Site Plans Point to a Second Fresh Market Coming to Wesley Chapel
WESLEY CHAPEL / PASCO COUNTY, FL — A stretch of open pasture across from Pasco-Hernando State College is on its way to becoming Wesley Chapel's next retail hub, and mounting evidence points to The Fresh Market anchoring it.
A six-building retail and restaurant plaza is moving through Pasco County's review process for the southwest corner of State Road 56 and Mansfield Boulevard, on a 59-acre parcel that has sat as open pasture for years. Developers submitted site plans starting June 19.
What's Pointing to The Fresh Market
County permits don't name the anchor tenant outright, but several details line up. The applicant listed on the filings is Seth Lane, a vice president at Regency Centers, a Tampa-based company with a long track record developing shopping centers anchored by The Fresh Market. The proposed grocery space also measures approximately 26,187 square feet, matching the size of a typical Fresh Market store almost exactly.
The current plans show roughly 100,200 square feet of retail and restaurant space in total, with 28 additional retail and restaurant spaces alongside the grocery anchor, ranging from about 1,220 to 4,230 square feet each.
Not Wesley Chapel's Only Fresh Market Project
This isn't the only Fresh Market-anchored development moving through the pipeline. A separate project tied to the Wiregrass Legacy development, across from the new Orlando Health Wiregrass Ranch Hospital, has also named The Fresh Market as its confirmed anchor tenant as part of a 72,000-square-foot commercial center. If both move forward, Wesley Chapel could end up with two Fresh Market locations rather than one.
Why It Matters for Wesley Chapel
The SR 56/Mansfield parcel sits within the Wiregrass Ranch Master Planned Unit Development and has been zoned for commercial use since 2007 — the same year the nearby Shops at Wiregrass opened. For longtime residents, it's another sign of how much of the area's remaining open land is now moving toward development, and for shoppers, it would add a specialty grocery option directly across from Pasco-Hernando State College.
