Ellie’s Notes – April 13, 2026
Hello All!
Sorry I’ve been unusually quiet during such a busy time.
Unfortunately, I’ve been getting my butt kicked, and I am still not out of the woods. Covid, COPD exacerbation, long Covid, pseudomonas pneumonia, 10 days in the hospital, and lots of difficulty breathing and talking. I am trying my best to recuperate before our meeting on April 22.
Fortunately, we’ve got some great people on the Save SCC team who have been doing an awesome job when I could not, and rest assured, we will be more than ready.
We are working on an outstanding program for the April 22 Informational Meeting. We have lots of new information and insights to share, and your attendance is key to hear about these critical updates and new information, and how you can participate.
And if you don’t have a Save Sun City Center tee-shirt, this is the time to get one for a $20 donation. Support the cause, be a living, walking, advocate, and help spread the word. Let people know you are in the know and fighting for the protection of our golf courses green spaces!
The Save SCC meeting will be held at 5 p.m. on April 22, 2026, in the Sun City Center Community Hall, 1910 S. Pebble Beach Blvd., in Sun City Center. Save SCC representatives will be present at 4 p.m. to address any specific concerns or pre-meeting questions and/or to accept donations and provide Save SCC promotional items, including tee-shirts, lawn signs, window slicks and more.
In addition, Adam Gormly, Department Director for Hillsborough County’s Development Services, has committed to attend the meeting and to answer questions from the audience.
Some of the Save SCC teams have been quietly working behind the scenes, preparing and waiting on ClubLink, but it’s vitally important that all of us who want to preserve and protect our golf courses and green spaces, gather together at this upcoming meeting. There is a lot to be done now in preparation for ClubLink’s next move, and we want everyone to get informed, up to speed and working on our plans as we prepare for ClubLink’s eventual plans and filings for development.
Bring your neighbors, friends and associates. This will be an eye-opening presentation that will not be repeated, and it is purposefully not broadcast via Zoom because we need to be careful not to convey information to ClubLink that they can use against us.
Now on to current business.
As I have often said, the legislative landscape is always changing and Tallahassee is trying everything they can to encourage more home development. Housing scarcity and affordability are key issues and legislation to stream redevelopment and bypass local zoning approvals are constantly being considered. It could be related to affordable housing like the Live Local Act or new concepts like the Florida Infill Redevelopment Act.
There has been recent action by the Hillsborough County Commissioners to try to regain local control and home rule over zoning matters as it relates to the Live Local Act, and I applaud their action and intent. This action by the commissioners is highly important, since it could relate directly to the zoning decisions that will be made relative to our golf courses.
Hillsborough County files Lawsuit Against Live Local Act
The Hillsborough County Board of County Commissioners filed a lawsuit against the State of Florida on March 6, 2026, seeking to declare portions of the Live Local Act unconstitutional. The action specifically challenges section 125.01055 of the Florida Statutes, which allows developers to bypass local zoning, density, and height regulations for certain affordable housing projects.
Summary of Actions
- Unanimous Vote: On December 17, 2025, the Board voted unanimously to authorize the legal challenge.
- Motion Initiation: The motion was spearheaded by Commissioner Joshua Wostal, who argued that the law allows “unfettered multifamily construction” and removes local control over 700 square miles of unincorporated county land.
- Legal Basis: The county contends the law is unconstitutional because it preempts home rule and forces local officials to approve projects without public input or adherence to local comprehensive plans.
- Collaboration: The Board empowered the county attorney to allow other Florida jurisdictions to co-join or support the lawsuit.
- Bypassing Zoning: Commissioners argue the law strips local governments of their authority to regulate density and building heights in areas originally zoned for commercial, industrial, or mixed-use.
- Lack of Public Input: The Act mandates “administrative approval,” which eliminates traditional public hearings and neighborhood reviews for qualifying projects.
- Infrastructure Concerns: Officials cited concerns that the influx of dense multifamily units occurs without adequate consideration for local infrastructure needs.
- Delayed Fixes: Commissioner Wostal noted that while legislative fixes were promised, they would not be considered until 2027, leaving the county with an “insurmountable” number of automated approvals in the interim.
This next item is a new piece of legislation introduced this session.
Florida Infill Redevelopment Act
The Florida Infill Redevelopment Act (Senate Bill 1434 / House Bill 979) is a recent piece of legislation passed by the Florida Legislature in early 2026, designed to fast-track residential development on “environmentally impacted” urban land. Think golf courses with pesticides, herbicides and fertilizer contamination. In other words, the longer they operated, the greater the potential contamination exceeds allowable limits. Think landfills, chemical areas, gas stations, brown fields, etc.
Currently, the act’s streamlined benefits do not apply to Hillsborough County. It specifically targets counties with populations over 1.475 million, which at this time only includes Miami-Dade, Broward, and Palm Beach counties.
But who is to say if and when things will change. The legislature often does revisit these issues.
Key Features of the Act:
- Administrative Approval: Qualifying projects can bypass public hearings and votes by city councils or county commissions. Instead, they receive “administrative approval” from municipal staff if they meet state-set criteria. No zoning hearings!
- Qualifying Land: Sites must be at least 5 acres, located within an urban development boundary, and be “environmentally impacted” (such as former gas stations, landfills or golf courses with pesticide/fertilizer contamination).
- Density Mandates: Local governments must allow residential density at either the average of the surrounding neighborhood or up to 25 units per acre, whichever is lower.
- Preemption of Local Rules: The Act prevents local governments from using zoning or platting processes to block development on these sites, effectively overriding many local land-use restrictions.
