Southern Pool Designs designs and builds custom pools for Bella Collina, the guard-gated Tuscan-style community on the southern shore of Lake Apopka, including pools planned alongside new homes and full rebuilds of existing ones. Bella Collina projects typically land in our Signature tier ($175,000 to $325,000) or Monument tier ($325,000 to $1,000,000+), and demolition of an existing pool adds $8,000 to $20,000.
What Sets Bella Collina Apart
Bella Collina broke ground in 2004 on nearly 1,900 acres of rolling hills, unusual terrain for Central Florida. Tuscan architecture is the community’s signature, anchored by a 75,000-square-foot Tuscan-style clubhouse and a private golf course designed by Sir Nick Faldo with architect Steve Smyers, routed through dramatic elevation changes. Lake Siena is home to some of the community’s lakefront estates. As of 2024 the community had 890 lots and roughly 300 homes built, so many projects here are pools designed for a house that is still on paper.
A Montverde address, a Lake County permit
Bella Collina has a Montverde mailing address, but it is not inside the Town of Montverde’s limits. Town staff said as much in 2025, and Census boundaries place the community in unincorporated Lake County. That means Lake County Building Services issues your pool permit, not the town. Lake County’s residential pool checklist asks for construction plans signed and sealed by an engineer or architect, specification sheets for the main drain, pump, filter and heater, total dynamic head calculations, and a recorded Notice of Commencement on jobs over $5,000. It also requires a Zoning Clearance with an approved plot plan, which is valid for only 30 days, so we assemble the full package before we request it.
Lake lots and the 50-foot rule
In unincorporated Lake County, the land development regulations set a 50-foot setback for a pool and deck, measured from the ordinary high-water line, mean high-water line or jurisdictional wetland line, whichever is farthest landward. Building closer requires a variance from the Board of Adjustment. On Lake Siena and other water-facing lots, we check that line against the lot’s plat and community requirements before setting the pool’s footprint.
Community review
Bella Collina is a gated community with a homeowners association, and its Tuscan character is deliberate. Plan on association review for the pool, spa and hardscape, and on choosing materials that suit the home’s Old World style. We prepare that submittal from the same 3D design used for the Lake County permit, so the two stay consistent.
Designing for Hills, Views and Tuscan Homes
Elevation is the opportunity here. Where a backyard falls away from the house, a flat-lot design wastes that drop. The structural answers are raised pool walls, terraces and engineered retaining walls, which we coordinate with your engineer and builder. Ideas that suit Bella Collina:
- A downhill vanishing edge with the catch basin tucked into the slope, so the water appears to run toward the fairway or lake. Our infinity edge pools page covers the engineering, and our infinity pool cost guide covers the budget.
- A terraced layout, with pool and spa on an upper level beside the loggia and a fire pit or lawn terrace below.
- A raised spa with perimeter overflow spilling into the pool, built in stone that matches the facade. See our champagne spa detail.
- Old World materials such as travertine, natural stone coping and classical Roman steps that sit comfortably beside stucco walls and barrel-tile roofs.
- Fire bowls and layered LED lighting that look as good from the course below as from the terrace.
For owners who prefer a cleaner look, a geometric pool with a knife-edge detail and restrained stone can still respect the community’s style.
Building With Your Home Builder
With hundreds of homesites still unbuilt as of 2024, many Bella Collina pools start while the house is in design. That is the best time to involve us. We set pool and deck elevations against the finished floor, size the equipment area, route plumbing, electrical and gas, and plan barrier requirements for doors that open onto the pool before the slab goes in. Read how we approach collaboration with home builders.
What a Bella Collina Pool Costs
- Foundation: $120,000 to $175,000
- Signature: $175,000 to $325,000, our most-built tier
- Monument: $325,000 to $1,000,000+
Bella Collina projects typically land in our Signature and Monument tiers. Slopes drive much of the cost: raised walls, retaining walls, terraces and vanishing edge catch basins all add structure. Natural stone and Old World finishes, outdoor kitchens and loggias add more. Removing an existing pool adds $8,000 to $20,000.
How a Bella Collina Project Runs
1. Welcome call. We confirm whether the home is built or in design, whether the lot faces a lake, and what your association requires.
2. On-site design consultation. We walk the slope, note where water drains today, locate any high-water line, and look at the views from the main rooms.
3. The Signature Experience. A paid design phase produces your 3D design and coordinates structural engineering for walls and grade changes. We submit to the association and Lake County, build under a dedicated project manager with real-time updates, and finish with a walkthrough.
Bella Collina Pool Questions
Does the Town of Montverde permit pools in Bella Collina?
No. Bella Collina has a Montverde address, but it sits in unincorporated Lake County, so Lake County Building Services issues the permit after a zoning clearance and plot plan approval. We prepare the package and pull the permit as a Florida Certified Pool Contractor (CPC1461548).
Can you build a pool on a steep Bella Collina lot?
Yes. Sloped lots are where a custom design earns its keep. We use raised pool walls, terraces, engineered retaining walls and vanishing edges to turn the grade into a feature, with drainage planned so runoff from decks and roofs does not undercut the slope.
How close to the lake can we put the pool?
Lake County’s general rule for unincorporated land is 50 feet from the ordinary high-water line, mean high-water line or jurisdictional wetland line, whichever is farthest landward. Building closer requires a Board of Adjustment variance. We confirm the line and any community requirements for your lot before design.
Plan Your Bella Collina Pool
Call our Sanford design studio at (407) 339-5800 or request a design consultation. For lakefront and hillside work across the area, see our Clermont pool builder page.