Storyvale groundbreaking
Photo: Matt Magallanes

Nashville-based real estate developer Southern Land Company, known for creating Franklin’s Westhaven development, has broken ground on a new master-planned community in Nolensville.

According to a release, the large-scale community, to be called Storyvale, will be the company’s first in the metro Nashville area in more than 20 years since Westhaven began in 2001. Westhaven has 2,400 homes currently and will have up to 3,500 upon completion expected in 2031. The group has also developed Vertis Green Hills, Dwell at McEwen and LaurelBrooke in Franklin.

The new 372-acre development will have more than 700 units ranging from townhomes to estates on one-half acre lots. Home sales are slated to begin in late 2024. It is slated to be completed in seven phases but no dates have been set yet and SLC did not answer a question about expected cost of the development.

SLC has an internal architecture team and homebuilding group that will work on all the homes in Storyvale. The community is set to receive 160 acres for parks and open space and will have miles of trails that connect to the Nolensville greenway system.

The center of the community will have around 15,000 square feet of commercial space for restaurants, retail and services that will be open to anyone, not just residents. A part of the land is also set aside as the site of a future elementary school.

“We were careful to find the perfect parcel of land, study it meticulously, listen to neighbors, and explore viable plans that will ultimately benefit the new community’s residents as well as the town of Nolensville,” Brian Sewell, SLC president and COO, said in the release. “We greatly appreciate the continued support of the Town of Nolensville along the way, and we look forward to welcoming new residents and neighbors alike. The wait will be well worth it.”

Local officials like Nolensville Vice Mayor Jessica Salamida and Williamson County Mayor Rogers Anderson joined SLC for the groundbreaking ceremony.

“Storyvale is a significant investment in our wonderful town,” Salamida said. “Southern Land Company has a reputation for quality development and a strong commitment to the communities in which they work. I am excited to see the progress and completion of Storyvale and the welcome community it will bring to our wonderful town.”

Storyvale is being built at the southwest corner of McFarlin Road and Fly Road. The announcement of the groundbreaking comes on the heels of another Nolensville development planned to give the town its first town center.