Valencia Grand second phase approved; development west of Boynton will now feature 704 homes

Valencia Grand, the GL Homes’ high-end development under construction west of Boynton Beach, will have 704 homes, county officials have decided.

Palm Beach County commissioners recently approved the second phase of the homebuilder’s plans that call for another 427 homes in addition to the 277 that were already approved in September 2021. GL Homes paid $60 million to acquire the 723-acre parcel from the Whitworth family, who had farmed it for more than 50 years.

Valencia Grand will be a 55-plus community. Sales have been brisk with nearly 200 homes sold as of Jan. 13. More than 100 homes are under construction; the first set of buyers expected to move in by the end of May.

GL Homes CEO Marcie DePlaza said sales have continued to be strong despite the rise in interest rates, noting that retirees tend to pay cash for their new homes. In addition, she said inventory is still low in Palm Beach County, a factor that has helped to boost sales.

Many Valencia Grand buyers are coming from other Valencia homes

One of the buyers is Randall Siller, a retired physician from Broward County who currently lives about a mile away in Valencia Cove, another GL Homes' development on Lyons Road between Atlantic Avenue and Boynton Beach Boulevard.

"People think I am crazy. I guess you could say I got the seven-year itch," said Siller, who was one of the first homeowners to move into Valencia Cove in 2015. "I love it there, but I'm single and look at the decision to buy at Valencia Grande as a project. It will give me something to do."

He expects to move into his new home sometime in the fall. Siller has yet to pick up the game of pickleball but he said he may start playing once the four air-conditioned pickleball courts are built at The Grand.

The move will be costly for Siller. He paid $1 million for his new 2,500-square-foot house, about double the cost at the Cove in 2015, but he expects to sell his house there for much more than he paid as home values have significantly increased throughout the region.

DePlaza said more and more buyers at The Grand are coming from existing developments built by GL Homes, noting: "We definitely have a good number of buyers from previous Valencias who want to upsize, downsize or just looking for some of the newer amenities like the sports bar or indoor pickleball courts."

Siller said he knows of at least three other Valencia Cove homeowners who have decided to move to The Grand. DePlaza said, though, that many of the buyers at GL Homes' developments are people who relocate from the Northeast.

'Astounding to see': At pre-construction community, 190 vie for 75 homes $1 million and up

West of Boynton:$12 million first phase of Canyon District Park comes to life

A real dust-up: New development construction covering neighboring homes in sooty dust, residents say

Where will Valencia Grand's second phase of homes be built?

Valencia Grand, like Valencia Cove, is in the Agricultural Reserve. The Grand is about a mile south of Boynton Beach Boulevard on the west side of Lyons Road. It borders Valencia Reserve, another GL Homes development. To the south of the development, across the street from Valencia Cove, is county-owned farmland that cannot be developed.

The first phase for the Grand includes plans for a 7-acre recreation area. In addition to the indoor pickleball courts, it will have a clubhouse, a dining area, swimming pools, tennis courts and pedestrian pathways. The second phase will consist of single-family homes that will mostly be built on lakes or canals.

The Lyons Road entrance is across the street from the entrance at Canyon Isles, a GL Homes family development built in 2007. With the two developments having eventually having more than 1,200 homes, GL Homes is expected to build another traffic signal, something that Canyon Isles’ residents have long wanted. At the Grand, there will also be access from State Road 7.

Planned unit developments in the Ag Reserve must set aside 60% of their land as open space but land can be preserved off site if it is within the Ag Reserve, an area consisting of 21,000 acres that has special zoning designed to protect agriculture and limit development.

In the case of Valencia Grand, nearly 300 acres are being preserved off site, allowing the density to be roughly a home per acre. According to documents submitted to the county, the development is needed to meet the growing real-estate market demand for age-restricted housing in Palm Beach County.

“There are numerous existing residential communities along the Lyons Road corridor. This existing residential area allows for the opportunity to provide development meeting the needs of the growing community,” according to papers filed by GL Homes with the county.

The development will add to traffic congestion on Lyons Road. When completed in 2026, it is expected to generate another 3,006 net daily trips on roads that are already overcapacity, according to GL Homes’ own traffic study. Lyons Road is scheduled to be widened but for part of the time that Valencia Grand is built, the road will continue to be one lane in each direction from Atlantic Avenue to Boynton Beach Boulevard.

Once the widening occurs, the study says the additional lanes will allow the additional traffic to be accommodated, noting that the congestion at the intersection of Atlantic Avenue and Lyons Road will also be improved by FDOT projects in the next few years.

Mike Diamond is a journalist at The Palm Beach Post, part of the USA TODAY Florida Network. He covers Palm Beach County government and transportation. You can reach him at mdiamond@pbpost.com. Help support local journalism. Subscribe today

A 25-foot wide landscape buffer will be erected along the north and south property line along with a six-foot high wall.

The development will worsen traffic congestion on Lyons Road. When completed in 2026, the development is expected to generate another 3,006 net daily trips on roadways that are already overcapacity, according to GL Homes’ own traffic study. Lyons Road is scheduled to be widened but for part of the time that Valencia Grand is built, Lyons Road will continue to be one lane in each direction from Atlantic Avenue to Boynton Beach Boulevard.

Once the widening occurs, the study says the additional lanes will allow this additional traffic to be accommodated, noting that the congestion at the intersection of Atlantic Avenue and Lyons Road will also be improved by FDOT in the next few years.

This article originally appeared on Palm Beach Post: GL Homes' Valencia Grand west of Boynton Beach: Phase two approved