Specific Protections for Neighbors:
To address community concerns, the Act includes several “neighbor-friendly” requirements:
- Mandatory Buffers: Developers must provide at least a 20-to-30-foot buffer of open space or passive recreation between the new project and existing single-family homes.
- Proof of Closure: For golf courses, the developer must prove the facility has not been in operation for at least 12 months.
- Higher Impact Fees: Developers must pay double the standard parks and recreation impact fees to compensate for the loss of green space.
- Right of First Refusal: Residents have an option to purchase the recreational parcel if they wish to preserve it, at a price capped at 10% above what the developer paid.
The full details are available on the Florida Bill Tracker.
The measure has been approved by both houses. It has been sent to the Governor for action and will be adopted as law unless vetoed by the Governor, which is unlikely.
We are fortunate this does not apply in Hillsborough County or in our case, but again, the protections available under today’s existing laws may be changed at the local level or the state level.
The need for vigilance and advocacy never goes away. And if we do not pay attention and stand up, our protections can and will be eroded.
Remember, it was our vigilance, advocacy and outreach to the legislature last spring that changed SB 1730 to protect recreation areas in Planned Developments. Otherwise, the six golf course in our PD’s could have been vulnerable for “administrative approval” without public hearings under SB 1730.
Here is my writeup on this from Ellie’s Notes – June 26, 2025
Florida Senate Bill 1730
On the good news front, Tuesday, Governor DeSantis signed SB 1730 amending the Live Local Act to exclude recreational areas in Planned Developments under the Live Local Affordable Housing Program. That means the Live Local Act is not applicable to the golf courses in SCC and Kings Point. ClubLink can still pursue other avenues for development for the golf courses in Sun City Center and Kings Point, but it will not be possible under the Live Local Act.
SB 1730 specifically excludes recreational areas in a PUD from development under the Live Local Act.
This means that parcels designated for recreational uses like golf courses, tennis courts, swimming pools and clubhouses within residential areas are not considered “commercial, industrial or mixed use” for the purposes of Live Local Act development, regardless of how they are operated.
This exclusion was specifically amended into the bill at the last hour of the legislative session, due to the efforts of various groups (primarily us) who sought to protect these areas.
However, it is important to note that this exclusion only prevents development under the Live Local Act. A developer could still pursue residential housing development on a recreational area by submitting a separate development application to the county, which would trigger a different process, including public noticing and hearings. The exception would be the North Lakes Course, which is zoned RSC-6.
SB 1730 amends Florida’s Live Local Act, which aims to address affordable housing issues in the state. Key changes include:
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- Allowing local governments to approve affordable housing developments on parcels owned by religious institutions, even if local zoning would not typically permit such construction.
- Requiring local governments to grant administrative approvals for qualifying affordable housing projects without further action from boards or reviewing bodies.
- Setting density, Floor Area Ratio (FAR), and height maximums to the least restrictive standard currently allowed or allowed as of July 1, 2023.
- Clarifying zoning preemption applicability for commercial, industrial, and mixed-use areas, including planned unit developments, which excludes recreational areas.
This clarifying amendment to the original Live Local Act will also affect the current action in the courts relative to the development efforts in Plant City for the closed Walden Lakes Golf Course, which also was previously owned by WCI. As you recall, WCI sold the SCC golf courses to ClubLink. That hearing is scheduled for September.
This success is due to all of you who called, wrote and emailed to change the course of this legislation. To prevail, we must act and when we act together as a community, we have a powerful voice and impact. Let’s use it!
End of Reprint!
This change allowed our neighbors, Save Walden Lake, Inc., a resident-led organization (and a birds of a feather – someone fighting a similar golf course redevelopment effort) to fight redevelopment of the Walden Lakes Golf course under the Live Local Act to prevail in court.
Florida Senate Bill 1730 (SB 1730), which was signed into law by Governor DeSantis in 2025, became a pivotal tool for the Walden Lake Community Assciation(WLCA) in their legal battle to stop a massive redevelopment project on their former golf course.
The law helped the community win a key court victory in early 2026 by strengthening local control over redevelopment in the following ways:
- Affirming PUD as Contract: The court used the principles bolstered by the legislation to rule that the Planned Unit Development (PUD) is a binding contract with the city. This prevented the developer, Walden Lake LLC, from using the “Live Local Act” as a shortcut to bypass established density limits.
- Preventing “Commercial” Loopholes: The developer argued that because the property was a golf course, it should be considered “commercial” and thus eligible for administrative approval under the Live Local Act. The court rejected this, ruling that recreational green space cannot be unilaterally re-characterized to bypass local zoning reviews.
In January 2026, Judge Michael S. Williams granted a summary judgment in favor of the City of Plant City, effectively closing the administrative pathway for the proposed 1,530 multifamily units and 468 townhomes under the Live Local Act.
So, the moral of the story is we need people power. We need YOU to help with our efforts!
If we fail to be very proactive, there are many forces at work that can, and will, change the course of events either in our favor or against us. And once the game is changed, it is almost impossible to turn the tide.
We must be on the offensive at all times and that takes human volunteers and resources! We must be cognizant of what is going on locally, at the County, in Tallahassee and down our streets. We need to interact frequently with those who impact the landscape and decision processes. The County is also rewriting its Comprehensive Plan for 2045.
Please share this with your friends and neighbors to keep them in the loop. Getting the word out is key, and I appreciate your help. Again, it is a small thing, but it makes all the difference! Thank you!
Hope to see you at the meeting on April 22 if not before!
Best regards,
Ellie Anderson
President – Save Sun City Center
312-282-7337
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