Bellissimo luxury housing plan won't get new look in Wellington, despite equestrians' plea

WELLINGTON — The Village has rejected a request to rehear council-approved projects by Wellington Lifestyle Partners to build two luxury communities and a new horse competition center in Wellington's equestrian preserve.

Concerns raised by a group of residents that WLP had misrepresented facts in its application did not merit the village reconsidering the projects, known as The Wellington North and The Wellington South, Village Manager Jim Barnes said in a letter to the group.

The residents opposed the developments, linked to entrepreneur Mark Bellissimo, through the approval process. The facts they said were misrepresented included:

• The number of acres that would be added to the Wellington International competition complex.

• WLP's claim of a partnership with the Denmark-based Global Equestrian Group to build and operate the showgrounds.

• The ability of Gracida Street, the road leading to the new showgrounds, to handle the increased traffic.

• Potential conflicts of interest with the village for two people working for WLP.

"Disagreement with staff’s positions or dissatisfaction with the approval of the Wellington North and South development applications does not justify a rehearing," Barnes wrote in response to the petition.

Barnes and Tim Stillings, the village's development director, rejected the request without bringing it to the Village Council for discussion, saying Wellington's code directed them to handle it that way.

Jane Cleveland, a former longtime chair of the Wellington Equestrian Preserve Committee who spoke on behalf of the group, said she was disappointed the village staff didn't raise the concerns during a public meeting. Cleveland said the group doesn't know its next move.

"This was our only avenue, and it got killed before it even got to the council," said Maureen Brennan, an equestrian who also is part of the group.

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Wellington Lifestyle Partners won approval for the projects March 5, following nearly 18 months of public meetings. The vote marked the first time Wellington has allowed a developer to remove land from the 9,000-acre equestrian preserve to build on it.

The Wellington North will rise on the site of Equestrian Village on South Shore Boulevard. It will feature 49 single-family homes, 47 townhomes, a clubhouse and a short-range golf facility.

The Wellington South will sit off Gracida Street and bring 107 luxury villas and five 4-acre farms to 290 undeveloped acres at Gracida and Lake Worth Road, facing the new showgrounds.

As a condition of approval, WLP must construct and have the new showgrounds operational before WLP can tear down Equestrian Village and break ground on The Wellington North residences.

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The village approved the residential projects in part in exchange for the new showground. It deemed the new showground critical to retaining equestrian events in the face of competition from sites near Ocala and Sarasota.

Paige Bellissimo, Mark Bellissimo's daughter and a principal at WLP, told the council the new horse center will add 144 acres to Wellington International, doubling its showgrounds, and consolidate all equestrian competitive sports to one venue. Plans call for it to stand as tall as 65 feet to accommodate luxury boxes and other features.

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Wellington: Planning director, not residents, can trigger rehearing of approved projects

The residents' group send a letter to Wellington on June 3 seeking the rehearing for the Wellington North and South applications on grounds that WLP misrepresented facts about their projects during public meetings.

According to Wellington's code, the planning director can launch a rehearing if there is evidence of misrepresentation, fraud, deceit or a deliberate error of omission.

"We reviewed what they presented, and none of the points made fit those definitions," Barnes told The Palm Beach Post. "Ultimately, that section of the code is not something that's determined necessarily by an outside entity. It's determined internally. Otherwise, there is no process."

WLP said the new showgrounds would add 114 acres to double the showgrounds of Wellington International. Of the 114 acres, Wellington International already uses 35, which are owned by GEG, and another 18 are wetlands, leaving a total of 61 acres for the new showgrounds.

The group argued that WLP also misrepresented its relationship with GEG, which owns Wellington International, by saying the Denmark-based company would build and cooperate to operate the venue. They raised concerns that Michael Stone, Wellington International's president, told the council that GEG was seeking to sell the showgrounds but GEG, the new owners and WLP would collaborate on the project.

Last month, Mark Bellissimo filed a first-right-of-refusal lawsuit against GEG that would allow him to buy back Wellington International, which he previously owned. The suit revealed GEG told Bellissimo in June 2023 it would not buy the land to build the new showgrounds or keep investing in Wellington International.

The village said the concerns didn't qualify as a misrepresentation because the 114 acres are part of the overall area that was rezoned for project. It added Stone spoke as the president of two other equestrian companies that were party to the application, not as Wellington International's leader.

The residents' letter also said the village's comprehensive plan requires all equestrian venues to be built on collector roads. Cleveland said Gracida Street is a narrow path where equestrians also ride their horses that can't handle all the new traffic.

Barnes added the complex also will have access to Pierson Road and that village's traffic engineer testified that Gracida operates as a collector roadway and therefore was compliant.

The letter also said the village accepted environmental testimony from John Fumero, an attorney who had been sworn in as a special village magistrate the day before the applications were heard. Also, WLP employee Michael O'Dell worked as the village engineer before retiring in 2023.

"At the moment there's nothing that's been submitted or that we're processing that would that would impact their (WLP's) ability to keep moving forward in their project," Barnes said in a recent interview.

Valentina Palm covers Royal Palm Beach, Wellington, Greenacres, Palm Springs and other western communities in Palm Beach County for The Palm Beach Post. Email her at vpalm@pbpost.com and follow her on X, the platform formerly known as Twitter, at @ValenPalmB. Support local journalism: Subscribe today.

This article originally appeared on Palm Beach Post: Wellington won't reconsider Bellissimo plan for equestrian preserve