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About - History of Green Cay Village
For 40 years, Ted and Trudy Winsberg grew bell peppers and other winter vegetables on their 300 acre property, known as Green Cay Farms Inc. Green Cay Wetlands In June of 1997, the Winsbergs generously sold 170 acres (WL1 & WL2) of their 300 acre farm to Palm Beach County. The land was sold for $2.9 million (1/3 of the appraised value) with the stipulation that it be made into wetlands or kept as open space. Construction on the western portion of the 170 acres (WL1) began in July 2003 and was completed in February 2005. The resulting wetlands is now known as the Green Cay Wetlands and Nature Center and is located on Hagen Ranch Road.
Green Cay Farms Inc. - Today The original 300 acre farm owned by the Winsberg family is currently zoned and in use as described below. ● WL1 and WL2, along with a 500 foot wide strip that joins WL1 and WL2, define the boundaries of the 170 acres that were sold to the county for use as a wetlands and open space, with the exception of the parcel that was redeeded with permission of the Winsbergs to permit the construction of Fire Station #44. Todate WL1 has been converted to wetlands and the County is currently leasing WL2 for vegetable farming. ● R1 defines the boundaries of the 43 acre Green Cay Village parcel. R2 defines the 46-acre parcel that the Winsbergs own and live on and where they operate a tree farm along with supporting the transition to a smaller farm that markets its diversified vegetable crops through local channels. Both R1 and R2 are zoned HR-8 (High Residential-8 units to the acre). ● C defines the boundaries of a 15 acre commercial parcel that is approved for up to 120,000 square feet of commercial space with the following restrictions. No single store can exceed 20,000 square feet (this means no supermarket) and the following are prohibited: gas stations, convenience stores, fast food restaurants, adult entertainment enterprises and communications towers. This parcel is owned by the Winsberg family and is currently being leased for vegetable farming. ● As for Flavor Pict Road, it was constructed at the R1 Developer's expense as a 3-lane section (expandable to 6 lanes) from Hagen Ranch Road to Jog Road. Source 2004-03-15 COBWRA White Paper by Ken Lassiter, COBWRA Communications.
Green Cay Village - 2003 - 2007 - In the Beginning The Winsbergs planned to sell a part of their 300 acre property to build an affordable retirement community. Rezoning for this plan got blocked by the County. But the County accepted a plan to build affordable workforce housing. So in 2003, the Winsbergs sold 43 acres (R1) for 4.2 million dollars or $97,500 an acre when similar land in the fast-growing western part of the county was selling for more than $150,000 an acre, with the stipulation that the land be used to create affordable housing for teachers, police officers and other workers priced out of homeownership in one of the most expensive housing markets in the nation.
The land was purchased by Randy Rieger, a principal of Miami-based Housing Trust Group in partnership with Jerry Goray, president of Goray Communities of Boca Raton, and Stuart Marcus. Together these three men put the plan in place to create Green Cay Village. The original plan for the development was 100 moderately priced townhomes and 320 affordable rental units at a time when the 2003 construction cost in palm Beach county was approximately $64.07 per square foot. When the surrounding communities found out about the plan to build affordable housing on the property, several of the surrounding homeowners groups expressed concern over the Development, specifically its affordable nature and interjected themselves into the site plan approval process and the bond approval process. Their actions resulted in the approval process coming to an abrupt halt while additional upgrades where negotiated, most notably requiring over 1.4 million dollars for elevators in the proposed three story apartment buildings. In addition, the delay of almost a year in getting the necessary approvals from Palm Beach County resulted in a revocation by the District County Commissioner of approximately $800,000 which had previously been committed for the construction of Flavor Pict Road. In September 2004, when the site approval process was finally completed, the construction cost per square foot in Palm Beach County had risen to $89.89, an increase of over 40%. During the delay there were also major increases in basic material costs, especially concrete and steel. Overall, the actual construction costs for 320 units with a total of 315,000 square feet had risen over 7 million dollars since the Predevelopment Phase. Together the cost increases and delays resulted in the Developer being forced to either not move forward with Green Cay Village Development or devise a creative solution to keep the Development economically feasible. In early 2005 the Developer decided to keep the same site plan, but reduce the number of rental units to 160. The remaining 160 of the heretofore rental units would be developed as affordable condominiums. The 100 moderately priced town homes would remain. The pricing of the condominiums would be approximately $65,000 less than the maximum price for the Palm Beach County SHIP Program. This proposed change to the Green Cay Village Development was approved by the original owners of the property, the Winsberg Family, Palm Beach County Board of County Commissioners, the Palm Beach County Housing Finance Authority and the surrounding homeowners groups. Thus what started as a plan for an affordable retirement community evolved to a plan for an affordable workforce community consisting of 100 townhomes priced in the $250 - 300K range, 160 condos priced in the $200 - 250K range, and 160 rental apartments priced from $750/month for one bedroom units to $1000/month for three bedroom units, that are eligible for LIHTC tax assistance. Source 2005-11-04 Petition for Waiver from Rule 67.48.004(14)
Green Cay Village - 2007 - 2009 - Moving In - Slowly The first wave of homeowners moved into the townhomes and condos in early 2007. But by mid 2007 the housing market was dying. And after only a handful of sales from mid 2007 through the 1st quarter of 2008, sales died completely with only 69% of the townhomes and 57% of the condos having been sold by the end of 2008. So in the 2nd quarter of 2009 the Developer began leasing the unsold townhomes and condos and by the end of 2009 the occupancy of the townhomes and condos was at 98% with the Developer owning and leasing 27% of the townhomes and 40% of the condos. Green Cay Village Occupancy
In the meantime, the apartments began leasing in the 3rd quarter of 2007 and rapidly reached 100% occupancy by the end of the 1st quarter of 2008. Since then occupancy in the apartments has held steady with only a recent slight dip due to job losses leading people to leave for more economical housing e.g. living with parents, relatives, etc.
