Notes from Ellie
Stuff You Should Know About
Hello All,
Great work is proceeding on multiple fronts.
Open Positions
We have three positions we are looking to fill:
- Zoom Meeting Host – to host and conduct SaveSCC meeting interaction with Zoom participants
- CPA or financial advisor – with credit card processing and more mandated financial reporting requirements, assistance in this arena is needed to conduct processing, reconciliation and reporting activities.
- Legal advisor – to advise SaveSCC on legal matters and contracts
Donations on Online Still Coming
Yes, they’re still coming.
Unfortunately, Eric Nisenfeld, our web site software engineer who must perform some backend work, is in the middle of a massive upgrade project for his employer and has not been available to do some things needed prior to our site being ready for credit card processing. As soon as his schedule permits, we’ll be on it!
Save Sun City Center has received its registration compliance certificate from the State of Florida for our charitable operation. Hooray!
Peter Bates, Eric Nisenfeld and I will be working to get our credit card processing gateway with Authorize.net and PNC Bank in operation within the coming weeks and then we will be processing donations via our website – SaveSCC.org.
Hillsborough County Greenways Project
The input period for the Greenways Master Plan Project with Hillsborough County closes on August 8, 2022. I did attend their virtual session Monday night. I am submitting my comments via email to the Project Manager, Sarah Caper, CaperS@hcflgov.net.
My draft is below. If you have any other suggestions or ideas, please get them to me no later than Monday so that I may incorporate them or send your own!
Sarah Caper, Project Manager
Greenways Master Plan Update
Hillsborough County
813-807-0743
Dear Sarah,
I am writing as a resident of the Greater Sun City Center Area of Unincorporated Hillsborough County. This area includes Cypress Creek, Valencia Lakes, Sun City Center, Kings Point and Freedom Plaza. A very unique area primarily of 55+ active seniors is Freedom Plaza, Kings Point and Sun City Center, where I live. We have our own “GREATER SUN CITY CENTER GOLF CART DRIVERS HANDBOOK”. Use of golf carts for transportation in our community is extensive.
There is community interest with respect to Greenways. We are probably the most densely populated area with special provisions for golf cart use throughout the Greater Sun City Center Area within Hillsborough County including special golf cart crossings on 674 and 301 and golf cart lanes on Cypress Creek Blvd. Provisions for increasing golf cart accessibility to recreation areas and other parts of the community and beyond not currently accessible by golf carts is a key vision and hope for the future that is not addressed currently. Extending golf cart access to:
-
SouthShore Regional LibraryCommercial area along 674 with Popeye’s, Denny’s, and Bob Evans across from Cypress Village Blvd and 33rd St SE, RuskinCommercial area at E College Ave and 30th St SE, Ruskin
I have even heard of folks going all the way from 674 and 301 to Big Bend on golf carts and bikes via the cement pathways adjacent to the roadway. I am not clear whether these pathways were designed or authorized for such use. They simply say “NO MOTOR VEHICLES”. Greater range and accessibility are our goal while meeting all statutory requirements and providing for safety.
Multi-use greenways for us could include strolling, walking, jogging, biking, triking, amigo carting, wheel-chairing, walking , walking a dog, grandkids and with others, roller blading (?), skateboarding, scooters, e-bikes, golf carting and every other mobility device imaginable including scooters and Segways, some transportation tools human powered, some not.
Supporting accessibility options for those differently abled could facilitate access and recreating in a safe manner. The thought of traveling 674 or 301 via bike corridors on the roadways is down-right life-threatening to seniors or young families. And the areas around us are teaming with families who would have similar desires to access recreation areas, shopping areas, restaurants, and recreation areas as well.
Connectivity Greenway goals also include direct access via a greenway into Little Manatee State Park, Camp Bayou, E. G. Simmons Park and other nearby recreation areas. The whole point of living in Florida is to be outside taking in the sights and getting from place to place in the most pleasant and healthy manner possible. Our bikers and trikers, both standard and recumbent, would love some shaded areas to ride and enjoy nature that would not require strapping their toys to motor vehicles to get them to a recreation area. That’s just too challenging for many of us.
I have looked at the county GIS maps and found existing Hillsborough County land on New Bedford Dr that could be the start of a greenway within Sun City Center to Little Manatee State Park. There also potential paths via the end of Pebble Beach Blvd at 301 and potentially at the end of Misty Greens Dr. These are a few for feasibility assessment. I am sure there are others.
E-bikes, E-trikes, E-scooter and other powered transport devices provide special challenges and questions that ultimately must be addressed. I am reviewing the Florida Statute 316 but the topic still leaves me somewhat baffled. Perhaps proper signage and color coding of striping and signage would help identify what uses are permitted on certain pathways, trails, etc.
