Babcock Ranch, the world’s first solar-powered town located just northeast of Fort Myers on State Road 31, is inviting the public to celebrate the town’s official grand opening with a day of music, activities, food trucks and tours of model homes. The Hometown Grand Opening takes place Saturday, March 10, beginning with a parade at noon and closing with fireworks at 7 p.m.

“Founder’s Square is complete, our first residents have moved in, and we continue making advances in technology and innovation – it’s the perfect time to celebrate with a grand opening,” said Syd Kitson, chairman and CEO of Kitson & Partners, developers of Babcock Ranch.

Visitors are encouraged to visit www.BabcockRanch.com/GrandOpening to download a free parking pass to speed their entrance to the community.

In Founder’s Square, guests can register for the Model Home Trolley Tour – with nearly 20 model homes available for viewing – as well as a tour of FPL’s Babcock Ranch Solar Energy Center, where a newly constructed observation platform provides sweeping views of the 340-acre solar field.

The event also features a variety of arts and craft vendors, food trucks, a farmers market and free activities including face painting, juggling, and cowboy demonstrations. Musical entertainment includes performances by Riverdale High School and the Babcock Ranch Neighborhood School, along with acoustic guitar, a barbershop quartet and the South Florida dance band Soul Survivors II. The evening comes to a close with the grand fireworks finale over Lake Babcock.

Babcock Ranch was created by Kitson & Partners with respect for the natural environment and the philosophy that smart growth and sustainability work hand in hand. Half of the town’s 18,000-acre footprint is set aside as greenways, parks and expansive lakes, providing recreation and scenic backdrops for Babcock Ranch’s homes and the Founder’s Square downtown district.

Emphasizing a front-porch lifestyle to nurture a sense of community, Babcock Ranch promotes healthy living through a walkable community plan, 50 miles of planned biking and hiking trails, interconnected lakes for paddling enthusiasts, a robust calendar of exercise classes, and the Healthy Living Center operated by Lee Health at Founder’s Square scheduled to open in April, with health club facilities, nutrition counseling, therapeutic services, and medical offices opening in the summer.

Table & Tap restaurant, Slater’s Goods and Provisions, Square Scoops Coffee & Creamery, Curry Creek Outfitters, and Babcock Neighborhood School welcomed the greater community to Founder’s Square even before the arrival of the town’s first residents in early January. A sprawling downtown park offers a lakefront bandshell, boardwalk, covered pavilions, and charging stations for electronics, including cars. An autonomous shuttle – part of the town’s mobility plan – provides transportation between homes and Founder’s Square.

Babcock Ranch has seven homebuilders offering more than 50 home designs including twin villas, cottages, single-family executive, manor and custom homes featuring one- and two-story plans, two to six bedrooms, and 1,400 to 4,761 square feet of living space. Homes appeal to young millennials, families, empty nesters and retirees alike, with prices ranging from the low $190,000s to $1 million. Homes are built to Florida Green Building Coalition standards, emphasizing energy and water conservation.

More than 30 model and quick-delivery homes are now open or under construction by Castle Harbour Homes, Florida Lifestyle Homes, Fox Premier Builders, Homes by Towne, Lennar, Pulte and Stock Classic Homes. Many models are open for viewing daily.

For more information about Southwest Florida’s new hometown, visit the Discovery Center at 42850 Crescent Loop in Babcock Ranch, call 877-709-6620, or visit www.BabcockRanch.com