Green Cay Village - 2007 - 2009 - Settling Down - Or Not Growing Pains - As the apartments began to fill, many of the townhome and condo homeowners were angered when they realized that their homes were in a community that also included low income rental units. While the sales literature clearly showed that there would be apartments, it was not common knowledge that they would in fact be LIHTC apartments. Thus the homeowners felt that they had been deceived. To make matters worse, when the apartments starting leasing, the leasing office did not have adequate controls in place to screen the applicants. And at just this moment of vulnerability, the leasing office was flooded with applicants from a nearby low income apartment complex that had finally been condemned as a result of damage sustained from Hurricane Wilma in 2005. So instead of having the chance to select applicants from a random sample of community residents needing affordable housing, like "teachers, nurses and police officers", the leasing office unwittingly selected from a stacked deck that included a disproportionate number of bad actors and Section 8 Voucher applicants - the poorest of the poor. The result was a far from ideal beginning mix of apartment residents. And it wasn't long before the problem started to show itself. Throughout 2008, 10 apartment residents were arrested and booked by the Palm Beach County Sheriff. Most of the charges dealt with domestic assault or were of a nature that would not have put the homeowners at risk. However there were three reported but unsolved crimes in May/June of 2008, two burglaries in the condos and a rape in the apartments, that gave even the most sanguine homeowners reason to be concerned. The sum of these arrests and reported crimes fueled the worst fears of the homeowners - that they were not safe here, that their property values were in jeopardy, and that they had made a terrible mistake buying here. The Developer Responds - At first blindsided to the developing mix problem in the apartments, Jerry Goray reacted forcefully in June of 2008 to address the problem. Actions taken included the addition of a nighttime security patrol, the separation of the condo and apartments parking lots, the installation of security cameras at key locations, and the implementation of a vehicle registration program for the apartments. In addition, the leasing office strengthened the lease to include a Zero Tolerance Clause, aggressively terminated the leases of people who did not follow the rules, and began a concerted community outreach program to seek a better mix of applicants. Taken together, the above actions worked to the point that arrests of apartment residents dropped from 10 in 2008 to 5 in 2009. And of the 15 apartment residents arrested in 2008 and 2009, 12 no longer live here and most had their leases terminated with a 30 day notice. And as leases expired or were terminated, slowly but surely the leasing office began to improve the mix of the apartment residents.
Green Cay Village - 2007 - 2009 - The Great Recession Property Values - The preconstruction prices for townhomes ranged from $250 - 300K and the condos from $200 - 250K and the Developer held firm on these prices with only a little give on concessions like appliance upgrades and one or two years of free HOA fees. But dark clouds were already evident by mid 2007 as sales ground to a halt. And while few knew it at the time, we were living through the last days of a housing bubble. Then the bubble started to deflate. In August of 2008 the Palm Beach County Property Appraiser posted the 2008 assessed values for Green Cay Village townhomes and condos - the assessed property values were down on average 17% from the original sales prices. In the Fall of 2008 the world financial system became unglued, mostly due to the overstated value of home mortgage portfolios and the inability of many borrowers to pay their mortgages. By August of 2009, Green Cay Village assessed property values were down a whopping 50%. The bubble had burst.
Green Cay Village - 2007 - 2009 - The Great Recession Foreclosures - By 2009 foreclosures were rampant all across America. Some homeowners had overextended themselves for years by taking out one second mortgage after another to support an otherwise unaffordable life style. As a new community, Green cay Village was spared this fate. And because the Developer had included an anti speculation clause in the townhome and condo documents, few if any homes were bought by speculators. Still, 2006 and 2007 were dangerous times for home buyers and particularly first time home buyers trying live the American dream and catch the train before it left the station. So here and elsewhere, some reached beyond their means. And some later fell on hard times, often through no fault of their own. By the end of 2009, 9 out of 70 owned townhomes (13%) and 12 out of 94 owned condos (13%) were in some stage of the foreclosure process. HOA Delinquencies - HOA fees are the lifeblood of association communities. Without these fees the lawn would not be mowed, the pool would not be cleaned, the property would not be maintained, and a myriad of bills would not be paid including the TV bill, the water bill, and the electric bill for the common areas. In quick order the community would collapse into an uninhabitable collection of buildings. Unfortunately, people who are not able to pay their mortgages are often not able to pay their monthly HOA fees which range in 2010 from $263.18 per month for townhomes and $244.00 to $301.00 per month for condos depending on the size of the unit. By the end of 2009, 14 out of 70 owned townhomes (13%) and 18 out of 94 owned condos (19%) were delinquent in the payment of their HOA fees by more than one month. Green Cay Village Foreclosures & HOA Delinquencies
Green Cay Village - 2010 and Beyond - Riding Out the Storm To be continued by the Developer and the residents of Green Cay Village.
2010 Key Events March 31, 2010 - Both the townhomes and the condos made the transition from Developer control to homeowner control and elected their own board of directors. June 30, 2010 - The townhomes and condos are essentially fully occupied with either homeowners or renters.
August 1 - Campbell Property Management (CPM) replaced Castle Group as the property management company for Green Cay Village. ... more 2011 Key Events June 1, 2011 - The Developer sold all of their unsold townhomes and condos to the Van Duuren family, owners of De Wilgen Vastgoed, a European builder of residential and commercial real estate projects, based in Rotterdam, Netherlands. ... more |
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Green Cay Farms Inc. 1957 - 1997
