The owners of the Golden Ocala Golf & Equestrian Club and the World Equestrian Center are seeking permission to build a new sports and entertainment complex that would feature an indoor arena for concerts and sporting events, a variety of fields and courts, a restaurant, a space for food trucks, a hotel, and other multi-purposes fields.
On Monday, the Marion County Development Review Committee will review a request from Golden Ocala Equestrian Land, LLC, to rezone approximately 236 acres of land in northwest Ocala to create a new sports facility.
The organization is asking the county to amend an existing planned unit development for the nearly 4,300-acre site that encompasses Golden Ocala, a luxury community in northwest Ocala.
The proposed sporting and entertainment complex would be situated on W State Road 40, just west of NW 87th Court Road.
As part of the request, the group is hoping to increase the existing limit on hotel rooms at the site from 1,350 to 1,650 rooms, and to remove an existing restriction on concerts being held at the property.
According to a conceptual plan, the new facility would feature an indoor arena capable of housing ice hockey, volleyball, basketball, concerts, and graduation ceremonies, among other sporting and general events.
The large outdoor complex would also feature multiple baseball fields, a soccer stadium, natural grass soccer and football fields, tennis and pickleball courts, a restaurant, and a location for food trucks.
An additional indoor sports venue would feature things like mini golf, pickleball, simulators, a restaurant, and concession stands.
Finally, proposed plans call for the construction of another hotel on the property and several other multi-purpose fields for polo, softball, or other uses.
County staff recommends denial of the request, citing traffic and saying the proposed project would increase the “external daily trips” by 2,296 (131%), as well as increase the external afternoon peak hour project trips by 494 (223%).
“The additional traffic will negatively impact operations on 7 roadway segments on State Road 40 that already exceed or come too close to exceeding their maximum level of service v0lume in the existing condition,” reads the staff report.
The memo goes on to state that county traffic could only support approval of the WEC Sports Complex if the “existing entitlements for WEC were reduced to achieve a net zero increase in project trips as compared to what’s already approved for Golden Ocala.”
In addition to the traffic, county staff believes it is unnecessary to allow for more hotel rooms at the site. The report cites the two hotels that have already been constructed at WEC, including The Riding Academy Hotel that opened in 2024 and the Equestrian Hotel. Those hotels offer 642 rooms out of a potential 1,350 maximum rooms allowed at the site.
That means an additional 708 hotel rooms can be constructed before the facility reaches its maximum entitlement.
“Should additional hotel rooms be needed in the future, amendments to the project entitlements can be considered at that time,” reads the county staff report.
Currently, the development is allowed “up to 4 concerts per calendar year subject to obtaining a special event permit from the county and providing a traffic management plan.” The county says that the current process “ensures that potential traffic impacts are properly vetted prior to approval of the concert event.”
“County traffic does not support removing the requirements for a special event permit or traffic management plan for concerts,” reads the report. It goes on to state that the group is not “opposed to allowing more than 4 concerts” per calendar year at the current facilities.
If approved, the new complex would add to the ever-changing landscape in northwest Ocala near the Golden Ocala community and World Equestrian Center. WEC is currently working on a 180,000-square-foot Event Center, and The Shoppes at 80th, which will bring a series of luxury retailers to the area.
Regardless of the recommendation by staff or the MCDRC, the request must be reviewed by the Marion County Planning and Zoning Commission for a separate recommendation before it can receive a final review and decision from the Marion County Board of County Commissioners.
