SANDESTIN — The proposed Ferris wheel for The Village of Baytowne Wharf “should have been a less-than-minor development,” says Tom Becnel.
But for almost a year the former Coney Island attraction has sat disassembled and in storage at Sandestin Golf and Beach Resort.
“I wanted to return Sandestin to a family resort,” said Becnel, Sandestin’s owner. “The apple needed polishing.
“Early on, I bought the carousel sort of as a billboard that change was coming,” he added. “The Ferris wheel was supposed to be just another attraction to provide entertainment.”
Instead, the approximately 60-foot Big Eli wheel has amassed a pile of paperwork that Becnel cannot seem to dig out of.
“(Walton) County feels like they can change the rules as they go,” he said. “Each time we go to a meeting they add new items of requirements. We’re faced with trying to hit a moving target. The simple principle is law: The first property owner has the same legal rights as the last property owner. We’ve got these ‘not-in-my-backyard’ folks who cannot understand that.”
But homeowners say they are just protecting their rights — and views — from a “skyline-dominating issue.”
“We feel strongly that Sandestin is not just an amusement park, it’s a destination for a great all-around lifestyle,” said William Godwin, president of the Gateway at Baytowne Wharf Condominium Association. “There is a certain degree of hustle and bustle in the Village, but the transition from that to a carnival is another thing altogether.”
The Ferris wheel proposal initially was treated as a minor development by county officials. But on July 9 Commissioner Cindy Meadows presented concerns about its “egregious impact” on surrounding properties and public safety, and argued that commissioners should address the proposal.
The county‘s Design Review Board voted the next day to have the Ferris wheel reviewed as a major development.
“The Ferris wheel was brought up without being noticed on the agenda,” Becnel said. “It turned into a major development even though it doesn’t meet the criteria.”
Becnel initially wanted to add the Ferris wheel to the children’s area on Henry Lane at The Village of Baytowne Wharf to join the carousel, zip line and arcade. At the original location, it would have been hidden from residents and U.S. Highway 98. The approval process was almost complete when the Sandestin Homeowners Association brought up concerns about nearby wetlands.
Kitty Whitney, executive director of Sandestin Real Estate, said they’ve continued to ask why the county would allow the rest of the development on Henry Lane and not the Ferris wheel.
“It got to the point where Tom said, ‘Let’s place it somewhere else and try to move it back to the children’s area once we clear up the issue,’ ” she said of recent plans to erect the wheel to Baytowne Events Plaza.
Becnel said he’s tried to set up two meetings with Meadows, but was never given the time. Meadows said in an email the she preferred to speak personally with Becnel and not on behalf of the county.
“To allow a developer to install a 60-foot Ferris wheel outside the balconies of residential units in the Village sends a message to all future buyers of residences (whether the residences are lived in, rented or bought for investment purposes),” she wrote. “The message is, ‘come to Walton County, spend your money, pay your taxes, but we will not protect your investments, homes or neighborhoods from development that will devalue those same investments.’ That is my personal opinion of this type of proposal.”
Meadows is joined by Sandestin homeowners.
The Gateway condo association would be “directly impacted, more so than any other neighborhood association in Sandestin,” Godwin said. “I don’t believe our owners would want to, but they could carry on conversations with riders as they load the Ferris wheel.”
Godwin said Becnel has never tried to talk to the association. The owners now don’t just want the wheel moved, they don’t want it at all.
“I don’t think we’d support it anywhere in Sandestin,” Godwin said.
Becnel says the Ferris wheel is not what’s important; it’s that the county will not allow the system to work.
“They knew what we were doing, but at the 11th hour they came up with new restrictions,” he said. “We just want to be treated fairly.”
With the Ferris wheel and other plans, Sandestin is looking to add about 800 jobs. Becnel says the county is holding up quality employment and believes time is not necessarily on the resort’s side.
“If we don’t continue to reinvent Sandestin, it will not continue to be the premium destination it is today,” he said.
As far as supposedly not speaking with opponents, Becnel said, “I’ve never refused to meet with anyone.”
In his 40-plus years as a real estate developer in areas such as Naples and Hawaii, he says he has never experienced such roadblocks.
“I’ve never encountered such a dysfunctional political system,” he said. “Walton County is there to hinder. It’s backwards. Go to Crestview and they invite you in. They encourage you. Planning departments are supposed to assist you.”
Becnel says he will continue the fight.
“That’s my nature,” he said. “I’ll continue to work through the process and evaluate my legal position. In the United States a development order is not a popularity contest, it is a legal right.”
WHAT’S NEXT: The Ferris wheel proposal is tentatively set to go before the Walton County Commission on Sept. 12.