It is very sad that when the County was doing road work and sidewalk work along 674 recently, that they did not make those sidewalks(?) wider and multimodal accessible to improve accessibility within the community. Hopefully that oversight will not be repeated. I would recommend any roadway project take into account mutli-modal pathways into consideration in their planning and design.
Thanks for your consideration. Should you like to speak more on this topic, I am available.
Sincerely,
Ellie Anderson
Golf Course Property Analysis Project
Some great work is continuing with analysis of the property data on those properties that abut the ClubLink owned golf courses in Sun City Center and Kings Point and those not owned by ClubLink. Golf courses are a keystone feature of our community and as concerned citizens, we are working diligently to build the most compelling case to save our green spaces in perpetuity. It is a tall order goal that has been at the core of our community since its founding and was reconfirmed by the citizens who lived here during the extensive community-based planning effort that involved the community, the planning commission, builders and others and everyone agreed to preserve the existing golf courses and green space some 15 years ago as documented in the Greater Sun City Community Plan.
Our analysis seeks to drive home the point how integral our courses are to the community character and neighborhoods and just how many properties directly abut these courses. While we still need to verify and cross check each course and the underlying property records, the preliminary analysis of the courses in Sun City Center reveals the following:
| Course | # of Streets | Abutted Properties |
| Caloosa Greens Course Analysis | 5 | 191 |
| Club Renaissance Course Analysis | 26 | 479 |
| North Lakes Course Analysis | 22 | 418 |
| Sandpiper Course Analysis | 27 | 440 |
| ClubLink Courses in SCC | 80 | 1528 |
| Course | # of Streets | Abutted Properties |
| Caloosa Golf Course | 16 | 227 |
| Freedom Fairways | 1 | 33 |
| Non ClubLink Course in SCC | 17 | 260 |
| All SCC Courses | 97 | 1788 |
To me this is staggering. I have not obtained a count of the total residential units in SCC but, 1788 of them abut a golf course!
Assuming 1.6 persons per household, that means 2,861 people are IMBY’s (in my back yarders). If it is 1.7 persons per household, that means 3,040. However you slice it, that’s a significant number of properties, home values, and residents directly impacted in their own backyards.
Of course any development of SCC golf courses impacts every resident via traffic, water pressure, storm runoff, flooding, services times in the post office, bank, grocery, doctor’s office, traffic lights, EMS response, wildlife loss, loss of trees, open vistas, etc. It also directly affects our welfare, peace of mind and general health. It is mind-boggling and goes against prior and existing plan for this community and its green space for recreating outdoors since the community’s founding.
The above summary is exactly that. Behind that summary is another summary, one by course. And behind that is the detailed property record for all of those 1788 properties in Sun City Center. Similar data is being compiled on the Kings Point courses and is in process. Cypress Creek Golf course is not a priority, but we will take a look as time permits.
Caloosa Greens Course Analysis
Abutting Street Properties
| E DEL WEBB BLVD | 97 | ||||
| CALOOSA PALMS CT | 18 | Homestead Yes | 146 | 76.44% | |
| CALOOSA WOODS LN | 24 | Homestead No | 45 | 23.56% | |
| RUNNINGBROOKE WAY | 10 | Total | 191 | 100.00% | |
| WINTERBROOKE WAY | 42 | ||||
| 5 | 191 |
Club Renaissance Course Analysis
| Street | Abutting Properties | ||||
| RIMINI VISTA WAY | 6 | Homestead Yes | 379 | 79.12% | |
| CRYSTAL DOWNS CT | 4 | Homestead No | 100 | 20.88% | |
| CHIPPER DR | 20 | Total | 479 | 100.00% | |
| MYRTLE VISTA CT | 10 | ||||
| KNIGHTS GATE CT | 9 | ||||
| NOBLE FAIRE DR | 34 | ||||
| GRAND CHATEAUX WAY | 4 | ||||
| REGAL MANOR WAY | 16 | ||||
| JASMINE CREEK CT | 17 | ||||
| VIA TOSCANA WAY | 9 | ||||
| SIENA VISTA PL | 16 | ||||
| CAPTIVA CT | 3 | ||||
| WESTMINSTER MANOR LN | 8 | ||||
| NEW BEDFORD DR | 7 | ||||
| PERIDOT LN | 8 | ||||
| SIGNATURE DR | 19 | ||||
| PRESERVATION GREEN CT | 15 | ||||
| VILLEROY DR | 7 | ||||
| MISTY GREENS DR | 39 | ||||
| CRYSTAL GREENS DR | 17 | ||||
| LENOX GREENS DR | 10 | ||||
| S PEBBLE BEACH BLVD | 12 | ||||
| PLATINUM DR | 64 | ||||
| EMERALD DUNES DR | 112 | ||||
| PACIFIC DUNES DR | 9 | ||||
| ATHENS WAY | 4 | ||||
| 26 | 479 |
North Lakes Course Analysis
1st golf course build in Sun City Center done by Del Webb.
