Decision week in Wellington: Mark Bellissimo's equestrian preserve plan heads to a vote
WELLINGTON — It's been a year since equestrian entrepreneur Mark Bellissimo first presented his vision of a “Wellington 3.0.” This week, the Village Council is poised to vote on his development team's final plan to build two luxury communities on land that sits within Wellington’s equestrian preserve.
Wellington Lifestyle Partners has substantially revised its proposals since the project was unveiled in September 2022, reducing the number of residences, submitting the first blueprints for an expanded horse center and, most recently, proposing the donation of 48 acres for a public park.
One of the developments, known as The Wellington North, would rise on 96 acres where Bellissimo operates Equestrian Village, one of the two venues for the annual Winter Equestrian Festival. He is asking Wellington to remove land from its equestrian preserve, a move that the village has never done before and that has drawn criticism from some groups.
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If the council grants the change and allows homes to be built on the site, Wellington Lifestyle Partners is promising to build a new horse center that would double Wellington International's footprint and consolidate all equine sports in one venue.
Bellismo’s team says the luxury communities are crucial to pay for the new showgrounds and for Wellington to keep its stake in the equestrian industry. Village residents argue that removing land from the equestrian preserve for a developer to build homes will weaken its protections and destroy the area's equine-based lifestyle.
The Village Council will review and vote on the residential proposals during a three-day public meeting scheduled to start at 6 p.m. Tuesday. Wednesday and Thursday's meetings will start at 6 p.m. as well.
Plans for new showgrounds, however, are not part of the application the council will vote on this week. Wellington Lifestyle Partners submitted the first blueprints of the horse facility last month, and the application will have to be reviewed separately by village boards before it is voted on by the council.
Members of Wellington’s Equestrian Preserve Committee rejected the residential projects in June because Wellington Lifestyle Partners didn't have any plans for the horse center. The village's Planning and Zoning Board recommended approving Wellington South and tabling Wellington North until it could also vote on a proposal for the showgrounds.
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A group of families who own property in the equestrian preserve want the council to deny or hold off voting on the residential projects until planners, elected officials and equestrians review the plans for the new showgrounds.
"They are trying to get the village council to give them the golden egg without having vetted thoroughly what the community is getting in return,” said Len Feiwus, an attorney representing families from the Equestrian Club Estates.
How have the projects changed since they were first proposed a year ago?
With "The Wellington,” Bellissimo aims to establish two luxury communities that would be near the venues where the Winter Equestrian Festival is held every year. The neighborhoods would feature a “golfcart-in/golfcart-out” layout to mirror the “ski-in/ski-out” concept seen in the resorts of Colorado or the French Alps, according to the project’s application.
Wellington Lifestyle Partners announced it would scale back the number of residences in both communities on Oct. 2, a week before the projects were first going up for review by the council.
The Wellington North, at South Shore Boulevard and Pierson Road, would replace the White Birch polo fields and Equestrian Village, the venue where Bellissimo hosts dressage, hunting and jumping competitions.
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Originally, The Wellington North sought 277 condominiums, 22 single-family homes and a private club with a lagoon. Now, WLP is proposing a total of 96 residences that would feature 47 townhomes, 47 single-family homes and a private country club with swimming pools, pickleball courts and a short-range golf facility.
The project would require the following approvals from the village:
Remove 96 acres from the equestrian preserve and move the preserve’s boundary south of Pierson Road.
Change the permitted use of the area to residential B from equestrian commercial.
Approve the construction of the townhomes, single-family homes and club.
The Wellington South would be built on 290 undeveloped acres owned by Bellissimo at South Shore Boulevard and Lake Worth Road, where only 2-acre-lot homes are allowed.
Bellissimo’s team initially sought 197 half-acre luxury villas but is now proposing to build 109 homes of less than an acre and five 4-acre farms.
As part of The Wellington South application, WLP is also requesting to change the land use designation of 114 acres across the street to equestrian commercial from residential. The site would be the home of the new showgrounds that would replace facilities demolished at Equestrian Village.
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The project requires the following approvals:
Change the land use of the 114 acres — which currently don’t have any development permits — to equestrian commercial from future residential
Approval to build 114 residences, 109 of which would be 0.5-acre to 1-acre homes in an area where lots have to be more than 2 acres.
In a video, Paige Bellissimo, Wellington Lifestyle's executive vice president and the leader of the development team, said her group will also donate a 48-acre park, along South Shore Boulevard just west of the Mall at Wellington Green, to the village in exchange for the approvals.
She added that the company is filing a separate application to build a mixed-use development on land just outside of the preserve that would include 75 residences, shops, restaurants and a boutique hotel.
How are the luxury homes related to new showgrounds?
Paige Bellissimo and Michael Stone, the director of the Wellington International showgrounds, said their privately owned facilities need major improvements and have grown to be too small to host their annual events.
If the village approves the removal of the 96 acres from the preserve and the land use changes for The Wellington North, Bellissimo’s team is promising to build a new horse facility on the northeast corner of 40th Street and Gene Mische Way.
Paige Bellissimo said the residential projects would pay for part of the construction of the new showgrounds. The horse megacenter would replace the facilities in Equestrian Village and consolidate all equine competitions to a newly expanded Wellington International.
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Doug McMahon, the Chief Executive Officer of Wellington Lifestyle Partners, said the company would fund up to $25 million for the first phase of the horse center.
Stone told village officials it would be safer and more efficient to operate one facility that would consolidate all equine sports in one location, instead of two.
Paige Bellissimo said last month that Equestrian Village couldn’t sustain itself and that if the council were to turn down The Wellington North proposal, the family would eventually close the venue.
What are the proposed conditions of approval?
To ensure the horse center is built, village staff recommended multiple conditions of approvals for the residential projects related to the completion of new showgrounds.
For Wellington North, McMahon said Wellington Lifestyle Partners had voluntarily agreed to a condition that prohibits the village from issuing residential building permits for the Equestrian Village property until the showgrounds are built and receive a certificate of completion.
The condition, however, would not apply to the White Birch site and would not affect permits for nonresidential buildings.
The village staff defined the following minimum requirements for the showgrounds:
A derby field measuring 350 feet by 450 feet and schooling area of 200 feet by 350 feet.
An international arena of 330 feet by 250 feet, with a minimum of 1,000 seats and a schooling area measuring 200 feet square.
Two additional arenas of about 170 feet by 260 feet and two schooling areas of 170 feet by 140 feet each.
Permanent stabling with a minimum of 200 stables.
A lunging area of 140 feet by 200 feet.
Five ringside shade structures measuring 15 feet by 30 feet apiece for viewing.
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Bellissimo would be allowed to continue operating Equestrian Village until the horse center is built and would be required to submit an annual status report of the progress with the new facility.
For The Wellington South, the recreational amenities must be completed before half of the approved residential units receive certificates of occupancy. A permit from the South Florida Water Management District may be necessary. The village also must agree the showgrounds are compatible with its master plan and approve the site plan before issuing permits.
For both projects, Wellington Lifestyle Partners would also be required to pay for roadway and drainage improvements and make contributions of $266,760 and $178,926 to the Palm Beach County School District.
Wellington Lifestyle Partners, however, would have to pay for only 1 percent of the total cost to widen South Shore Boulevard to a four-lane road from Pierson to Lake Worth Road.
Reduction of units makes little difference to project opponents
The residential projects have faced stark opposition from village residents who say the developments would set a precedent for growth in the equestrian preserve. They also argue consolidating all sports into one venue and placing it in the middle of the preserve will bring unprecedented traffic and drainage issues to the area.
“The fundamental problem really isn't the number of units that they want to build in Wellington North,” Feiwus said. “The fundamental problem is that they're taking 96 acres out of the preserve and using it for nonequestrian purposes.”
A petition opposing the rezonings requested for the projects had garnered 7,187 signatures as of Monday.
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Feiwus said the council should wait until the village boards review the application for the new horse center and land use changes sought by the developer. That would give it maximum leverage to get Wellington the best possible showgrounds, he said.
Feiwus said his client and village residents still didn’t know key elements of the showgrounds that are crucial for their success such as: Who will pay for the facility, who will own it and who will be in charge of managing it?
“What happens if they get these zoning rights in the North, they start working and then they come back to the village and cry, ‘We can't build anything in the South. We don't have any money,’ ” Feiwus said. “Then what do we do? We've already given them what they asked for.”
Valentina Palm covers Royal Palm Beach, Wellington, Loxahatchee and other western communities in Palm Beach County for The Palm Beach Post. Email her at vpalm@pbpost.com and follow her on Twitter at @ValenPalmB. Support local journalism: Subscribe today.
This article originally appeared on Palm Beach Post: Bellissimo plan to build in Wellington equestrian preserve heads to vote
