Facing growing community-wide opposition to its insistence on an “on course” location for its “starter’s shack” featuring extensive food and beverage service over extended hours, The Omni announced a return to its original plan to locate the facility at The Shoppes area and withdrawal of its application for a Conditional Variance scheduled for a hearing before the Nassau County Planning Commission on June 24th.
In a memo dated June 18th to Linkside A and B and Beach Wood Associations, Omni attorney Jessie Smith wrote: “In the spirit of compromise and working together as a community, we have decided to relocate the Starter Shack to the Shops at Amelia Island and withdraw our conditional use application to build the Starter Shack on the short course.”
As recently as June 15th, Omni management had rejected its own attorney’s recommendation to abandon food and beverage service at the facility replacing it with a typical golf cart. Management also refused to shorten operation hours insisting that a daylight hours program be followed.
Omni moved ahead with plans for a public Information Meeting on June 16th. It hoped to convince the conference room filled and 60+ Zoom attendees of the reasonableness of its plan. Instead, Attorney Smith was peppered with questions from an overwhelmingly opposed crowd including whether he was aware that The Plantation had just been awarded a coveted Audubon Society Certification which was seen as being adversely affected by the operation of the starter’s building as planned.
The matter was on the AIPCA Board’s monthly meeting agenda two days later, the first meeting to be held “in person” for many months. Another large crowd gathered. The Board passed this resolution: “The AIPCA Board of Directors finds that it is not in the best interest of Amelia Island Plantation for a commercial building to be constructed on land formerly part of the Ocean Links golf course and in the immediate vicinity of residential units.” In a letter to all Plantation owners, AIPCA President Ron Nelson wrote: “AIPCA has been supportive of the condominium owner associations mentioned in regard to the effect of the proposed starter building/clubhouse on adjacent property owners. AIPCA based its opinion partially on the fact that the Nassau County Land Development Code prohibits such a facility. According to the Nassau County LDC 12.03(B): A clubhouse is permitted in RG-1 only if it ‘will be used primarily by the residents of the development of which it is a part.’ Omni has claimed that hotel guests are residents. By Florida statutes, hotel guests are transients.” An attendee at the meeting simplified Omni’s position by calling it “preposterous.”
Many believe that a catalyst for the unprecedented community opposition to Omni’s plan was the letter writing campaign to the Nassau County Variance Commission called for by Beach Wood’s Board of Directors and the large response that followed. Beach Wood owners can be proud of standing by sister COAs faced with an unpalatable situation and sharing the lead in bringing The Plantation community to confront and favorably resolve a difficult issue.