Estate Home Tour Sunday, October 19

Brian Wood, the exclusive Sotheby’s agent for The Forest, is hosting an open house Sunday, October 19th that will offer tours of one of the most impressive estate homes in the community.  Get a first hand feel for the lifestyle at Sarasota’s only master planned gated community designed exclusively for acreage estates.

9273 Swaying Branch Rd House9273 Swaying Branch Road

The featured property at this open house is a luxurious private Italian villa. This fantastic custom home offers Mediterranean inspired architecture set among a spectacular four plus acre estate lot. The grand entry is wrapped in nature with a driveway passing through lush landscaping including stately palms and oaks tailored with colorful foliage at every turn. Timeless architecture is expressed throughout the design. The spacious gourmet kitchen offers plenty of area for entertaining friends and family. This one story floor plan has a large bonus room that can serve many functions. Outdoor living is taken to a new level with generous covered areas that feature views of the pool, spa and forested areas that frame this one of a kind back yard. Impact glass and closed cell foam insulation provide high energy efficiencies and safety for the latest in modern construction materials.

Quick Facts: 4010 square feet with 4 bedrooms and 4 baths on Homesite 13.  It is currently priced at $1,099,000.

This incredible home will be open for tours from 1pm until 4pm.  Come meet Brian and learn more about the opportunities to buy or build a home at The Forest.  Contact him for more information.

Shopping Near The Forest Gets 880,000 Times Better

University Town Center Mall and The Forest locator mapOn Friday, October 16, 2014 residents of The Forest will be about 15 minutes away from the first new major enclosed shopping mall to open in the U.S. in almost 10 years.  The University Town Center features over 880,000 square feet and more than 100 stores, specialty shops, restaurants and cars.

“The wait is over and the much anticipated University Town Center opening is bringing a whole new dimension to life at The Forest,” said development managing partner Tom Dabney.  “Our residents will have the advantage of being close by, but still well out of the fray around the new UTC.”

Top Tier Stores
The mall is anchored by Saks Fifth Avenue, Macy’s and Dillard’s plus many other desirable names in clothing, fashion, shoes and apparel including Michael Kors, Stuart Weitzman, lululemon athletica, Crate& Barrel, BCBG MAX AZRIA, Michael Kors, bebe, Calypso St. Barth and Vera Bradley to name just a few.  Virtually all of the top tier brands will have stores.

Fantastic Dining
UTC also has a wide variety of restaurants including many newcomers to the area including BRIO Tuscan Grill, The Capital Grille, The Cheesecake Factory, Kona Grill, Seasons 52 and the region’s first YO! Sushi and the Burger & Beer Joint.

Cool Cars
The mall will also feature the first Tesla Motors dealership in Sarasota with a full range of its innovative electric cars on display.  Gettel Automotive has Acura, Hyundai, Nissan and Toyota vehicles on display along with information kiosks throughout the mall.

Visit the UTC website for a complete list of stores and information.

Asolo Starry Night At New Emerald Homes Model in The Forest

Asolo Starry Nights Dinner Series LogoEmerald Homes, The Forest and Premier Sotheby’s International Realty are teaming up with the Asolo Repertory Theatre to bring their prestigious Starry Night event to the new Emerald Florencia Model. The exclusive dinner event is set for December 15, 2014.

It will be the first opportunity for people to see and tour the new Emerald Homes model at The Forest and a first for The Forest to host an Asolo Rep Starry Night. This is dinner 2 of the annual Asolo Rep series and celebrates the production of The Matchmaker.  Tickets are $250 per person and include a gourmet dinner catered by Morton’s Gourmet Market and Catering of Sarasota.  All proceeds benefit the Asolo Repertory Theatre.

Brain Wood and Laura Stuart Wood plan Starry Night at The Forest“We are thrilled to be involved as a location for the Asolo Starry Night series and appreciate Sotheby’s and Emerald Homes for helping to make it happen ,” said Tom Dabney, Managing Development Partner for The Forest. “This will be a wonderful way to showcase The Forest and the fantastic new Florencia Model, which I know will make a great “set” for this Asolo production.”

According to Asolo Rep’s Special Events Manager Laura Stuart Wood, $200 of the ticket price is deductible for participants.  She said the Starry Night Dinners are an important promotional and fundraising activity for the theatre, which will open its 2014-15 season next month. It runs November 2014 through June 2015 with eight shows including The Matchmaker January 6 – April 11.  In addition to dinner, performers from The Matchmaker will provide entertainment during the evening at the Florencia.

Tickets are available but space is limited. Click here for complete information and to order tickets.  Stay tuned to the blog for more details about this exciting event that will kickoff the season here at The Forest.