What's new near Disney World: December 2026

Welcome to the first issue of my monthly community letter. Each month I round up what's opening, what's being built and what's on the calendar in the towns around Disney World, and every item points back to an official source.

New places to eat

Saucy by KFC, Flamingo Crossings Town Center. The chain's own locations page now lists a store at 2224 Western Way in Winter Garden, on the Horizon West side of Disney World. The menu is built around chicken tenders with a wide choice of dipping sauces, plus tender sandwiches and sides.

That's the only opening I could confirm from a restaurant's own page this month. A few others have been announced but haven't posted dates themselves yet, so they'll show up here once they do.

New roads and traffic

Two Osceola County widenings are finished

• Simpson Road North, east Kissimmee. Osceola County cut the ribbon on October 12. Simpson Road is now a divided four-lane road between Marisol Loop/Winners Circle and Myers Road, with a shared-use path on both sides and new signals at six intersections. It was the last and longest piece of the widening between U.S. 192 and Boggy Creek Road, and the county says it finished 241 days ahead of schedule.
• South Poinciana Boulevard. On October 13 the county opened about 5.7 miles of four-lane road from Trafalgar Boulevard to Pleasant Hill Road, with new turn lanes, a median, lighting and a multimodal trail. The county reports peak travel times on the stretch dropped by more than 32%, based on INRIX data.

Under construction

• I-4 between ChampionsGate and World Drive. FDOT's Moving I-4 Forward Project 2 is building direct ramps between I-4 and SR 429. The finished road will have four general-use lanes and two express lanes each way, and Old Lake Wilson Road will widen from two to four lanes over I-4. Overnight ramp and full closures keep coming up, so check the construction updates page before a late-night drive.
• Cross Prairie Parkway Connector, St. Cloud. Work started October 6 on a new four-lane divided road and a bridge over the C-31 Canal, linking the existing Cross Prairie Parkway in Tohoqua toward a future Nolte Road interchange on Florida's Turnpike. The county expects it done in summer 2028.
• Horizon West. Orange County expects two projects to wrap up in early 2027: the Flemings Road extension to Sawgrass Bay Boulevard at the Lake County line, widened to four divided lanes with a 10-foot path, and about a mile of new four-lane New Independence Parkway from east of Avalon Road to Wellness Way.
• SR 516 Lake/Orange Expressway. This 4.4-mile toll road from the Central Florida Expressway Authority will link Lake and Orange counties near Horizon West. CFX lists a partial opening in spring 2027 and full completion in early 2029.
• CR 532, ChampionsGate. CFX and Osceola County are widening about 3 miles of Osceola Polk Line Road to double its capacity, with buffered bike lanes, a sidewalk and a shared-use path. CFX lists completion in early 2029.

New construction

These are the builders' own listings as of November 3. Prices and dates change often, so check with the builder.

• Toll Brothers at Cypress Reserve, Clermont. Announced October 16 on the Sumner Lake shoreline at 3715 Willow Flower Street. Site work is underway on one- and two-story homes with 3 to 6 bedrooms on 65-foot lots. Sales are expected to open in early 2027, from the mid-$800,000s.
• Toll Brothers at Bella Tara, St. Cloud. Listed as coming soon: single-family homes with 3 to 6 bedrooms and 1,839 to 3,624 square feet, from the mid-$500,000s. No opening date yet.
• Saddlecrest at Windermere. Toll Brothers lists this single-family community as coming soon, from the $2,400,000s.
• The Shores I and II, St. Cloud. KB Home shows a new phase coming soon in both, from $325,990 and $329,990.
• Arcadia at Crossprairie, St. Cloud. M/I Homes lists about 385 single-family homes and townhomes as now selling, from $373,490.

Want more options? See new homes within 15 miles of Disney World.

Around town

Winter Garden and Clermont both light up downtown on Friday, December 4.

Winter Garden

• Light Up Winter Garden, December 4, 6 to 9 p.m., with the lighting at 6:15 at City Hall, 300 W. Plant St.
• Christmas Parade, Saturday, December 5, at 10 a.m. downtown, then the Holiday Night Market at the Downtown Pavilion from 4 to 8 p.m. and the golf cart parade on West Plant Street at 6 p.m.
• A Merry Winter Garden Light Show on the City Hall front, 6 to 9 p.m. on set nights from December 4 to 27.

Clermont

• Enchanted Forest of Trees at Victory Pointe, November 21 to January 2: 100 trees decorated by local groups and businesses.
• Light Up Clermont, December 4, 5:30 to 9 p.m., at City Hall Park and downtown.
• Clermont Christmas Parade, Saturday, December 5, at 10 a.m., leaving from Waterfront Park through downtown.

St. Cloud

• The city's tree lighting is December 4, and the Rockin' the Cloud New Year's Eve party is December 31. Times weren't posted yet when I checked.

The numbers briefly

From my November market update, covering eight Central Florida counties:

• Homes for sale: 27,013 listed in September 2026, down 4.0% from a year earlier (Realtor.com).
• Price cuts: 36.5% of listings had a price reduction in September (Realtor.com).
• Asking prices: the median asking price was $382,773 in September 2026, down 2.5% from a year earlier (Realtor.com).

Compare the towns by price and drive time.

Know about an opening or event I missed? Call me at 321-800-5294.