At the August 12 meeting of the Spring Lake Board of Supervisors it was unanimously decided to cancel the Advisory Referendum and suspend any further negotiations on the purchase of the Sebring International Golf Resort.

District staff vigorously pursued funding options for any potential purchase, but existing 20 year no interest loans from the State, along with a purchase exceeding an appraised loan value, made financing virtually impossible.

Over the past several weeks District staff and New Spring Lake Partners worked through the golf course option together, and reached the same conclusion. An outright District purchase of the property, with the District taking on the operational risk and responsibility of running it, was not the right structure, and it is off the table! Both parties agreed, and the issue was put forth to the Supervisors at the meeting.

There is no longer a question to put on a referendum ballot, and the District is withdrawing the October process. This spares our community a divisive vote, it spares the District the time and cost of administering an advisory referendum and, more to the point, it allows both parties to spend time on work that can actually produce beneficial results.

That work has already started. The Distict and New Spring Lake Partners will be executing a new sewer capacity agreement replacing a prior memorandum of understanding. The agreement will position the District to collect substantial water and sewer revenue as development moves forward in the specified areas.

Residents should recognize that the golf course lands are critical to our water control plan. Miles of canals go thru the property, and there are a number of ponds and lakes that contribute to water storage. Coupled with our stormwater treatment area (STA/ECO PARK) our community remains protected from adverse flooding. For many years the District has had a blanket easement to go on golf course properties and perform any needed services to ensure water retention, storage, and quality. District staff will continue to work with New Spring Lake Partners so that the community gets the benefit of both water management on one side, and a viable and well kept property on the other.

Any services over and above what is allowed by our current agreements and our charter will be brought before the Board of Supervisors for their discussion and approval.

New Spring Lake Partners ownership and the District have agreed to continue to work cooperatively to ensure growth and development of Spring Lake. The golf course remains an integral part of Spring Lake, and we are hopeful that ownership will continue to explore its options for future success.

As a reminder to all residents and landowners, your best source of information is on the District website at www.springlakefl.com; The Breeze; District e-mail blasts; the SLPA newsletter; and attending Board meetings. If you only rely on the comments and opinions on social media you will rarely get the right story.

Thank you to all who have kept abreast of this process, and let's all work to keep Spring Lake the wonderful community it is.