Deseret Ranch in Osceola County, owned by The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints, wants to annex to Orlando

The Book of Mormon, Latter Day Saints bible by PaulMaguire via iStock for WMNF News.

A major Central Florida landowner said Monday it is seeking to annex 52,450 acres of property into the city of Orlando, saying it will work with the city to “envision a framework for smart growth in future decades.”

Farmland Reserve, Inc., which is an investment arm of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints, said it has filed a proposal to annex part of its Deseret Ranch property into the city.

The company said it has completed what are known as “sector plans” for property it owns in Osceola County but has not made progress on planning with Orange County.

“Annexation of our Deseret Ranch property into Orlando allows us to look ahead to the next 70 years and beyond, to establish a long-term vision for this land as an integral, unified planning area to prepare for the future of a growing region, with conserving natural resources always as the first consideration in our planning,” Doug Rose, president of Farmland Reserve, said in a prepared statement.

Rose also said that putting the “property under a single municipal government will avoid the piecemeal planning of the past.”

The announcement said Deseret Ranch produces citrus and timber, has a cattle operation and leases land for solar-energy production.