Wesley Chapel

Wesley Chapel, Florida

"A community in progress": that's what the Greater Wesley Chapel Chamber of Commerce calls its namesake Wesley Chapel, a friendly, growing suburb 25 miles northeast of Tampa. And they're not kidding when they say progress: since the year 2000, Wesley Chapel's population has exploded—the community swelled from 5,700 to 45,000, in only six years. With so much recent (and ongoing) growth, the people of Wesley Chapel have no trouble remembering days gone by, when the community was largely settled by cows, pastures and citrus groves—way back when—around the year 2000.

A contender for Money Magazine's 2007 Best Places to Live, Wesley Chapel is part of the greater Tampa region. It lies right over the Hillsborough/Pasco County line in Pasco County, the 38^{th fastest growing county in the nation. One area of Wesley Chapel along Bruce B. Downs Boulevard is often mistakenly called "New Tampa," but Wesley Chapelians" won't hesitate to tell you: "If it's Pasco, it's Wesley Chapel!" The six-miles-square community is peppered with upscale executive and family neighborhoods, from which many residents endure an often long, messy commute to Tampa.}

As with any rapidly growing community, Wesley Chapel faces challenges ahead related to infrastructure and government services. A 2003 effort to incorporate the city was quickly squashed by many of the area's well known well-to-do's. But it hasn't stopped people from talking: there's still talk today about making Wesley Chapel a "real" city; some have even suggested that Wesley Chapel join with its neighbor Land O'Lakes to the west and take on a brand new identity as the "Tampa" of Pasco County, perhaps with a name like Lake Chapel or Wesley Lakes.

For now though, the community remains unincorporated; its name remains Wesley Chapel. Wesley Chapel, originally called Double Branch after the twin creeks that run through it, was first settled in the 1840s by Edward Boyette and several other families thanks to the Armed Occupation Act of 1842. Under the Act, established to encourage homesteading in Florida, 160-acre parcels were given away free to men 18 years and older who could bear arms, clear five acres, build a house and stay for five years. The community was later renamed Wesley Chapel after a Methodist church of the same name. And though the area was once filled with ranches, hog farms and citrus groves, aerial views of Wesley Chapel today still show lots of land. Many of the new home communities encompass wildlife preserves, so it's still possible to see deer in the early morning and twilight hours darting across the street or through your backyard.

Homes in Wesley Chapel

Wesley Chapel is most well known as being home to the famous Saddlebrook Tennis and Golf Resort, the training ground of many pro players and home of the Arnold Palmer Golf Academy. Surrounding the resort is the exclusive Saddlebrook residential community, some 400 hilly acres of golf course and waterfront executive homes starting at $350,000. Wesley Chapel is also considered a bedroom community: with property taxes being lower in Pasco County, and with Wesley Chapel being within commuting distance to Tampa, it offers much appeal to those seeking access to the big city and suburb-style living. Neighborhood choices for families abound: try Country Walk, Meadow Pointe or Seven Oaks, where nature trails surround tree-lined streets and wind through neighborhood parks and preserved wetlands; homes in Seven Oaks run in the low $300s. Other popular Wesley Chapel neighborhoods include Bridgewater, Northwood and Lexington Oaks, a golf course community on 812 acres, 260 of which are designated as a wetlands preserve, five as a community park. Townhouses are available in the Saddle Creek and Santa Fe communities; and plans are in the works for a new retirement community called Wiregrass, which will offer 2,300 single family homes. Overall, the median home price is Wesley Chapel is $254,000; the median annual family income is just under $80,000. Single family homes can still be had for $200,000, and undeveloped parcels of land are still available for those wishing to build their own castles.

 Wesley Chapel Schools

Children in Wesley Chapel attend Wesley Chapel, Sand Pine, Seven Oaks, Quail Hollow, Double Branch or New River Elementary schools; four of five are "A" schools, the other is too new to grade. Middle school students attend the new Dr. John Long Middle School, or the highly rated "A" school – Thomas E. Weightman Middle, designated a Professional Development School by the state of Florida, with a focus on high technology and a strong athletics program. High schoolers attend Wesley Chapel High, or the brand new Wiregrass Ranch High, which just opened its doors in 2007. Wesley Chapel is also home to Saddlebrook Preparatory school; the school serves grades 3-12 and all attending students are also enrolled in either the Saddlebrook tennis program or the Arnold Palmer Golf Academy.

Shopping and Dining in Wesley Chapel

The key phrase you'll hear when asking about shopping and dining in Wesley Chapel is "Coming Soon!" The area is experiencing tremendous commercial development; and several large shopping projects that will transform Wesley Chapel into a shopper's Mecca are currently underway. The Cypress Creek Town Center, projected to open late in 2008, will bring 1.5 million square feet of open-air, sidewalk-style shopping pleasure to Wesley Chapel, with restaurants, boutiques and a movie theater. Also set to open in 2008 is the 750,000 square feet Shoppes at Wiregrass, another open air shopping experience designed like a lushly landscaped village where shoppers can stroll tree-lined streets, eat at open air cafes and rest in small parks within the complex. The Shoppes at Wiregrass is part of the bold Wiregrass Ranch project and its more than 5,000 acres with 16,000 homes, nearly 10 million square feet of commercial and office space, as well as an educational campus with elementary, middle and high schools and a 100-bed medical complex. And if that isn't enough, Wesley Chapel is also home to the soon-coming Grove outlet mall on the corner of I75 and State Road 54. The Grove brings another 800,000 square feet of national retailers, shops, restaurants, office space and entertainment. On the tenant list: TJ Maxx, Best Buy, Toys R Us, Michaels and more.

A few notable dining options include Outback Steakhouse, Bonefish Grill, Sonny's Barbeque, as well as a few local treasures, like Rattlefish Reef, offering seafood specialties, or the Cypress Restaurant or Dempsey's Steak House, both of which are within the Saddlebrook Resort complex, both of which are highly acclaimed for their homemade, decadent desserts. Another local favorite is Café Cones at Bruce B. Downs Boulevard and State Road 54 next to Office Depot. This coffeehouse-dessert delight is decked out like a fanciful North Pole getaway; children and adults alike enjoy the Café's childlike atmosphere, not to mention its very popular ice cream sundae bar.

Being near to Tampa and within an hour's drive to the finest of Florida's white sand beaches, living in Wesley Chapel means never living far from fun. Tampa and its surrounding communities are home to arts, culture, festivals, sports and entertainment galore. To the east within an hour's drive are Orlando and its magical Disney fun; to the southwest are the beach playgrounds of Clearwater, St. Petersburg, Bradenton and Sarasota. Closer to home, Wesley Chapel residents play and unwind at their new 120-acre community park at the corner of Boyette and Overpass Road; it's one of the largest and newest parks in the area offering soccer and football fields, baseball, swimming, playgrounds, tennis courts and meeting facilities. A neighborhood skateboard park will also be opening soon.