Another Florida Golf Course, Foxfire Golf Club Shuts Down
The public Foxfire Golf Club closed abruptly Tuesday after a $3.6 million sale of a majority of the 27-hole Florida golf course.
The buyer, Foxfire Properties LLC, said it closed the 188-acre course because of environmental contamination and economic losses that have plagued Foxfire for the past several years.
There are no immediate plans for the property, but residential development is the most likely option.
"What's attractive about the property is its size and location," said John Patterson, an attorney representing Foxfire Properties, a company formed by Sarasota investor Barry Spencer.
"What's unattractive about it is it was built over a former landfill," Patterson added. "And the Florida golf course has been losing money. It's not been a financially viable operation for years."
Foxfire has racked up $200,000 in annual losses since 2001, when the 9/11 terrorist strikes crippled foreign tourism.
Foxfire opened in 1975, offering golfers an accessible and affordable opportunity to play year-round. In 2005, its daily rates ranged from $15 to $45.
But as taxes and operating expenses have increased, public Florida golf courses like Foxfire have struggled. At the same time, increased property values have attracted developers interested in courses' large swaths of land.
In addition to Foxfire, the 113-acre Sunrise Golf Club, the 52-acre Venice East Golf Club and the 46-acre Heather Mills Golf Club, in Manatee County, have been targeted for conversion to residences.
At Heather Mills, owners Alva and Rick Copeman have asked the county to alter the course's land use to allow as many as 279 homes on the property.
For Florida golfers like Dean Wince, though, Foxfire's sudden closing marked a sad end to years of happy memories.
"It was a good course," said Wince, who had played at Foxfire for the past six years. "It was always reasonable in the summer and fall. There are quite a few of us that are displeased right now."
When he called last Thursday to reserve a tee time at Foxfire, Wince said he wasn't told the course wouldn't be open.
Customers who purchased prepaid play cards can call Foxfire at 921-7757 for a "prompt refund," according to a statement.
Wince said he plans to take his game to either the Tatum Ridge or Sarasota Golf public courses, now that Foxfire is gone.
"The most prudent thing to do in this case for this property and the surrounding properties was to close the Florida golf course," Patterson said.
Foxfire Properties has no immediate plans for the 104 acres in the former golf club that it purchased, Patterson said. Four of the acres are in the planned Red Hawk Reserve residential community. There, Foxfire Properties could develop as many as 13 lots.
The company also signed a 10-year lease with seller Foxfire Golf Course of Sarasota LC for the contaminated land, with an option to purchase it.
Patterson said Foxfire Properties intends to monitor the adjacent 89-acre tract, which had been a landfill until the mid-1970s and now contains arsenic and other contaminants. The land is also monitored by the Florida Department of Environmental Protection.
Any redevelopment of the 7200 Proctor Road course faces other hurdles as well -- namely, agreements implemented in July 2001 with a neighboring homeowners association that restrict development, unless the course is deemed not economically feasible by an arbitration panel.
Foxfire Golf Course of Sarasota, a group of East Florida investors, paid $3.2 million for the entire course in October 1999, according to county land records.
Foxfire Properties "will attempt to work with the neighboring residential property owners and their association in seeking a mutually agreeable plan for the future use of the property," the new owner said in a statement.
Foxfire would be Spencer's first major residential development. Previously, he's invested in retail centers and mobile home parks.
In May, a Spencer-led partnership sold the Sarasota Crossings shopping center, at Fruitville Road and Honore Avenue, to Benderson Development Co. for $14.5 million.
Spencer's Moorings of Manatee Inc. had purchased the center, which also contains a Target store that wasn't part of the deal, for just less than $12 million in 1999.
Are Florida golf courses falling to the great demand of property?
The buyer, Foxfire Properties LLC, said it closed the 188-acre course because of environmental contamination and economic losses that have plagued Foxfire for the past several years.
There are no immediate plans for the property, but residential development is the most likely option.
"What's attractive about the property is its size and location," said John Patterson, an attorney representing Foxfire Properties, a company formed by Sarasota investor Barry Spencer.
"What's unattractive about it is it was built over a former landfill," Patterson added. "And the Florida golf course has been losing money. It's not been a financially viable operation for years."
Foxfire has racked up $200,000 in annual losses since 2001, when the 9/11 terrorist strikes crippled foreign tourism.
Foxfire opened in 1975, offering golfers an accessible and affordable opportunity to play year-round. In 2005, its daily rates ranged from $15 to $45.
But as taxes and operating expenses have increased, public Florida golf courses like Foxfire have struggled. At the same time, increased property values have attracted developers interested in courses' large swaths of land.
In addition to Foxfire, the 113-acre Sunrise Golf Club, the 52-acre Venice East Golf Club and the 46-acre Heather Mills Golf Club, in Manatee County, have been targeted for conversion to residences.
At Heather Mills, owners Alva and Rick Copeman have asked the county to alter the course's land use to allow as many as 279 homes on the property.
For Florida golfers like Dean Wince, though, Foxfire's sudden closing marked a sad end to years of happy memories.
"It was a good course," said Wince, who had played at Foxfire for the past six years. "It was always reasonable in the summer and fall. There are quite a few of us that are displeased right now."
When he called last Thursday to reserve a tee time at Foxfire, Wince said he wasn't told the course wouldn't be open.
Customers who purchased prepaid play cards can call Foxfire at 921-7757 for a "prompt refund," according to a statement.
Wince said he plans to take his game to either the Tatum Ridge or Sarasota Golf public courses, now that Foxfire is gone.
"The most prudent thing to do in this case for this property and the surrounding properties was to close the Florida golf course," Patterson said.
Foxfire Properties has no immediate plans for the 104 acres in the former golf club that it purchased, Patterson said. Four of the acres are in the planned Red Hawk Reserve residential community. There, Foxfire Properties could develop as many as 13 lots.
The company also signed a 10-year lease with seller Foxfire Golf Course of Sarasota LC for the contaminated land, with an option to purchase it.
Patterson said Foxfire Properties intends to monitor the adjacent 89-acre tract, which had been a landfill until the mid-1970s and now contains arsenic and other contaminants. The land is also monitored by the Florida Department of Environmental Protection.
Any redevelopment of the 7200 Proctor Road course faces other hurdles as well -- namely, agreements implemented in July 2001 with a neighboring homeowners association that restrict development, unless the course is deemed not economically feasible by an arbitration panel.
Foxfire Golf Course of Sarasota, a group of East Florida investors, paid $3.2 million for the entire course in October 1999, according to county land records.
Foxfire Properties "will attempt to work with the neighboring residential property owners and their association in seeking a mutually agreeable plan for the future use of the property," the new owner said in a statement.
Foxfire would be Spencer's first major residential development. Previously, he's invested in retail centers and mobile home parks.
In May, a Spencer-led partnership sold the Sarasota Crossings shopping center, at Fruitville Road and Honore Avenue, to Benderson Development Co. for $14.5 million.
Spencer's Moorings of Manatee Inc. had purchased the center, which also contains a Target store that wasn't part of the deal, for just less than $12 million in 1999.
Are Florida golf courses falling to the great demand of property?
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