| ALLEGHENY DR | 40 | ||||
| AUGUSTA DR | 29 | ||||
| CHERRY HILLS DR | 42 | ||||
| CHURCHILL PL | 3 | ||||
| DESERT HILLS DR | 24 | ||||
| DESERT HILLS WAY | 9 | ||||
| E BROCKTON PL | 3 | ||||
| EL RANCHO DR | 40 | ||||
| EL TURCO CT | 2 | ||||
| FOX HILLS DR | 44 | ||||
| GENET CT | 4 | ||||
| HACIENDA DR | 33 | ||||
| HUXLEY PL | 2 | Homestead Yes | 287 | 68.66% | |
| LA JOLLA AVE | 46 | Homestead No | 131 | 31.34% | |
| N PEBBLE BEACH BLVD | 28 | Total | 418 | 100.00% | |
| OAKMONT AVE | 9 | ||||
| OJAI AVE | 40 | ||||
| RADFORD PL | 5 | ||||
| READING PL | 4 | ||||
| RIVIERA DR | 3 | ||||
| RUTGERS PL | 4 | ||||
| W BROCKTON PL | 4 | ||||
| 22 | 418 |
Sandpiper Course Analysis
| Street | Propertied Abutted | ||||
| AMESBURY CIR | 9 | ||||
| ARDMORE WAY | 4 | ||||
| AUSTIN HILL CT | 3 | ||||
| BROCKFIELD DR | 10 | ||||
| CHIPPER DR | 39 | ||||
| CLUB MANOR DR | 18 | Homestead Yes | 353 | 80.23% | |
| COCO PALM CIR | 6 | Homestead No | 87 | 19.77% | |
| CRANSTON PL | 6 | Total | 440 | 100.00% | |
| CRYSTAL DOWNS CT | 4 | ||||
| EASTLOCH CT | 5 | ||||
| FAIRCROSS CIR | 7 | ||||
| FAIRSIDE CT | 5 | ||||
| FAIRWAY RIDGE CT | 22 | ||||
| KILBY WAY | 3 | ||||
| KING LEON WAY | 25 | ||||
| LAKEHOUSE CT | 4 | ||||
| NEW BEDFORD DR | 85 | ||||
| NUTMEG PL | 6 | ||||
| PACIFIC DUNES DR | 31 | ||||
| PINEAPPLE PALM CT | 4 | ||||
| REGAL MANOR WAY | 13 | ||||
| S PEBBLE BEACH BLVD | 25 | ||||
| SMITHFIELD LN | 9 | ||||
| STONEHAM DR | 6 | ||||
| WESTMONT WAY | 6 | ||||
| WOLF LAUREL DR | 74 | ||||
| WOODMAR DR | 11 | ||||
| 27 | 440 |
Caloosa Golf Course
| BENTWOOD DR | 5 | ||||
| CALOOSA PALMS CT | 23 | ||||
| CAMELLIA GREEN DR | 12 | ||||
| CHICKORY LN | 4 | Homestead Yes | 184 | 81.06% | |
| E DEL WEBB BLVD | 9 | Homestead No | 43 | 18.94% | |
| E EAST VIEW | 35 | total | 227 | 100.00% | |
| LA JOLLA AVE | 4 | ||||
| LINGER LN | 3 | ||||
| LYNDHURST DR | 18 | ||||
| MEADOWLARK LN | 18 | ||||
| N PEBBLE BEACH BLVD | 3 | ||||
| NORTHWAY DR | 13 | ||||
| PRESTANCIA LN | 22 | ||||
| STERLING GLEN CT | 35 | ||||
| WEST VIEW DR | 8 | ||||
| WINTERBROOKE WAY | 15 | ||||
| 16 | 227 |
Freedom Fairways
| W DEL WEBB BLVD | 33 | Homestead Yes | 18 | 54.55% | |
| Homestead No | 15 | 45.45% | |||
| Total | 33 | 100.00% |
I am looking forward to the what the facts will reveal to confirm what we already know anecdotally and tell a more compelling story. We will keep you posted.
Zoom Meeting Info
If you want to Zoom to our next meeting, click here.
Agenda
Click here to display the agenda for our working session meeting Tuesday, August 9, 2022 on Zoom or in the Rollins Theatre at 6 pm.
Please keep forwarding our information to your friends and associates. It is important to keep folks informed and onboard.
We will talk extensively about the petition drive and why it is important we go door to door. The CA Board thinking remains unknown and they are a wild card. We must ensure that we have the vast majority of SCC members weighing in on this potential development via their signature on the SaveSCC petition. Should the CA Board, or key members of the Board, in their official capacity, represent the membership agreeing to development on SCC golf courses in the Greater Sun City Area, only signatures from an overwhelming majority of SCC residents to the contrary can negate their action. We’ll talk more Tuesday!
Best regards,
Ellie