Wellen Park Wins Best Community Welcome Center in the United States from the National Association of Home Builders

VENICE, Fla. (March 10, 2022) – Industry leaders recently recognized the Wellen Park Welcome Center as the best in the United States with the prestigious 2022 gold award for Best Community Welcome Center from the National Association of Home Builders.

Presented during The Nationals, the NAHB’s annual awards program lauding the best in communities, homebuilding and interior design, the gold award honors the team involved in creating the center, including Walker Brands for strategic planning and creative design, International Design & Display Group for the development/construction of experiential displays, and Builders Design for the interior design.

Wellen Park’s award-winning Welcome Center celebrates the joy of community, heartfelt connections, and wellbeing, unveiling the lifestyle and story of Wellen Park through a full sensory experience. New chapters unfold in commissioned artwork, inviting lounge areas, and interactive displays.

“Our Welcome Center was thoughtfully and intentionally designed to convey the story of Wellen Park in an authentic and genuine way that reflects the community,” said Christine Masney, vice president of marketing for Wellen Park. “We’re honored by this recognition from the National Association of Home Builders and are reminded every day how truly special our Welcome Center is when residents and locals stop by for breakfast or craft beer, to meet up with friends or to see the newest exhibit by our artists in residence. The Welcome Center is the precursor of more wonderful things coming soon in Wellen Park, especially the completion of the adjacent Downtown Wellen later this year.”

Created as a social gathering destination, the center extends a casual, easygoing welcome, encouraging guests to hang out in the large living room and lounge areas throughout its 5,000 square feet or outside on the patio shared with the Barrel & Bean cafe that overlooks Downtown Wellen.

Vivid orange and blue accents, pulled from the local landscape of fiery sunsets and the waters of the nearby Gulf of Mexico, speak to the community’s vibrant lifestyle of imagination and innovation, where anything is possible.

From the big, beautiful blooms of a mural on the building’s façade painted by local artist Laura Pommier to interactive, Instagram-able moments inside, the Welcome Center layers the Wellen Park story.

Wellen Park brand ambassadors greet guests at a retrofitted vintage Piaggio Apé, an iconic three-wheeled Italian truck playfully referred to as Vespa scooter in the front, a truck in the back. The Apé replaces a traditional registration desk and embodies the relaxed, easy spirit of the community.

With technology playing a key role in the Wellen Park lifestyle, visitors to the Welcome Center can explore the community, its neighborhoods and homes, as well as regional amenities, entertainment options and attractions, via video walls, touchscreen maps, and interactive digital displays, giving visitors the opportunity to view side-by-side comparisons for neighborhood and floor plan options to start their homebuying journey.

Next to the Apé, a gravity-defying vertical electric bicycle display introduces Wellen Park’s extensive trail and pathway network. It speaks to those eager to explore the awaiting natural wonders and adventures along the community’s 18 miles of existing trails and complements the focus on wellness, fitness and time outdoors.

A neighboring floor-to-ceiling moss wall art installation takes a unique approach to the community site map, detailing Wellen Park’s topography and proximity to the Myakka River, a designated Wild and Scenic River, with different hues of preserved moss.

Also nearby is the Welcome Center’s mobile cart, which serves as an art pop-up to highlight local artists. Appropriately named “Inspire,” the cart features a rotating display of local artists’ work through a partnership with the North Port Art Center, which visitors can explore and also purchase.

In homage to Wellen Park’s Heritage Tree Program, a monumental relocation of 26 heritage live oaks in Downtown Wellen, Sarasota artist Alexis Fraser (known as Lipstick Lex) created “Heartfelt Connections,” a large-scale commissioned work featuring a tree comprised entirely of lipstick kisses. The 8-by-10-foot piece represents love, joy, positivity and the empowerment of doing right by the trees. It’s a popular spot for residents and visitors to engage, take photos and truly connect. 

The Welcome Center is also the spot where Wellen Park residents and folks from the wider region can enjoy a range of events related to the “Countdown to Downtown” celebration, a months-long event series designed to help get everyone excited for the future Downtown Wellen Park now under construction. “Countdown to Downtown” events include everything from cycling and running group meetups to a dinner and wine pairings.

Consistently ranked among the U.S.’s top fastest-selling master planned communities annually by prominent real estate consulting firm RCLCO, Wellen Park offers a mix of residential, commercial and recreational options. The community currently has approximately 9,000 residents, and at full build-out will have more than 50,000 residents and 22,500 homes within its three distinct districts: West Villages, Downtown Wellen and Playmore.

For more information about living at Wellen Park, call 941-960-7805, go to wellenpark.com or visit the Welcome Center at 12275 Mercado Drive in Venice, Fla. The Welcome Center is open Monday-Saturday, 10 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. and Sunday, noon to 5 p.m.

Contact:

Jennifer Hamilton, Gravina, Smith, Matte & Arnold Marketing and PR, 239-275-5758, [email protected]

Wellen Park Welcome Center Look Book