Oxford Exchange owners plan 550-acre wellness retreat near Dade City
Wellness retreat project
A Tampa brother and sister duo known for owning Oxford Exchange and other restaurants is expanding their horizons. FOX 13's Danielle Zulkosky reports.
TAMPA, Fla. - Blake Casper and his sister Allison Casper Adams, the owners of Caspers Company and Tampa's Oxford Exchange, plan to build a 550-acre wellness retreat called Clay Hill near Dade City.
Oxford Exchange owners plan retreat
What we know:
Blake Casper, the CEO of Caspers Company, is partnering with his sister, Allison Casper Adams, to launch the 130-room wellness resort. The 550-acre property spans across Pasco and Hernando counties near Dade City, featuring rolling hills, natural creeks and vistas.
Guests will have access to a working farm that supplies fresh food, biking and hiking trails, and an equestrian center inspired by Casper's daughters. Casper said the resort will create over 200 long-term staff jobs on the property alongside initial design and construction work.
"A lot of outdoor activities to be out in nature, kind of reconnecting with nature, we'll have a lot of farming, livestock," Casper said. "So, it'll be a really different experience than most resorts that you see in Florida."
Resort development concerns local residents
The other side:
Some local residents prefer the rural conservation design over traditional housing subdivisions, while others oppose any regional changes. Community members expressed concerns that construction could exceed current building regulations and impact water levels at nearby Dowling Lake.
Casper stated that the project uses functional conservation to keep the overwhelming natural landscape intact.
"Some people don't want change, period," Casper said. "But we believe that this is the kind of conservation and preservation that actually works and will keep the natural landscape, the overwhelming natural landscape intact."
Clay Hill construction timeline
What's next:
It is still early in the approval process for the project. The goal is to open by 2030 and have a groundbreaking by 2028. There will be community feedback sessions as this moves forward.
The Source: The information in this story comes from Caspers Company press materials, public property records, and reporting from FOX 13 reporter Danielle Zulkosky.