It’s been a long slog to get to a new showgrounds for Wellington, Florida; nine-plus months and approximately 70 hours of hearings (I admit I’ve lost the exact count.)
But on Tuesday night, the Village Council signed off on the project with a unanimous vote (one council member was absent for personal reasons) on the compatibility determination that was the final step in approval of the showgrounds. Compatibility means how a project it will fit in with the surrounding properties, considering such aspects as design, intensity of use and structures.
The new showgrounds will be a venue for dressage (as well as hunters and jumpers) south of Wellington International, home of the Winter Equestrian Festival. The situation has been a contentious one, because its often-mentioned “quid pro quo” involved taking 96-plus acres that is the current site of dressage competition at Equestrian Village, out of the Equestrian Preserve so a high-end golf community can be built there. Developer Wellington Lifestyle Partners would not offer up the land for the showgrounds on Wellington South without approval of that Wellington North development a short distance away.
All the property had been accumulated by Mark Bellissimo through Wellington Equestrian Partners. Bellisimo, seen as a controversial figure by some in Wellington, is a partner in WLP but not the managing partner, as WLP CEO Doug McMahon emphasized on several occasions before the Council.
The “Horses Not Houses” and “Keep Wellington Green” movements protested removing land from the Preserve, and many people cited environmental and traffic concerns, but to no avail. The Preserve is not a reserve; the land involved is privately owned. So it could have been developed to some extent even while remaining in the Preserve, although not to the density planned for the golf community.
Wellington Mayor Ann Gerwig looked both relieved and resigned after the vote, as she acknowledged the outcome of the long and complicated process.
The work and negotiations involved have “refined the end product to the point that, people can disagree and only time will tell, looking at this plan and seeing the showgrounds expanded, at least on paper I think it does set Wellington for the future. It was difficult, it was painful, but I also want to make it clear that it would not have been the path I would have taken, but it’s the path that we had.”
Pam Wildman, a longtime Wellington resident who spoke at the meeting, told the Council earlier in the evening that she has photographic “proof of endangered species being harassed.”
She added, “You’ve been snookered. (Twenty five years from now) people are not going to think, Mayor Gerwig, that you made a good deal.”
Wildman, who said she wanted to live a peaceful life in her hometown, contended “You’re ruining it.”
She added, “I’ve been threatened with bodily harm and lawsuits. Everyone wants to shut me up.”
Officials had been told that new, fancier showgrounds in Ocala and near Sarasota threatened Wellington’s status as “The Winter Equestrian Capital of the World,” because the Wellington International facility had become tired, lacking the space it needed. A number of prominent equestrians and horse owners spoke during the hearings that began in June about the need for an expanded showgrounds if Wellington were to keep its status in the world of horse sports.
{For your convenience in reading this story, here is an acronym glossary: WEP (Wellington Equestrian Partners); GEG (Global Equestrian Group); WEF (Winter Equestrian Festival); WLP (Wellington Lifestyle Partners}
What the rings at the new showgrounds will look like.
The original plan was for WLP to sell land for the showgrounds at Wellington South to Global Equestrian Group, owner of Wellington International. But GEG had financial issues and its owner, investment firm Waterland Private Equity, put the showgrounds on the market. So WLP is building the showgrounds, and dressage will remain at Equestrian Village until it is finished—which could be in two years or five, both dates have been mentioned.
The ground clearing process was evident last year on Pod F, the home of Wellington South.
Meanwhile, entities are bidding for Wellington International. The question is, will the winner also buy the new showgrounds adjacent to that facility? Since WLP has said it doesn’t want to operate the showgrounds once it is finished, someone will have to buy it. Why have two separate showgrounds side by side?
Most of the matters mentioned during the compatibility determination, such as whether stall mats will be provided free of charge (only for the 220 permanent stalls) or the distance between rings (at least 25 feet) already had been discussed. But those still seeking resolution included security concerns by Equestrian Club Estates, which will border the new showgrounds.
Victoria McCullough, who owns Mida Farms, feels egress from her property on Gracida Street will be an issue because of showgrounds traffic. She pointed out she uses a massive 53-foot trailer for transporting her Clydesdale horses, and has 19 employees based on her acreage leaving the property as well. McCullough noted there will be a problem turning left on Gracida, as she always does, due to the volume of cars once the showgrounds is operating. She suggested to the Council, “You could be forcing me to move.”
One condition of approval requires continued monitoring the traffic on Gracida and “queueing time.” A traffic consultant for Wellington said a standard can be evaluated to determine if McCullough’s delay coming out of her facility is excessive, and it could be addressed by having sheriff’s officers help her leave the farm during show times.
John Fumero, the environmental attorney for WLP, answered questions about wetlands work on the showgrounds site. There had been concern by residents over disruption of the wildlife habitat, as Wildman mentioned.
Fumero cited a report from a consulting firm hired by WLP that concluded there were no threatened or endangered species on the property. Acreage choked by invasive plant species did not offer a place for wading birds to nest or eat because their wingspan precludes their entrance into such a tangled area, he said, explaining, “They can’t get in there and land.”
Now that property is being cleared, they can fly in and eat insects and worms turned over by earth moving, he commented.
WLP is required to have a 3.5 acre onsite preserve on Pod F, site of the showgrounds. On Tuesday, the South Florida Water Management District gave permission for WLP to move forward with restoration and enhancement work. When it is finished, “it will once again serve this habitat purpose,” said Fumero.
The situation became complicated because of a court ruling, which as of Feb. 15 reverted the state of Florida’s permission to issue dredge and fill permits under the federal Clean Water Act back to the Environmental Protection Agency, under the auspices of the Army Corps of Engineers. WLP was close to getting a permit from Florida on three acres of wetlands on the north and eastern edges of Peacock Pond.
“So now, we will start from scratch. It’s (the court decision) turned Florida’s development industry on its ear,” commented Fumero. Then he added, “The preserve on the eastern part of Pod F will be a preserve in perpetuity. Nothing, no court case, no change in regulations, will change that.”