THE VILLAGES
Barbara Down counted 14 dump trucks, filled with clay, pull onto the land behind her home in the Villas of St. Simons near the Glenview Golf Course early Wednesday morning. She watched tractors drop, roll and level tons of clay and dirt for several hours.

By about 7 a.m. workers had nearly packed the 30-foot-long sinkhole that opened suddenly sometime late Tuesday night or early Wednesday morning before dawn.  By daylight, however, the 4-acre “lake” behind Dalton Drive in The Villages had nearly disappeared, the sinkhole sucking the water down “like a waterfall,” Down said. In some areas the shoreline had receded by more than 30 feet.

What was once water-view property is not anymore. Staff photo by Jack Hardman

For many of the residents in the Villas of St. Simons who paid home-purchase premiums of between $43,000 and $55,000 for a “water view,” their beloved backyard vista had changed. That beautiful lake just beyond their small backyards had turned into a “dirty brown spot” or an “ugly swamp” — overnight. 

“They (sales representatives for The Villages) said it was always full of water,” said Dalton Drive resident Les Johnson. “We don’t want to look at a mud hole. It seems to me they’re not telling us the truth.” 

Pete Wahl, The Villages Community Development District administrator, explained that the tract, which he called a “water retention area,” percolates water from the adjacent Lake Higgins on the Glenview Golf Course. 

Lake Higgins has a liner to prevent water levels from dropping. The Dalton Drive retention pond, which is not lined, takes overflow water from the lake. The water rises when water levels are up and drops during dry conditions. Residents along Dalton Drive’s “lake view” said sales people never told them that the “lake” fluctuates and may go dry when sinkholes open or in dry conditions. 

“I asked for a water view,” Down said. “I’m a little hot under the collar now. You can’t sell homes with sinkholes.” “We worked so hard to make our place look nice,” said Agnes Johnson, whose Dalton Drive home also abuts the retention pond. “It doesn’t seem right that they can do this to people.” 

“I bought a waterfront home,” said Dalton Drive’s Betty Savoia. “Nobody told me that (the pond) was not designed to hold water.” 

Rose Bottino, another Dalton Drive resident, said she had enjoyed her “lakefront” scenery Tuesday evening only to wake up Wednesday morning to see it disappear. 

“It was so beautiful (Tuesday),” she said. “I couldn’t believe it. But they (work crews) fixed the sinkholes fast. Can you believe it?” 

Dalton Drive residents said they’re worried that another sinkhole may consume their homes. Down said she has counted nearly three dozen sinkholes in the area since moving to Dalton Drive last September. 

“How much bigger are they going to get?” Les Johnson said. “They keep opening up and opening up.” “I don’t want to wake up some morning and find myself in a hole,” Savoia said. 

Residents on Dalton Drive said they’ve taken their concerns to community development district boards in The Villages in the past with no success. They’ve also written letters to developer Gary Morse and Wahl. 

“They look at me like I’m crazy,” Down said. “Who will listen to us?” Savoia said. “I guess they saw me coming.” 

“We’re going to fight it,” said Rose Bottino. “We’d like our money back (from the premiums). But they keep giving us excuses.” 

Gary Lester, spokesman for The Villages, referred all questions about the sinkholes and complaints from Dalton Driver residents to Sanford engineer Nicholas Andreyev, who contracts with the retirement community. 

Wahl said the governing boards of The Villages can’t address the type of complaints of the Dalton Drive residents. “Write this down, we don’t sell property,” Wahl said, referring questions to The Villages’ sales department. 

Sales manager Greg Laufersky said he couldn’t comment either on complaints from Dalton Drive residents. He referred questions to Lester. 

Engineer Andreyev said he thought Dalton Drive residents might be mistaken about which water body was their water front. 

“That pond is not supposed to be their water front,” he said. He said Lake Higgins is likely Dalton Drive’s appropriate “water view.” 

The pond’s original shoreline was within about 25 feet of many of the Dalton Drive homes. A corner portion of Lake Higgins is about a quarter mile away. 

Down said their deeds specify their property as “premium” for their scenic views, but don’t refer to a lake. She said sales representatives have told them that they still have a view of the golf course. 
 

“I don’t even like golf,” she said. “I wanted a water view.” Many of the Dalton Drive residents said they’ve been told by sales representatives to discuss their grievances with outside Realtors, suggesting residents of The Villages can move away if they’re dissatisfied with where they live. “We all thought this was the last home we were buying,” Down said. 

“It would only cost me more to move,” Savoia said.