Mixed-Use Development Proposed for DePugh Nursing Center Site
The new project by Z Properties will include commercial and residential elements on the prominent corner of Morse and Pennsylvania. The nursing center closed last year.
Jan. 7, 2026
By Beth Kassab
The Gardens at DePugh Nursing Center, which closed in the fall after 70 years, will be demolished and replaced with a “flexible, mixed-use environment offering modular opportunities to purchase space” along with a residential component, according to an announcement on Wednesday by Z Properties.
The Winter Park-based development and design firm led by Zane and Emily Williams said in a news release that the residential portion is still in the early planning. The commercial part of the development will look for a mix of “professional, creative, retail, hospitality and service-oriented businesses, with generous ceiling heights, thoughtfully-designed interiors and flexibility to support a range of uses.”
Zane Williams, who did not immediately respond to an interview request, acknowledged the prominence of the corner at 550 W. Morse Boulevard near Pennsylvania Avenue, and the potential for the new buildings to “set the tone” as visitors enter downtown Winter Park via Morse.
“Our goal here, as always, is to develop with intention and care, and to add beauty to our surroundings,” Williams said in the release. “This is a special corner, and we feel a responsibility to create something locals and visitors will pass by and think, ‘That feels right.’”
The new development will bring further change for the historically Black neighborhood west of Park Avenue that dates back to the city’s founding. The area has undergone significant gentrification over the past 25 years with the redevelopment of Hannibal Square and a number of larger homes replacing small, single-story houses.
The DePugh center opened in 1956 as the first state-approved nursing home where aging Black residents could seek care during segregation. The center was named for Mary Lee DePugh, who moved to Winter Park in 1937 to work for a white family she knew from the Chicago area and began advocating to provide health care to those in need as part of her work with the Ideal Woman’s Club, which she founded on the west side of the city. She died before the center opened.
Leaders of the Center decided to close it because of rising operating costs.
Z Properties applied for a demolition permit in October, said city Planning & Zoning Director Allison McGillis. The permit is likely to be approved because the building is not historically designated.
A representative of the firm said renderings of the proposed project will be available in the coming months.
A portion of the Palmetto Grove work spaces by Z Properties near Seven Oaks Park. The project, which refurbished older buildings, recently won praise from City Commission members. (Photo courtesy of Z Properties)
Williams said in the release that one unique aspect of the plan will be the option for business owners to also own a physical space.
“There are so many business owners who dream of designing and owning their own building in the same way people dream of building their homes,” he said. “Ownership allows you to establish permanence, identity, and control of your space — this project is about making that a reality.”
Z Properties is partnering with Stream Realty on the development.
“It’s exceptionally rare to come across the opportunity to own custom-designed commercial space in Winter Park,” Darryl Hoffman, executive vice president at Stream Realty, said in the news release. “We’re thrilled to partner with Zane on this first-of-its-kind development for the area.”
Z Properties recently received praise from the City Commission related to its makeover of workspaces near Seven Oaks Park known as Palmetto Grove along Palmetto Avenue. The buildings were refurbished to have an elevated, high-end look not far off of Orange Avenue where the city is working to improve one of its gateways.
The release said the team is aiming for completion of the project on the DePugh site in 2027 and will unveil its name and more details in the near future.
WinterParkVoiceEditor@gmail.com
The city continues to approve these large developments while our streets continue to flood after a hard rain…traffic is horrible…
I don’t think this development will have any significant impact on traffic considering it’s on Morse Blvd. Further, there is no street flooding in that area. I just hope it isn’t one of Z Properties way over the top buildings.
All kudos to Z Properties for their imagination. They will take a tired property and re-vitalize it adding value to the City.
Have you noticed the main streets around Winter Park are now jammed with traffic? 17-92 regularly has two lanes in both directions backed up from Fairbanks to Trader Joe’s all day long. Baldwin Park has added thousands and thousands of apartments over the last 5 years and the main roads in and out are now jammed with traffic. Winter Park has no ability to add new roads, yet Orange County is adding tens of thousands of residents in the Orlando – Maitland corridor which only equates to horrible worsening traffic every year. Remember when you could drive downtown and find a parking space? Will the city EVER so “no” to developers adding more and more residents to Winter Park? Developers tear down older 1500 sq. ft. Winter Park homes by the hundreds and build huge 4000-5000 sq. ft. ” McMansions” changing the neighborhoods dramatically. Like our city commissioners, I have no answers to offer…but these dramatic changes to our population in and around Winter Park over the years has NOT improved our city in my opinion. It seems Winter Park’s developers are trying to get 256 ounces in a gallon jug! I doubt I’m the only resident who is concerned about our never-ending growth.