5 reasons why Vero Beach council should sell Dodgertown golf course to Indian River County
Laurence Reisman
It’s been two weeks since I wrote about the fictional high-rise Howsykans affordable housing complex set in 2050 Vero Beach.
The column featured a conversation between a boy and his grandfather, who’d grown up in Vero Beach, a proud Tree City that had slid down the slippery slope of overdevelopment caused by a lack of planning and vision.
While a few people objected to it and other columns I’ve written about a triumvirate on City Council seemingly bent on selling the former Dodgertown nine-hole golf course to a developer, I have been overwhelmed by the positive reaction.
The praise comes regularly from conservatives and liberals, business people and retirees, rich and poor. I’ve never met many of these people, but I’ve found I’m blessed with their ongoing readership.
What’s also interesting are the kudos I’ve received from leaders in the Indian River County Chamber of Commerce who are promotingquality economic development.
Bill Penney, Marine Bank’s president, CEO and chairman, and Penny Chandler, retired chamber president, are among the supporters. Like me, and Alma Lee Loy, the county’s so-called “first lady,” they think prudent planning is necessary before selling to developers the 35 acres adjacent to county-owned Historic Dodgertown.
To recap, the city received an unsolicited offer in June from a developer to build high-end retail stores, a hotel, office buildings and possibly some residences.
Council said it wasn’t interested in homes, so on Aug. 21, the developers offered $2.1 million for the property and said it wouldn't build homes. Within a week, City Manager Jim O’Connor asked council to approve the deal at $1.4 million less than what the land had been appraised at in September 2015. In 2005, a prior council voted unanimously to buy and preserve the land for almost $10 million.
MORE: Will Dodgertown deal become slippery slope that changes face of county?
On Sept. 4, county commissioners, fearing the sale could hinder the county's $20 million investment in Historic Dodgertown next door, proposed paying $2.4 million for the land.
That night at a council meeting, developers matched the offer and raised it $30,000. The triumvirate of Mayor Harry Howle and councilmen Lange Sykes and Val Zudans, who proposed O’Connor’s negotiations, seemed skeptical of the county’s offer.
Here’s are five reasons why the county plan makes the most sense.
1) VALUE: Putting the Dodgertown property back together and giving potential renters, such as Major League Baseball, or owners an opportunity to eventually use it all can only increase the value of the county’s (and city taxpayers') investment.
That future might include preserving part of the old golf course. It also might include development that is not just compatible with Dodgertown and the surrounding area, but complementary.
The trio argued putting the property on the city's tax roll would be beneficial, though it provided no details. The reality is, even if a project is successful in the long run, it would provide relatively minimal income to the city.
MORE: Developer makes initial pitch to buy former Dodgertown golf course
2) PLANNING: Despite numerous requests over the past several months to devise a plan for open space and other land the city owns, including Riverside and MacWilliam parks, the city has procrastinated and been reactionary.
Just as it has with proposals to put a brewery and sailing clubhouse in Riverside Park and sell its post office property, council seems to shoot from the hip rather than charting a course.
In business or government, lack of planning is a recipe for disaster stemming from unintended consequences. Planning gives government time to thoroughly vet all possible options with public participation.
3) PRESERVATION: If you haven’t noticed, massive amounts of land around Indian River County are being bulldozed and developed. There’s relatively little public land in the mainland urban area near Vero Beach to enjoy.
“You can’t put a price tag on parks,” Loy told council Sept. 4 in advocating for a sale to the county. “You can’t put a price tag on fresh air. You can’t put a price tag on the things that have meant so much to the people of this community for so long.”
Are Howle, Sykes and Zudans listening? Do they care?
MORE: Old Dodgertown golf course avoids bulldozers for the time being
4) CREDIBILITY: Regardless of who buys the old golf course, the city no longer would be bogged down by an annual $660,000 principal and interest payment. That's been the city's biggest argument for selling the land.
If the city sells to developers to build out the golf course, my hunch is the city will pay a massive price when it comes to credibility. Who would trust a council that sells out to developers when it hasn’t heard the public outcry?
If there's no real planning or open space at Dodgertown, who would trust council to preserve open space along the Indian River Lagoon at 17th Street and Indian River Boulevard when the former power plant and sewer plant eventually are vacant?
5) PARTNERS: Howle, Sykes and Zudans were elected for one thing: to provide a council majority to sell the city’s electric operation to Florida Power & Light Co. This team’s No. 1 partners? Indian River County commissioners, who fought the same battle for several years.
It’s time to show the county a little respect and trust.
After all, wouldn’t it be nice to know the city and county can finally get along to benefit us all?
This column reflects the opinion of Laurence Reisman. Contact him via email at larry.reisman@tcpalm.com, phone at 772-978-2223, Facebook.com/larryreisman or Twitter @LaurenceReisman