Talks to buy Wellington’s last major chunk of land available along State Road 7 generated enough points of divergence to put off plans to nail down a deal by the Tuesday, Nov. 12 meeting of the Wellington Village Council.
Developer Related Ross and an educational partner offered $45 million to buy the K-Park property near SR 7 and Stribling Way, according to village officials. The pitch is to put hundreds of rental residences, shops, restaurants and a private school there.
“This is too big a deal and too important for us to rush this through,” Mayor Michael Napoleone said in a workshop Monday, Nov. 4.
So, a quick deal was off. Negotiations remained on, with the possibility of an agreement by the council’s Tuesday, Dec. 10 meeting.
One idea discussed in subsequent talks was postponing the school’s opening from August 2027 to August 2028 to raise chances that various pieces of the project appear at roughly the same time.
At the workshop, council members and staff discussed an array of calculations that the right negotiating “floor” price might sit north of $50 million.
Some preliminary offers from other developers have hit $54 million or $55 million, officials said. Then again, any deal that grants commercial or residential development rights across the entire property tends to make the whole parcel pricier than one with a not-for-profit school on a big slice of it.
One of the odder wrinkles is that no one seems completely sure exactly how many acres are on the property. Various government and media references vary considerably, often between 66 and 70 acres. Contract talks, as it turns out, are taking all of this uncertainty into account.
Existing appraisals are based on an assumption there are 68.8 acres at the site, which has sat undeveloped since the village acquired it in 2003. But an updated survey, which might take place only after a sale agreement with the village, could show less land, or more, officials said. That means the parties are talking about per-acre prices, but with overall ceilings and floors on a final price in case the acreage changes.
“What is the lowest it could be? 65 [acres]?” Vice Mayor John McGovern asked at the workshop.
“Yes, but it could be more,” said George Pincus, an outside attorney working for the village on the project.
Pincus said he has worked on agricultural land deals where the count was off by 10 acres, but he doubted it was that much in this case.
Another slightly curious aspect was that council members, staff and attorneys debated for nearly three hours over what they wanted as negotiating positions, with all aware it was a public meeting, and Related and its partners could see it. Pincus said he has negotiated other real estate deals involving governmental bodies, and he was comfortable in the sunshine.
Negotiations involved not only a bottom-line price but proposed contract safeguards that builders may or may not accept, advisers cautioned. Among these were attempts to make sure developers do not, for instance, construct hundreds of rental residences before restaurants and other promised amenities, or build the school way ahead of other pieces.
The worry is that even with the most reputable builders, sometimes unforeseen economic conditions or other snags can halt a project while parts of it touted as benefits for the whole community sit unrealized.
Because it was a workshop session, the council did not vote on anything, but rather gave guidance to negotiators.
Appraisals played a role. A presentation showed four appraisals for K-Park, obtained by various parties, including the village and the builder. The two highest valuations were $53.3 million and $53 million. Another landed at $48.3 million. An appraisal arranged by the developer, staff members said, came in lowest at $39.7 million.
A land sale would be provisional, contingent on eventual village approval of a particular development plan.
Trying to guarantee that various parts of the project get built on a certain schedule can become complicated. Village staff members advised that the proposed 1,675-student private K-12 school at the western end of the project faces a shorter permitting and approval process than the mixed-use part because it has a less complex mix of buildings. School leaders with the group Education in Motion initially said they hoped to open by August 2027. The possible 2028 start has come up since.
The eastern end would feature 400 to 550 rental residences, including townhomes and apartments, along with trails, green public spaces, 40 to 50 shops and restaurants, and maybe a hotel, according to Related Ross.
One working plan has been to have separate land purchases for the school and its partner Related, though concern arose over the possibility that the school’s land payment could be “phased” or paid over time.
There was talk of asking Related Ross, led by Miami Dolphins owner Stephen Ross, to serve as the overall buyer for the whole thing.
It’s one more chapter in K-Park’s history, where plans have been abundant but endings elusive in the past.
At the Nov. 4 workshop, Wellington resident Jim Mantrozos renewed pleas for a cause he has championed for years, a botanical garden.
“We need the council to do something for us as a community,” he said. “What’s in concrete jungles for us?”
Councilwoman Maria Antuña said she enjoyed the pictures of gardens he provided from other places around the world but wanted to hear some kind of a detailed proposal at this stage.
“My concern is you’re constantly saying this is what you want, but here we are again with no numbers, no data, no information, and yet it’s continually said the council doesn’t want to do anything,” she said.
Mantrozos said he is just relaying what many people say they want, and the details are not his job unless the village wants to put him on a committee, for example.
Other council members suggested a botanical garden could be proposed for other places in the village, such as a portion of the 50 or so acres that the village is slated to acquire near the Wellington branch library.
In other business at the council’s Nov. 12 meeting:
- The council ceremonially presented more than $400,000 in annual Keely Spinelli grants to benefit the village’s schools in math and language tutoring.
- On final reading, the council unanimously passed updates to village noise and nuisance ordinances. One addition to the overhaul gives the village a bit more explicit authority on animal noises, such as sustained or extreme dog barking in the wee hours of the morning.
- The council unanimously approved revisions to its rules regarding vacation rentals, meaning leases of 30 days or less. These are designed to strengthen village responses to complaints about noise, parking and more.
