Opinion: Palm Lakes Golf Course a Failure of Leadership of Former Mayor

Palm Lakes Golf Course in Margate. {Google Maps}

By Rich Zucchini

While Vice Mayor Schwartz panders to the Keep Margate Green initiative for re-election, she seriously failed her commitment during her mayoral term to acquire the 15.4 acres of Palm Lakes Golf Course land in a backroom deal that cheated the 55+ Palm Lakes community and the Margate residents of a passive park. This failure ensured future development attempts by the new owner.   

Situated in the heart of Margate, just south of Atlantic Blvd, west of Rock Island Rd, and southwest of the new Publix center. On January 21, 2021, the Palm Lakes Golf Course owner’s representative contacted Vice Mayor Arserio to offer the golf Course land for free to the City of Margate.

Arserio immediately recognized the valuable opportunity and correctly arranged a conference call with City Manager Cale Curtis. Subsequently, some of the commissioners were polled, as evidenced by comments made during the March 3, 2021, commission meeting. At 54:00, in the recorded video, Commissioner Ruzzano suggested that the city acquire Palm Lakes Golf Course.

Unbeknownst to him, the backdoor deal to reject the acquisition had already been discussed. City Attorney Janette Smith at 56:28 remarked, “The city (commissioners) did not want to move forward …on that property.”

At 1:06:00, Ruzzano commented that the landlocked land was perhaps unusable. (At this point, the City Attorney should have advised Ruzzano that Florida law does not allow landlocking another property, and an access easement was obligated by law. However, Smith failed to do so).

At 1:12:50, Curtis stated,” The city attorney reached out to all of you (commissioners),”  and at 1:15:08, he confirmed, “I reached out to the commissioners.” During this discussion, Curtis remarked several times that this issue could be added to the agenda. Adding agenda issues was the responsibility of then-Mayor Arlene Schwartz.

During that meeting, there was much discussion (Kabuki theater for the sake of residents to make sure that the over $430,000 in liens would be collected and not given away… a lot of talk; however, under Schwartz’s leadership, the liens were reduced from $430,000 to a shameful  $5,000, resulting in actually “a give away”  for the eventual buyer).

This was a complete failure of leadership and vision, and at 1:17:30, Schwartz remarked, “I was contacted that the owner wanted to give away the land.”

Upon hearing that, Schwartz had an obligation to agendize this issue so the commission and the public could decide “in the sunshine.” That is the leadership we must demand from our elected officials.

In summary, there was plenty of opportunity for Schwartz to add this property to a commission agenda and decide whether the city should acquire the property or set a minimum requirement for a negotiated lien settlement.

The issue was not followed up on, and the magistrate settled it for a shameful $5,000 as if not acquiring the property for a green space passive park was not failure enough.

There was much learned from a public records request on this property, such as:

  1. The original owner contacted the city and offered to give away the land for free. (when this writer approached the podium various times over the years previously to suggest the city acquire the land for a passive park, the final time Schwartz smugly remarked that it was too late and the property had been sold). Subsequently, when this writer approached the podium to criticize the failure of leadership and the fact that the land was available for free, Schwartz blared out from the dais that I was a liar. Does Schwartz care to apologize?
  2. By emailing staff, commissioner Caggiano requested to be personally involved in “negotiating” the settlement for the buyer.”
  3. The new owner, even before his windfall acquisition of this land (It is rumored he was paid six figures to take it, but he is confident that his commission contact would help avoid the $430,000 in liens). However, even before the acquisition, the new owner did discuss with the city his intention to develop the land as either:
    1. a multi-story medical office (yes, right in the heart of residential zoning)
    2. a five-story apartment building
    3. an indoor trampoline/entertainment center (all with screaming kids permitted by zoning rights surrounded by 55+ communities)

4. In fact, the owner acquired the land (I cannot even say purchased) under Miami Soccer LLC, a clever name as a threatening inducement to rezone for dense development versus a soccer stadium with night lights and cheering crowds.

Vice Mayor Schwartz, a public apology is warranted for me and our residents.

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