As Wedgwood Golf Course redevelopment moves forward, neighbors want accountability

Posted by author January 7, 2025 Golf

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As redevelopment of the former Wedgewood Golf Course takes a step forward, residents are seeking to hold developers responsible for taking care of the land.

Lakeland commissioners voted 6-0 on Monday morning to approve the creation of a community development district for the redevelopment of the historic course. Mayor Bill Mutz was absent.

The community development district, or CDD, will encompass roughly 104 acres of the 120-acre golf course purchased by SJD Development LLC. It will cover land on which the developer plans to build townhomes and single-family homes, according to Chuck Barmby, Lakeland’s business development and transportation manager.

Barmby told commissioners the city had received comments from neighboring residents concerned the developer has failed to maintain the golf course since its purchase in 2022, letting fairways become overgrown.

“If they approve the CDD, will maintenance on the vacant land be improved?” asked Beverly Copeland Inman, a resident of Sandwedge Villas.

Copeland Inman said she has personally texted members of the development team about a tree felled by Hurricane Helene in September that needs removal. She said it’s still there as of Monday morning.

“We need to see if this will bring about some change, some of this stuff needs to be addressed immediately,” she said.

Jere Earlywine, a representative with Kutak Rock, said the developer was seeking a community development district to help fund the large-scale infrastructure improvements that are needed.

“It can issue taxes and bonds, use bond money to install public infrastructure and spread the costs over an extended period of time,” he said. “It costs less, and spread over a period of 30 years, it’s a lot cheaper for residents.

SJD Development provided an estimate of $21.8 million to city staff for proposed facilities and necessary infrastructure improvements. Their estimates include more than $5.1 million for water and wastewater systems and more than $3.8 million for creation of stormwater management systems.

“It includes connections under the I-4 interstate, lift stations and roundabouts we wouldn’t be able to put in except for having that CD[D] money,” Earlywine said.

Code violations raise red flags

Commissioner Guy LaLonde said he understood the potential benefits of a community development district for redeveloping Wedgewood, but he was concerned the developer had received 25 code enforcement violations since 2022.

There are five ongoing code enforcement violations, said Teresa Maio, Lakeland’s assistant director of community and economic development.

The ongoing violations largely cite SJD Development for allowing the golf course’s fairways to become overgrown and filled with debris. City staff said holes 2 to 5 and holes 6 and 7 are all overgrown with debris in the grass.

A note on one file dated Jan. 3 said a city staff member told Scott House, a member of SJD Development, “that all areas of the golf course, except the ponds and their slopes, had to be cut and all debris had to be removed.”

“I’ve seen glass blown on the sidewalks, fire hydrants covered up with grass,” LaLonde said.

The five active code violations date to at least November. If not resolved, the five cases are scheduled for code enforcement hearings between January and February, according to Maio.

Earlywine said the creation of the CDD is a separate issue from the maintenance complaints, but he would convey the community’s concerns to the developer.The creation of a community development district would also provide a “much more robust mechanism for taking care of code enforcement,” Earlywine said. He indicated Wedgewood would have a professional manager on site to handle issues.

Commissioner Mike Musick said he felt the developers themselves needed to be in contact with the city regarding these code violations.

“That information needs to get back to developers. It’s starting off on a bad foot, and for our side to continue to go ahead and approve things when residents say they are not doing what they should be doing,” Musick said. “[Residents] still have a bad taste in their mouth as they don’t feel like developers have kept their word.”

Copeland Inman said she also had concerns as the developers had put numerous changes for the proposed development through the city’s Planning and Zoning Board that weren’t clear to neighboring residents.

Barmby said the developers made a number of minor modifications to allow the construction of townhomes in several areas previously slated for multi-family apartments because of changes in the market.

City staff are still in negotiations with Wedgewood’s developers on the development agreement, which includes specific language regarding the timing of transportation improvements that need to take place. The contract will contain requirements regarding right-of-way to land for the city to construct Lakeland Park Drive extension.

“There’s a lot happening behind the scenes,” Barmby said.

How to contact code enforcement

City Attorney Palmer Davis said residents can call the city’s code enforcement department to have Wedgewood’s property owner cited for code violations, as the city will hire a contractor to mow grass and impose a special assessment fee through the tax roll to cover the costs.

City Manager Shawn Sherrouse said residents can report issues with derelict properties in three ways: