The former Sombrero Country Club in Marathon, Fla., has been sold for $4.3 million to a developer that plans to open the property to the public and implement $60 million in renovations.
Florida Keys Country Club, formerly Sombrero Country Club in Marathon, Fla., has been sold for $4,375,000 to Robert Leef and Peter Rosasco from Sombrero Country Club Inc. The Swedish-based company Index Development Group is part-owner, the Marathon-based KeysNet reported.
Rosasco and Leef will operate the club under a joint company called Florida Keys Resort LLC. Rosasco plans to make the club more open to the public, redesign the 18-hole golf course and add 15 cottages, a 60- to 65-room boutique hotel and possibly a small marina. A pool might be added, KeysNet reported.
“I’ve been working on this project now for over two years. There’s lots of moving parts to pull together,” Rosasco said. “Our plan is to convert the recreational amenity into a premier destination in the heart of the Florida Keys.”
Rosasco plans to submit site plans for the redevelopment to the City Planning Commission by spring, with construction starting this summer if approved. The new owners are looking to do away with memberships. At its height, the country club had as many as 280 members but dwindled down to 49 certificated members by early 2014. About 175 “player card” members paid an annual fee for the card and a per-round fee, KeysNet reported.
“A lot of people still think it’s a private club. We’re going to do some marketing outreach to people in the community,” Rosasco said. “We hope it’s going to be one of the finest destination resorts in the Keys.”
As for a marina, Rosasco said a lagoon behind the club may be used for boat slips. Permitting can take up to a year and Rosasco said the club may work with the Dockside Tropical Cafe across the street while waiting for approval, KeysNet reported.
Costs to visitors of the golf course and restaurant haven’t been finalized but Rosasco said prices will be competitive to the Key West Golf Course. The theme and food for the restaurant haven’t been set, KeysNet reported.
A separate report in the Key West (Fla.) Citizen stated that the renovation will cost $60 million, with plans including a makeover of the 18-hole course, a 110-room hotel, a restaurant, townhomes, spa, swimming pool, and golf and tennis pro shops, as well as a small marina that will include kayaking and sailing rentals.
The Marathon City Council approved the development plans in July under the stipulation the public have access to the golf course and tennis courts, the Citizen reported.
“We want to have walk-in golf available as well, and we may even drop (the price for) the card membership fees,” Rosasco said.
Robert Belcaster, president of the club’s Board of Directors, said the Board had no reservations and “absolutely no sellers’ remorse.”
“We’re delighted,” Belcaster said. “We’re down to 48 members and we became very concerned those numbers were just not sustainable. Running a golf course takes a lot of capital. Index is a fine partner for Peter, and I think this will be a wonderful development for the city.”
The project’s first phase includes renovation of the easternmost nine holes and relocation of the tennis and maintenance facilities, Rosasco said. Additional infrastructure to include roads and entrances also will be built, the Citizen reported.
Onsite workforce housing and water-management mitigation will be included in that phase, followed by the building of the resort hotel, marina and renovation of the front nine holes. One of the biggest changes for the golf course will be to raise the front nine, or east, holes which are prone to flooding, Belcaster said. When the course was built, crews ran out of fill dirt removed as dredge from nearby canals, which led to those holes being 20 inches lower, the Citizen reported.
Construction overall is expected to take several years. Rosasco hopes to begin building this summer, but cautioned that weather and other variables could impact any target opening date, the Citizen reported.
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