By Brian Bokor
The Motor Enclave of Tampa, a 200-acre car enthusiast’s playground to include 300 private garages, a performance circuit, three off-road courses, a vehicle dynamics pad and a 35,000 sq. ft. corporate events center, is set to break ground this summer between the Tampa Executive Airport and I-75, just north of the I-75/I-4 interchange.
The $100M project is led by Brad Oleshansky, corporate attorney and founder of M1 Concourse in Pontiac, Michigan. Oleshansky spent 7 years building M1 into the largest privately owned garage community in the world until he sold it in 2019 to expand the concept across the United States under The Motor Enclave brand. Oleshansky is a two-time winner of the prestigious Ernst & Young Entrepreneur of the Year Award, the first time in 2012 for Big Communications and again in 2018 for M1 Concourse.
Tampa will be the first of several cities targeted for his concept, and when asked why here, Oleshansky replied, “the demand is here and the data supports it. The (Central) Tampa area has one of the largest concentrations of car enthusiasts in the county,” adding the location worked perfectly adjacent to the airport and major interchange and presented an opportunity to repurpose the underutilized vacant dairy farm into Tampa’s next destination location.
The 1.6-mile performance circuit was designed by world-renowned Formula One track designer Hermann Tilke, with Oleshansky telling me it will feature “Fourteen turns and a half-mile straight away. The 80-acre off–road area will include a Rubicon Trail experience, a RallyCross experience, a desert experience and a training course/area. The area will also have hiking and mountain biking trails for members to explore. Owners will enjoy an on-site swimming pool as well as members lounge in the event center” as part of the extensive amenity package.
Oleshansky said there will be many opportunities for the public to visit the facility beginning with several free events, such as ‘Cars and Coffee,’ where guests are invited to enjoy a courtesy cup of coffee and view classic, luxury and exotic automobiles provided by local owners and sponsors. Other public events will include ‘Cars under the Stars,’ a variety of car shows and periodic food truck rallies.
Paid driving schools will be available, where individuals will be taught to drive both high-performance as well as off-road vehicles under the supervision of professionally trained instructors. The corporate events center will be available to rent for groups anywhere between 10 and 1,000 and will offer full-service amenities for its guests. All of the driving elements on the property are available for private rentals. Public track days will also be scheduled at various times throughout the year, with users wishing to drive on the track being able to register when the opportunities arise.
For those interested in purchasing a garage, act fast as 150 of the planned 300 units have already been spoken for, with reservations coming from all parts of the country. The 25-foot-tall structures range from 625-2,400 square feet of ground floor space, allowing plenty of room to store cars below and create living/office arrangements above, including kitchens, bars and bathrooms. Units are sold as ‘white boxes,’ with interior design up to the end user.
Examples of the endless garage possibilities as well as how to inquire about their availability can be found on The Motor Enclave’s website at www.themotorenclave.com. Interested parties are encouraged to sign up for The Motor Enclave VIP list in order to stay informed about project progress and learn more about future events and public track options.
Oleshansky is also involved in several charitable organizations and wanted to invite all of our readers to join him and The Motor Enclave team, which includes Chas Ostezan and Winchester Stiens, on Saturday, May 1 for the inaugural ‘Road Rally for a Cure,’ benefitting the National Pediatric Cancer Foundation.
Forty-three cars will participate in a sheriff-escort-led rally from Nova University in Clearwater to Sparksman Wharf in Tampa, culminating in a public car show from 12 Noon-2 p.m. Please visit www.nationalpcf.org for additional information about this event and other ways to help beat pediatric cancer.
