The multinational water innovation company, Crystal Lagoons®, which began building massive oases in other parts of the globe such as South America and the Middle East, is now rapidly expanding across the United States. The expansion has been showcased by CNBC’s Emmy Award winning journalist, Diane Olick.
The company, which currently has operational lagoon communities in Florida and Texas, is expected to open seven more this year, between California and Pennsylvania.
“We’ve got 30 signed projects and it’s really been kind of an inflection curve in the last couple of years,” said Eric Cherasia, Vice President of Crystal Lagoons Corp.
Crystal Lagoons, a U.S. firm with offices in Miami, Texas and Los Angeles, works with local developers, licensing the technology. In the case of Epperson, the firm worked with Metro Development Group.
Continued sales success
“When you see this, it really, really pops and is spectacular,” said Greg Singleton, Metro’s President. “It’s way cheaper than a golf course, and it appeals to so many different people. It just became a cost benefit analysis for us. We thought we’d sell more homes quicker and get a price premium when it’s all said and done.”
Epperson saw a 21% sales increase at its model homes during the preconstruction period, over a seven-month time frame, compared with 1% to 5% increases at competitor communities, according to Builder Magazine.
“It’s a differentiator for us,” said Sean Strickler, Pulte Group’s West Florida division President. “We’ve been building homes across Tampa for several years, and the lagoon provides a unique take on a new amenity our residents can enjoy. Now for years we’ve built golf courses and traditional club houses, and to see a beautiful 8-acre crystalline lagoon has been a tremendous draw.”
Strickler says the homes at Epperson sell at about a 9% to 10% premium to comparable homes in the Tampa area, all because of the lagoon.
“It is a patented technology, so I’m only able to go into a little bit of detail, but it works through a disinfection process, with some ultrasonic systems,” Cherasia said. “We use 100 times fewer chemicals than conventional swimming pools and about 2% of the energy, which is really what makes this work.”
There is a water slide, as well as kayaks and an island float. It is surrounded on one side by a sandy beach and the other by a large Tiki bar. A new restaurant scheduled to open soon.
Other advantages
“My wife had seen this area, and as soon as I got to the bridge that overlooked the area and saw that lagoon, the rest is history,” said Dennis Svoboda, who moved here from to retire.
His daughter, Natalie Farrell, and her husband followed with their toddler. “The thing with the real beaches is, you got to pay flood insurance. I don’t have to pay flood insurance in the middle of Florida here, so it’s a lot cheaper,” said Svoboda.
The lagoon water level can actually be lowered in advance of a storm, so there is little chance of overflow.
Crystal Lagoons is expanding outside the housing development model as well, and is strongly focused on building more lagoons in the U.S. and the rest of the globe, which will be open to the public, known as Public Access Lagoons™, or PAL™.
Crystal Lagoons is an international innovation company, founded by scientist Fernando Fischmann, which has developed a patent-protected technology that allows the construction and maintenance of unlimited-size clear water lagoons at very low costs.
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