Minto venture proposes rural town in Collier County

Canadian construction company Minto Communities proposed a rural master-planned community with as many as 10,000 homes in central Collier County.

Minto and Naples-based developer Collier Enterprises are in a joint venture to build the homes in a community setting on 4,000 acres of agricultural land owned by affiliates of Collier.

Minto on Friday submitted to Collier County’s growth management department a proposed plan for the community, called Rural Lands West.

Rural Lands West would have at least one 18-hole golf course plus parks, churches and a town center with office space, retail stores, restaurants and entertainment centers.

The master-planned community would require permitting under Collier County’s Rural Lands Stewardship program, plus approvals from state and federal agencies, among them the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers. Collier County’s Rural Lands Stewardship program incentivizes developers to protect natural resources.

Minto and Collier Enterprises plan to build Rural Lands West next to a large residential development called Golden Gates Estates.

The proposed plan for the 4,000-acre development would preserve for water flow and wildlife habitat about 12,000 acres of undeveloped land owned by Collier Enterprises. [Naples Daily News] — Mike Seemuth