An Example of Community and Council Working Together
The creation of the Vistoso Trails Nature Preserve and saving the former Vistoso golf course property from extensive development is a prime example of why it is important to have a Mayor and Council who operates without developer funding or influence. This never would have occurred under a Council who did not work more to represent residents and their needs than the developers who wanted to build apartments, homes, and retirement communities on the property. It is also an example of how powerful the community can be when motivated citizens come together for good.
How It Began
In June of 2018, the financially struggling Vistoso golf course closed. It did not have the privilege of receiving taxpayer support by the Town Council seated at that time. That Town Council, under the leadership of former Mayor Hiremath, purchased 45 holes of golf that was once part of the Hilton property, which was in financial bankruptcy at the same time Vistoso was struggling. Those newly purchased, financially struggling golf courses became part of the Town’s Recreation and Parks portfolio. A special half cent sales tax was even put in place by a new ordinance just to support losses that the former Hilton golf courses were incurring under Town ownership. However, the residents in the Rancho Vistoso community were left to fend for themselves against a ruthless property owner that planned massive development on the former golf course.
I was elected and seated on the Town Council five months after the Vistoso golf course failed and closed. I soon learned that the golf course had been purchased out of bankruptcy by the Canadian high-risk lender that had once financed the property to the previous owner. The Canadian owner was working with developers who wanted to develop the property with homes along Rancho Vistoso Boulevard and Desert Fairways, a large senior care facility on the driving range, as well as full-size apartment complexes along Vistoso Highlands Drive.
Meeting With the Developers
I met with those developers to learn more about their new “vision” and plan for the property. I asked what would be done with the remaining undevelopable portions, including the site of the former pond. They informed me they planned to “gift” those undevelopable areas to the Town of Oro Valley. I asked them if they planned to remediate these heavily disturbed areas that were fast becoming a blight to the community and their response was: “no.” At this point, I realized that the pond area and other large sections of the property would likely become the responsibility of the Town, regardless of what happened with the property.
Of course I was opposed to these plans and the devastation it would cause the Rancho Vistoso community, but I think it is important to understand that the Town was always going to be involved in the future of the Vistoso golf course. I was on the job as Vice Mayor for just five months when I learned of these facts and I knew I needed to get to work to help the Rancho Vistoso community, which represents one quarter of Oro Valley by population and land area.
Why the Town Purchased the Property
Citizen groups were forming and working to stop development of the parcel. Local resident Rosa Dailey brought in a land trust called The Conservation Fund (TCF) to assist with a community and Town purchase of the property. I met with Mike Ford, TCFs Southwest representative, and heard the plan that would save the parcel from development and felt it was feasible. Multiple council meetings and motions moved this incredibly difficult land transaction forward. I crafted the first motion at the June 3, 2020, Town Council meeting with the support of the property owner who agreed to suspend the proposed extensive development plans to allow the TCF purchase to move forward.
A very important distinction to point out is the willingness of our majority council to work with a solution that avoided development—a solution desired by the residents. Mayor Winfield, Councilmembers Josh Nicolson and Jones-Ivey and I had all recently won election without taking a dime of developer campaign donations, unlike the council majority we had replaced. The Vistoso golf course tragedy is an example of why representation by councilmembers who do not answer to developers is critical for the citizens of Oro Valley.
The Vistoso golf course project took both vision and determination from start to finish. The residents of Oro Valley with the help of the locally formed nonprofit, Preserve Vistoso, were able to raise close to $2 million for the purchase of the 202 acres zoned as recreational open space. The actual purchase price was $1.615 million. The remaining funds covered expenses and the initial cleanup of the property. The Town contributed $885,000 as a settlement of all claims by the property owner to move the deal forward.
A local developer purchased the former golf course club house and parking lot area for $1.750 million. This was a little over 6 acres of land that had previously been zoned for high density residential housing, for which the property owner wanted to receive a high price. However, through a three-party settlement agreement, apartments built on this parcel would be held to 2-stories to continue the height continuity already established in the area. In the end, the deal took almost two years to complete in what Mike Ford of the Conservation Fund described as one of the most difficult land transactions of his forty-year career.
Along with Mayor Winfield, I am proud to have been able to provide unwavering commitment to the Rancho Vistoso residents that together with the Town helped to provide an amazing asset for the Oro Valley community. This is the kind of leadership I will bring to Oro Valley as Mayor.
The Result
The land of the former Vistoso golf course was put under a Conservation Easement (CE) by The Conservation Fund that prohibits development on the property in perpetuity. The CE allows the property to be repurposed for low impact recreational use and specifically permits the pond to be restored “in whole or in part,” a provision many residents who donated to the purchase of the property wanted included. Ultimately, the Town acquired the property and re-named it Vistoso Trails Nature Preserve (VTNP). VTNP contains six miles of paved trails and is adjacent to 17 neighborhoods and within walking or biking distance to an additional 13 communities. It has become a beloved and well-used asset of our community.
The Future
Moving forward, the Town is currently in the process of restoring the dilapidated pond area into a pond park. Once completed, it will function as “a park within the park” of the larger nature preserve and serve as a destination or resting place strategically situated near the center of the sprawling 200-acre property. The restored pond will continue to use reclaimed water as it once did when it irrigated the golf course but will water the much smaller area of the pond park, which will contain a grassy area and shade trees, a bike rack, a drinking fountain, and picnic tables and benches. This area will also have ADA Accessible trails around it so that all can enjoy this community asset.
As a new Vice Mayor of the Town Council, I witnessed the resolve of this community, and I was honored to have provided the Town leadership necessary to see this project through. As Mayor, I will work on a clearer restoration plan for Vistoso Trails Nature Preserve so that all our collective efforts to purchase and repurpose a former golf course can benefit Oro Valley residents well into the future.