Tallahassee delays decision on sale of Capital City Golf Course after residents press for stronger cemetery and development protections

Tallahassee City Commissioners postponed a final vote on a proposed sale of the Capital City Golf Course parcel after hours of presentations and public comment on Wednesday, Oct. 22.

Assistant City Manager Christian Doolin told the commission staff had negotiated a purchase and sale package for the city‑owned 178‑acre site that would preserve the property as an 18‑hole golf course in perpetuity and include easements and a separate commemorative easement around a plantation‑era cemetery on the site. Staff said an appraisal valuing the property as a golf course at $1.2 million informed a proposed sale price of $1,255,000 and that the purchaser, Capital City Country Club, and the city had agreed terms for memorial infrastructure the city would install and maintain.

Why it matters: The parcel at 833 Santa Rosa Drive sits inside the city and contains an unmarked burial site identified by archaeologists that local historians and descendants say contains the remains of people enslaved on the plantation that once occupied the land. Residents and neighborhood associations pressed the commission to keep the property in public ownership or to add legally ironclad protections if it is sold — citing the difficulty of reversing a sale or undoing a future owner’s change of use.

What staff proposed

Doolin said staff’s package combines deed restrictions, conservation and cemetery easements, and a perpetual‑use agreement that would require the property to be operated as an 18‑hole golf course. The agenda material included a memorandum of understanding between the club and Florida A&M University that would allow collegiate use of the course if capital improvements restore it to championship condition. Doolin said staff has already purchased historic markers and interpretive panels and estimated the memorial project at a little over $100,000; staff planned to complete the commemorative site by March, weather permitting.

Club president Fred Baggett told the commission the country club needs roughly $3.5–$4 million in capital work on greens, cart paths and support facilities. “The only way we can develop the financing is if we own the property,” Baggett said, arguing ownership would let the club borrow to make the improvements.

Public comment and neighborhood concerns

More than a dozen residents and neighborhood representatives spoke at the meeting, many urging the commission not to sell and warning the contractual protections proposed by staff were not sufficiently durable. Speakers included Delatry Hollinger of the Tallahassee NAACP, community historians and descendants, and neighbors who described the property as irreplaceable urban green space and urged preservation of access and protections for the cemetery.

Common concerns raised by speakers included: - The risk that a future lender or buyer could foreclose and seek a zoning change that would permit development, despite covenants and a zoning amendment planned with the sale; several speakers urged a reverter clause or other legal mechanism to restore the property to public ownership if the perpetual‑use promises are broken. - The adequacy and timeline of the proposed commemorative work; residents said they wanted the memorial installed without delay and urged the city to take the lead on locating descendants and completing a robust interpretive plan. - The scale of the public process: neighbors said the city did not provide enough time or public engagement before moving toward a sale.

Commission response and outcome

Commissioners asked staff technical questions about the zoning, buffers to adjacent homes, and the enforceability of deed restrictions. Commissioner Matlow said the commission needed clearer assurances and specifically asked whether a reverter clause could be drafted; the city attorney indicated a reverter clause could be included in sale documents.

Commissioner Porter moved to postpone final action and directed staff to return at the next meeting with the following: an analysis of financing options for the club (including whether the city could assist or provide other funding structures), modeled scenarios of what would happen if the club could not fund needed capital work, and a comparison of legal mechanisms (deed restrictions, reverter clauses, conservation easements) that would better secure the cemetery and open‑space protections. The motion passed unanimously 5‑0.

What’s next

Staff will return with the requested financing scenarios, legal language options and cost estimates for memorial construction. Commissioners said they expect further public engagement before any final sale is approved.

Speakers and sources

Christian Doolin, assistant city manager (presentation and staff lead) Fred Baggett, president and chairman, Capital City Country Club (buyer’s representative) Robert Culverhouse, real estate director, City of Tallahassee (staff) Daryl Jones, director, Office of Economic Vitality (project partner) Delatry Hollinger, president, Tallahassee NAACP (public commenter) Marlon Williams Clark, Tallahassee NAACP (public commenter) Charlie Benz (golfer/public commenter) Gregory Uchock (resident/public commenter) Deborah Lawson (resident/public commenter) Kathleen Powers Conti (historian/public commenter) Stanley Sims (resident/public commenter) Tiffany Hill (resident/public commenter) Cedra Butler (resident/public commenter) Howard Kessler (resident/public commenter)

Authorities referenced

- 287(g) agreements (federal immigration enforcement cooperation) — referenced by public speakers and staff when discussing law enforcement limits - South Miami litigation (declaratory judgment action referenced in staff briefing) - Chapter 908 (as referenced in agenda discussion regarding removal/authority matters)

Clarifying details

- Staff appraisal: $1,200,000 (market value as golf course) referenced in staff presentation - Proposed sale price: $1,255,000 (staff recommendation) - Estimated commemorative site cost: slightly more than $100,000; some materials already purchased - Capital improvements estimate provided by club president: $3.5–$4 million (greens and infrastructure) - Number of public speakers during item: 16 (approx.)

Searchable tags: capital city golf course, cemetery, memorial, real estate sale, reverter clause, perpetual use, FAMU MOU, open space

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