|
Article
Courtesy of NWF Daily News By
Kelly Humphrey
Published
January 19, 2015
BLUEWATER BAY — When Lt. Gen. John Crosby retired from the Army, he and his wife, Flo Anne, chose to build their retirement home on the Magnolia Plantation golf course.
“We bought a lot on the golf course because we enjoyed the camaraderie of the people we met while playing golf, and the friends we made,” Crosby said.
It’s a decision he now questions.
The Crosbys, now in their 80s, hoped to live out their years in their 4,000 square-foot home. But in 2011, John suffered a heart attack, and the couple's daughters and grandchildren in Colorado urged them to move closer.
Eight months ago, the couple put their house on the market. Despite a record sales year for Magnolia Plantation, the Crosbys have yet to receive an offer.
They’ve lowered their price to well below market value.
They have had many people look, but when potential buyers see the overgrown, abandoned golf course directly behind the house, they balk.
“Ultimately, they ask what's going to happen with the golf course,” Crosby said. “I have to tell them I don't know.”
|
|
Magnolia Plantation resident Jerry White stands in front of one of the now defunct golf course's fairways, which is overgrown with weeds as high as 6 feet tall. White, who owns a home along the abandoned golf course, would like to see the homeowners' association and the owners of the course come to some sort of agreement on the future of the course.
|
An uncertain future
According to Tom Hanks, the general manager of the Bluewater Bay Resort, the former golf course property is under contract to Niceville builder Randy Wise, owner of Randy Wise Homes.
“I expect that Mr. Wise will close on the property any day now,” Hanks said. “Randy and his company have an awesome reputation, which makes his company the best candidate (to build) something great.”
Randy Wise could not be reached for comment on Friday.
An unpopular proposal
The former Magnolia course wasn't always an eyesore. In 1991, Raimund Herdon began developing the new gated community, Magnolia Plantation, with 266 homes. The Bluewater Bay Resort constructed the nine-hole Magnolia course, making it the fourth nine-hole course at the resort.
Retirees and families looking to enjoy life in a golf course community quickly bought lots and built homes.
“People chose to buy into the concept that was Bluewater Bay,” said Magnolia Plantation resident Bill Fugit. “It's a beautiful community for being nearly 40 years old.”
But with the decline of the golf economy, resorts like Bluewater Bay faced decreased demand and shrinking profits. In January 2013, Bluewater Bay Resort LLC submitted plans to Okaloosa County to shorten holes 4, 6, 7 and 9 on the Magnolia course and use the remaining land to build up to 48 single-family homes and some multi-family units.
The proposal didn't sit well with the Magnolia Plantation Homeowners Association and other members of the community, many of whom feared that the plan would impact home values and quality of life. The county received more than 1,500 letters protesting the proposal.
County Commissioner Kelly Windes, whose district includes Bluewater Bay, heard from unhappy constituents and attempted to organize a public meeting between the homeowners and the resort.
“It just made sense to me, if you could get everyone together to talk, we might be able to come up with a solution,” he said.
But before the meeting could take place, the Bluewater Bay Resort decided to withdraw its proposal.
From vista to eyesore
In late April 2013, the Bluewater Bay Resort announced its plan to close the Magnolia course on May 1, 2013. Hanks said that the resort would no longer maintain the course, and that it would be fenced off to prevent trespassing.
The action served to further alienate many of the community's homeowners.
“I can't help but believe that the decision was designed to be punitive,” said Jerry White, who owns a home on the former golf course. “We stopped them from doing what they wanted, so they decided to show us.”
As time passed, the condition of the unmaintained course deteriorated. Huge dog fennel weeds began to sprout, converting what was once a picturesque vista into an eyesore.
Homeowners say they have offered to pay someone to maintain the course at their own expense, but were turned down.
“Their response has been to ignore our requests, or to claim that they can't allow anyone on the property because of liability issues,” said Fugit, who is White’s next-door neighbor.
Some residents are so frustrated they have ignored the No Trespassing signs and hired someone to cut the weeds near their homes.
'You can't buy back open space'
While the homeowners wait to hear what Randy Wise plans to do with the property, the president of the homeowners association has concerns about how any construction on a former golf course could affect the entire Bluewater Bay community.
“If we have building on the golf course, it's not going to stop at Magnolia,” Jane Rainwater said. “They will want to build on the other fairways in Bluewater as well, and we'll become a commuter area rather than a community.”
Rainwater said the homeowners association has hired an attorney, and won't rule out the possibility of a lawsuit.
“We do plan on objecting to any new development,” she said. “We feel that it will be the ruination of our community. Once it's gone, you can't buy back open space.”
Obstacles ahead
Any new project will require standard approval from the county, which entails public hearings and opportunities for community input.
Herden, the original developer, sees obstacles ahead.
“There's lots of hostility among the homeowners,” he said. “The resort owners never sat down with the residents and tried to come up with a plan that they could live with.”
Homeowner Jerry White agrees.
“This whole situation has been a tragedy of community relations,” he sad. “The tragic thing is that it didn't have to be this way.”
|
