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Article Courtesy of The
Plant City Observer
By Breanne Williams
Published November 18, 2019
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Residents of Walden Lake met with Walden Lake, LLC last week to get an update of
the future of the development of the golf course.
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Carmine Zayoun,
co-partner of Walden Lake, LLC, gave a brief presentation
regarding some of the studies in progress, the results of
the community survey and touched on a conceptual plan for
the project. Then the floor was opened up for an informal
Q&A, in which residents voiced their concern over stormwater
issues and pushed for more details on the conceptual
development plan.
Zayoun has long said the plan of the LLC is to work with the
community already in place to create a collaborative
development. He said that he knows that change is a big word
and that communities all over Florida are changing. Based on
his conversations with the HOA and his “feel for the
community,” Zayoun said, they decided to find a way to go
about the development while being as unobtrusive as
possible.
“I do understand how change impacts a community,” Zayoun
said. “I lived in a community, I’m originally Canadian and I
lived in a similar community in Canada on a golf course
where there was a similar project for folks, so I
understand. I understand that with evolving communities now
and with change and how people have evolved and how people
have changed and how communities have changed, there’s been
different needs and wants in different communities that make
them more thriving, that have improved communities, that
make them more desirable. Our goal is to do that with the
least intrusion possible and work with all of you on
developing a better Walden Lake.” |
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A meeting was held on Nov. 7 that allowed residents
of Walden Lake to sit down with the developers of the golf course to
get an update on the project and have some of their questions
answered.
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The LLC acquired the property in March 2019 and immediately contracted out to
maintain the property, aka cutting the grass and dealing with break-ins at
clubhouse. They then developed a team of engineers and planners to create the
plan of the future of the former golf course. Zayoun said they are working very
closely with the HOA and hired a third-party survey company to survey neighbors.
They want to understand what the community wants to see.
The results proved what many already knew. Walden Lake is a split community. Of
the responses they received, it was practically split down the middle with 51
percent being for a golf course and 49 percent being against. It’s too close for
them to feel comfortable, so Zayoun said it would be up to the community to tell
them what to do. If they want a golf course, they may have to make some tweaks
but the LLC will build one. If the community wants walking trails or other
amenities, they’ll make it happen. Regardless, once built it becomes the
community’s responsibility, so the LLC refuses to create something the entire
community isn’t ready to handle.
Zayoun also said it became clear that it was important to the community that
they become a part of the current HOA and pay into the HOA already in place. He
said it is still being discussed, but they understand it is a top concern since
the HOA and current residents will be responsible for the amenities and green
space the developer builds for them.
The question on everyone’s mind was simple: what will be built and what is being
axed? That, in part, was addressed, though everything is still in its conceptual
phases.
Once again, Zayoun mentioned the plan of having a core “city center” that would
have retail on the bottom and apartments on top. The concept of having
everything from a dog groomer to a cafe was floated. Then they said they’re
looking at putting single-family dwellings toward the back along the railroad
tracks.
This “city center” sparked quite a debate among attendees. A resident asked for
specifics as to the number of residences — whether they be apartments, town
homes, villas or single family dwellings — the LLC planned to build throughout
the entire development including this hub. She then went on to add that, in her
opinion apartments, “don’t work” with the way the city handles traffic and feels
they would not be prepared for an onslaught of residents.
That led to several other comments from the gathered crowd about their hesitancy
toward adding any apartments at all to the community and alluded to concerns of
their financial stability and impact on the characteristics of Walden Lake.
Zayoun simply said the apartments they discussed are of the highest quality and
thus would come with a price tag that reflected that quality of product. He said
he understands that Walden Lake has the reputation of being the “cream of the
crop” and wants to build off of that rather than retract from it.
Of course, several of the community members who have been strongly against any
development also made their presence felt and asked many questions regarding the
specifics of the studies the LLC has in place to ensure their development
doesn’t cause any issues for their neighbors. The developer discussed the plan
for buffers, but kept repeating that this was still in the conceptual stage.
The timeline for the entire project was also a point of interest during the Q&A.
While there are still a few things to hash out, the LLC said it plans to submit
plans to the city hopefully sometime during the next two months.
When concerns of the timing of the meeting were floated, Zayoun said there was
the possibility they may meet again so residents who were unable to attend the
first one, whether due to them being at the Florida Strawberry Festival
Volunteer Dinner or any of the other major city events that were scheduled for
the same time, would have the chance to learn firsthand what the LLC has in
store. He said if the need was there and the HOA was on board, they would
consider adding a second date.
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