HOBE SOUND, Fla. (CBS12) — Earlier this week, the Florida Department of Environmental Protection quietly released plans to for its ‘Great Outdoor Initiative’ at 9 state parks across Florida.

The initiative will work to expand public access and increase outdoor activities at the parks – and Jonathan Dickinson State Park in Hobe Sound was selected.

The Florida DEP proposed building three golf courses and a clubhouse on the nature preserve.

“So, I had a serious case of déjà vu because this came up in 2011 in Martin County. Jonathan Dickison State Park was actually proposed with golf course development back then and the community rose up, defeated it and apparently, it didn’t go away. It just went dormant for about a decade,” said Eve Samples, the Executive Director of Friends of the Everglades, a nonprofit organization dedicated to preserving America’s Everglades and its interconnected ecosystems – says this proposal is not environmentally sound.

One of the proposed golf courses would destroy the iconic Hobe Mountain Observation Tower” that sits on one of the last naturally occurring sand dunes in the area.

“So, if we’re talking about destroying that habitat to bring in 3 golf courses, there are a lot of damaging tradeoffs. Number 1: Golf courses use a lot of water, they need irrigation so where is that water going to come from?” asked Samples.

The park sits between the Indian River Lagoon, one of the most biodiverse estuaries in North America, and the Loxahatchee River, which is part of the Everglade’s ecosystem.

Golf courses require a lot of maintenance to get the greens just right – which Samples says would impact the fragile ecosystem that is home to endangered species like the scrub jay and gopher tortoise.

“Fertilizer runoff is a major problem throughout the state. So, when you apply fertilizer through turf – as is present on golf courses – it creates run off to waterways and that’s what leads to the toxic algae blooms that we’ve seen in years past on the Treasure Coast,” said Samples.

According to the initial plans released by the DEP, the facilities will be designed and developed in harmony with the surrounding environment.

But for conservation biologist Benji Studt, that’s nearly impossible.

From my reading and my understanding, [this plan] deviates significantly from their mission and from what makes these places so loved,” said Studt.

“I think if Jonathan Dickinson State Park as kind of a dividing line of the urban corridor of south Florida and the Treasure Coast. It’s a place where you can go and remember what Florida used to be like,” said Samples.

Officials with the Department of Environmental Protection initially set up a meeting on Tuesday, August 27th for public comment but that has since been rescheduled.

A new meeting date is expected to be announced soon – with some meetings expected the week of September 2nd.