is a 1.7-mile circuit on 52 acres.

The racetrack at Circuit Florida will be a 1.7-mile circuit on 52 acres.
The racetrack at Circuit Florida will be a 1.7-mile circuit on 52 acres.

“It’s going to be like a high-end motor sports resort – a place where people can house and use their exotic sports cars or purpose-built race cars,” said Novack, who sells the condominiums and memberships at Circuit Florida, among other duties.

The club founder and CEO is Paul Scarpello, who has a background in construction management, the cellular tower industry and a personal car collection, including a 1988 Corvette with a 4+3 transmission with only 234 miles on the odometer and his dream car as a teenager, the Circuit Florida website said.

The main office is already open on the property, complete with a 10-bay garage – five bays for service and five for storage.

A three-story clubhouse will come next year, including a large atrium downstairs for car manufacturers to showcase new models and a meeting area for drivers before going onto the track. The second floor will have a restaurant and bar with a deck overlooking the pit area.

In the member-only area, the club’s top floor will have a hot tub and pool with a vista overlooking the racetrack. Other exclusive comforts will include a gym, game room and cigar lounge.

The condominiums range in price from a studio unit with one-car garage at $475,000 to four bedroom units with four-car garage for nearly $1.8 million, Novack said. A dozen condos are moving toward a contract, now that Florida has approved Circuit Florida’s application for a condominium association.

There will also be public events at the club geared toward people who want to attend a driving school to get a race car driver's license accredited by the Sports Car Club of America or Fédération Internationale de l'Automobile.

They also plan exotic-car driving experiences where the public can drive several laps along the track in a Ferrari, for example, to give theme park visitors in Central Florida another diversion. And car manufacturers are anticipated to host new car launches.

Because of its proximity to Daytona Beach and Sebring, the Circuit Florida group expects professional racing teams to use the track throughout the season.

The main office is already open on the property, complete with a 10-bay garage – five bays for service and five for storage. A three-story clubhouse will come next year, featuring an atrium, meeting space for drivers, a restaurant and bar overlooking the pit area.
The main office is already open on the property, complete with a 10-bay garage – five bays for service and five for storage. A three-story clubhouse will come next year, featuring an atrium, meeting space for drivers, a restaurant and bar overlooking the pit area.

“We expect a lot of pro teams coming out here as well,” Novack said.

Julie Fife, community development director for Auburndale, applauded the use of the property along I-4, which gained approval with a special planned development application filed about two years ago, as the city did not have existing zoning for racetracks.

“When it comes to development, they picked a piece of property that would otherwise not really have anything except for maybe a warehouse or industrial use on it and found a really incredible use,” Fife said.

“They used the current buildings and infrastructure that's in place on both sides as a barrier,” she said. “And so I think it's a really good testament of looking at land in a different way.”

Regarding noise, Auburndale requires the state standard be used. Novack said the facility is designed to not exceed 95 decibels at 50 feet from the track’s edge.

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Fife also said the fencing and other barriers at the property boundaries are anticipated to incorporate sound-absorbing materials. 

To help explain the finished project, Novack said a loose comparison would be to a golf course resort or fly-in community, only instead of fairways, greens or a runway, there is a racetrack.

The condominiums range in price from a studio unit with one-car garage at $475,000 to four bedroom units with four-car garage for nearly $1.8 million. A dozen condos are moving toward a contract.
The condominiums range in price from a studio unit with one-car garage at $475,000 to four bedroom units with four-car garage for nearly $1.8 million. A dozen condos are moving toward a contract.

As of Wednesday, the racetrack has been graded and a base material had been placed on about 70% of the track.

“Asphalt is coming in October, and I can't wait,” Novack said, adding that curbing and striping will go next so that racing can start Dec. 16.

This article originally appeared on The Ledger: Circuit Florida, racetrack resort in Auburndale, to open this year