LAKE COUNTY, Fla. — Heavy equipment and materials were moved into Tavares on Monday to start the building process of a new multimillion dollar wedding pavilion right on the lake.
The Tavares seaplane base has already changed the landscape, and phase two will be at the end of a new pier built over the water.
"We modeled our business plan after the Lake Mary wedding center and event center they have there. And they're making money," said Bill Neron, the economic development director with the city of Tavares.
Out on Lake Dora, the city's wedding pavilion is about to be built. It's a $3.3 million project that officials predict will deliver a nice profit.
"They're so forward thinking, and all the businesses that have come out. This is going to be the hot spot," said Steve Pastore, a Tavares business owner.
Pastore rents watercraft along Lake Dora.
Officials said two new restaurants are thriving, and prime spots right across from city hall will soon open up.
The state will vacate what is now a probation office, and the city has the first option to buy the building from Lake County.
And both are being eyed for retail and restaurants.
Along the lake, a new hotel will open next month as a small building is demolished to make way for a second hotel.
"Hopefully, within a year or so, Tavares will have about 50 hotel rooms right on its downtown waterfront, which will be just great for our events, and for pilots flying in for the weekend and just be a nice addition to downtown," said Neron.
The long-range plan is to sell wedding packages that would include the ceremony at the new pavilion, and then the bride and groom boarding a seaplane and flying off to the Bahamas for their honeymoon.
WFTV
