The History of Park Square Homes and Plans for the Future
For 40 years, Florida-based Park Square Homes—No. 82 on the 2022 Builder 100—has been in the business of building both traditional and resort-style single-family communities in the Sunshine State. Family-owned and headquartered in Orlando with offices in Tampa, the company is led by CEO Suresh Gupta. To learn more about the company, its history, and […]
Babcock Ranch Featured at Aspen Ideas: Climate Conference
Babcock Ranch, which is powered entirely by solar, was designed for resilience, said Kitson as he spoke to the crowd on the final day of the conference. The 150-megawatt solar facility has 700,000 panels, and weathered the hurricane well. Kitson took a rare approach to developing land. The firm bought the 91,000-acre ranch in 2006, […]
How Newer Construction Homes Fared in Hurricane Season
A recent success story is Florida’s Babcock Ranch. The master-planned community straddling Charlotte and Lee counties withstood hours of sustained winds over 100 miles per hour (161 kph) when Hurricane Ian made landfall in September 2022. The damage was so minimal, inspectors from the Federal Emergency Management Agency officials determined the storm had missed the […]
Babcock Ranch featured in The Wall Street Journal
Neighborhoods powered by solar panels with backup batteries weathered the direct onslaught of Hurricane Ian in Florida, utilities and developers said, keeping the lights on throughout the storm while millions of others lost power. At least three solar-powered communities near Fort Myers and Tampa made it through Ian without losing electricity. Some also had hardened electrical […]
Babcock Ranch featured in The Hill
As Hurricane Ian made its way to southwestern Florida on Sept. 28, Mark Wilkerson put up his metal hurricane shutters, locked his door and hunkered down to wait out the Category 4 storm. Wilkerson’s home, in the center of the entirely solar-powered town of Babcock Ranch, was made for this. But he still feared the […]
Babcock Ranch featured in Business Insider
As Hurricane Ian battered Florida and left millions without power last week, one forward-thinking community managed to keep the lights on. Babcock Ranch, a planned community of roughly 2,000 that bills itself as “America’s first solar-powered town,” skated through the storm without power loss or significant damage, CNN reported. A spokesperson for Babcock Ranch confirmed that residents didn’t […]
Babcock Ranch featured on NPR’s All Things Considered
BABCOCK RANCH, Fla. — Like many others in Southwest Florida, Mark Wilkerson seemingly gambled his life by choosing to shelter at home rather than evacuate when Hurricane Ian crashed ashore last week as a Category 4 storm. But it wasn’t just luck that saved Wilkerson and his wife, Rhonda, or prevented damage to their well-appointed […]
Babcock Ranch featured on BNN Bloomberg
Syd Kitson, chairman and CEO of Kitson & Partners, joins BNN Bloomberg to discuss how Florida community Babcock Ranch successfully endured Hurricane Ian nearly unscathed. Kitson says that instead of fighting nature, Babcock Ranch works with nature – using native plants and natural watercourses as sustainable methods of combating the storm. He also discusses keeping […]
WPTV West Palm Beach features Babcock Ranch
WPTV West Palm Beach spotlights Babcock Ranch: How America’s first solar-powered town weathered Hurricane Ian. Read the full story and watch the segment here.
Babcock Ranch featured on CNN’s New Day
CNN’s Bill Weir reports from a solar-powered Florida town that endured Hurricane Ian with no loss of power and minimal damage. Watch here.
Babcock Ranch featured on 60 Minutes
While hard-hit Fort Myers, Florida, continues its recovery from Hurricane Ian, some hope can be found 12 miles to the northeast at the planned community of Babcock Ranch. That’s where Syd Kitson and his partners built an environmentally friendly, fully sustainable town that they hoped would be hurricane proof. Kitson, an eco-conscious developer and former […]
Babcock Ranch featured in CBS News article
Babcock Ranch is featured in a CBS News article on how the the solar town escaped Hurricane Ian with little damage. Read the full article here.
Babcock Ranch featured in CNN.com article
Babcock Ranch is featured in a CNN story on how the the town endured Hurricane Ian with minimal damage and no loss of power. Read the full article here.
Babcock Ranch’s Innovation Way featured in The Daily Sun
The Daily Sun featured coverage of the opening of Innovation Way. Read the full story here and check out the digital version here.
Gulfshore Business showcases Babcock Ranch’s Innovation Way
Gulfshore Business spotlights the collaborative project in it’s article Home builders, FPL, look for efficiencies at Babcock Ranch’s Innovation Way. Read the full article here.
BUILDER.com coverage of the newly unveiled Innovation Way at Babcock Ranch
Read the full article about the next era in home building here.
Babcock Ranch’s Innovation Way featured in The News-Press & Naples Daily News
The News-Press and Naples Daily New covered the unveiling of Babcock Ranch’s Innovation Way with their Real Estate section cover story, Babcock features homes of the future. Read the full article here or check out the digital version here. The News-Press also included a photo gallery of the homes’ technology and interiors that can be […]
Babcock Ranch Exceeds 2,000 Home Sales
BABCOCK RANCH, Fla. (April 5, 2022) – Babcock Ranch has sold more than 2,000 homes and is on pace for another record-setting year. Recognized as the country’s 14th fastest-selling master-planned community in 2021 by RCLCO Real Estate Advisors, the town reported 714 homes sold in 2021. “This is a significant milestone from a development perspective […]
Babcock Ranch named No. 14 top-selling master-planned community in the country
America’s first solar-powered town reports more than 700 new contracts in 2021 BABCOCK RANCH, Fla. (Jan. 11, 2021) – Kitson & Partners announced that Babcock Ranch, America’s first solar-powered town, has been recognized as the No. 14 top-selling master-planned community of 2021 by RCLCO Real Estate Advisors. The recognition reflects the record sales of more […]
Babcock Ranch Water Utilities recognized as a leader in water reuse
BABCOCK RANCH, Fla. (Oct. 29, 2021) – Babcock Ranch Water Utilities was recently recognized by Water Resources Utility of the Future Today for innovative and forward-thinking practices in water reuse. The program honors water and wastewater treatment utilities leading the way in establishing sustainable, resilient and livable communities. Operated by Town & Country Utilities, BRWU […]
