Make no mistake: Lake Heron is not a nudist colony. That said, a fair number of its residents live there so they can regularly partake in - but not plunge into - the full-time nudism offered at Paradise Lakes.
By JAMES THORNER
Published April 12, 2004
[Times photo: Lance Rothstein]
Dee Van Dusen looks through old belongings during her garage sale last week. After almost four years in Lake Heron, Van Dusen has moved to Paradise Lakes, a nudist resort. The two neighborhods are about a quarter mile apart, making Lake Heron a magnet for those who choose to sample the lifestyle.
LAND O'LAKES - Just as they were about to drop a deposit on a villa in Land O'Lakes' Lake Heron neighborhood, John and Ruth Copeland asked about the community swimming pool.
We don't use the community pool, a neighbor told them. We swim at Paradise Lakes resort across the street.
It wasn't long before the Copelands learned what made Paradise so unique: Swimsuits are optional at the nation's biggest nudist resort. After living the past seven years in Lake Heron, the Copelands have discovered at least half their neighbors are nudists.
In other words, many of those outgoing middle-aged folks they call friends like to disrobe in social settings.
"They recognize our hang-ups, and we recognize their interest in nature," John Copeland says. "And we work around it."
Lake Heron, east of U.S. 41 off Lake Floyd Drive, isn't a nudist neighborhood. Waltzing around trouserless is no more tolerated there than in any other community.
But its quarter mile proximity to Paradise Lakes makes it a magnet for nudists who choose to sample the lifestyle rather than immerse themselves in it. "They have the camaraderie of having a lot of nudist neighbors, and yet they can have their nonnudist friends and relatives visit them," said Mike Benjamin, a Realtor and nudist who sold most of the homes in Lake Heron.
Lake Heron's popularity belies its beginnings 10 years ago beside a sand pit that was converted into a boating lake when diggers hit a spring.
Developer Neal Van Dorsten considered it a gamble to build attached townhomes and villas in a market dominated by stand-alone homes. As he began his marketing, Van Dorsten held his breath.
"We were very nervous about the first sales over there," he recalls. "But we began to have very, very strong success. It was the overflow from across the street."
He had found a niche with nudists. Through word of mouth, nudists accounted for up to 40 percent of his initial sales. Van Dorsten went all out and placed ads in nudist bulletins.
It's easy to see why nudists find Lake Heron attractive. Property within the walled compound of Paradise Lakes is pricier.
Some nudists don't want a Paradise mailing address for professional reasons. Not everyone in the workplace accepts the lifestyle.
"They were a fairly affluent kind of sophisticated crowd," said Van Dorsten, who has since shifted his business to Sarasota. "We did more cash deals on that project than any other."
Lake Heron has about 200 homes, 163 north of Lake Floyd Drive and another 35 behind a wall south of the road. Neighbors estimate at least half of the homeowners are nudists.
"It's the third-largest collection of nudists living in permanent housing in America," Benjamin said.
The words "permanent housing" are key. Most nudism in the United States involves camping with like-minded folk in RVs.
With its tidy yards and bright facades, Lake Heron appears straight-laced and buttoned-down. In fact, despite residents bold about letting it all hang out, incidents with nudity are rare.
Last year, on the walled side of Lake Heron known as the Hammocks, a woman walked outdoors topless. A warning corrected her behavior. Someone else complained about a man who walked in his garage without pants.
Late-night skinny-dipping in the community pool is less of a problem than one might imagine.
Marcus Steffens, a nudist who used to manage the community clubhouse, said someone used to shut off the pool spotlight at night. He suspects it was people eager for a bit of discreet skinny-dipping.
"It seems to be a big happy family," Steffens said. "We hardly have any issues, and the issues we have are normal neighborhood disputes."
Retirees makes up about two-thirds of residents. The handful of children who live there are clustered in rental units near the front of the community.
Nonnudist Bill Beck praises the openness among nudists he says is lacking in much of the clothed crowd. Still, Beck, who is 77, knows the limits of his friendships. He has rejected entreaties for him to strip.
"I'd never do it," Beck said. "They said it's the way the Lord intended it, but I'll stay where I'm at."
Most nudist socializing goes on across the road at Paradise Lakes, with its restaurant, night club, spa and pools. The proximity means Lake Heron folks can leave their cars at home.
"They go there and have their little parties and their little swimming meets or whatever they do," Beck said.
Benjamin said bicycling to Paradise is popular "if you can manage to get across six lanes of traffic."
Paradise no longer has a monopoly on nudism, however. Caliente, a ritzy new nudist resort a few miles north on U.S. 41, has made a push to sign up members from Lake Heron. The Spanish-style resort sponsored an open house for residents earlier this year.
Copeland said Lake Heron suits his lifestyle. For all their differences regarding body covering, he and his neighbors share much in common.
"These are people who are open-minded, travel a lot and are more affluent and better educated," Copeland said. "They are open to new people. And to new exposures."
