Old golf course target of latest Cape Coral complaints

CAPE CORAL, Fla. – Cape Coral residents have raised concern over an overrun golf course, but city officials said there is little they can do.

Cape Coral homeowner Joe Campanaro said he first moved into his home on Country Club Boulevard 25 years ago. Back then it overlooked what he called a beautiful golf course.

The golf course, formerly known as “The Golf Club”, is owned by Florida Gulf Ventures, LLC and is located on Palm Tree Boulevard. Today it looks abandoned and Campanaro complains that it is no longer beautiful. The golf course is so bad, he said, that he does not feel like a Cape Coral resident.

“I think it’s a shame that they let the golf course deteriorate,” Campanaro said. “It makes me feel like I don’t live in Cape Coral.”

The abandoned golf course was a major talking point at a Cape Coral workshop about public parks last week. Homeowners who live near the park voiced the popular concern over property values and said they wanted something done about overgrown brown grass.

“It does affect the way the homes, the value of the homes. You look back there it looks just really abandoned,” said Eli Serrano who lives along the golf course. “I’m surprised the city hasn’t tried to make an effort to do something with it because it’s a pretty big property.”

But Cape Coral Councilman Richard Leon said the city has tried to address the condition of the property.

“One of the first things we tried to do was offer a deal to buy the property for us at the city,” Leon said. We offered $2 million. The owners didn’t take it.”

The golf course is located within Leon’s district but because the city does not own the property, there is little it can do, he said.

Florida Gulf Ventures, LLC failed to respond to requests for comment. Leon said negotiations to obtain the golf course from the company are at a standstill.