OKEECHOBEE – Okeechobee County got a green light from the U.S, Army Corps of Engineers on May 26 to proceed with the plan to let Bass Pro’s resort arm, Cedar Lodges, take over the Okee-Tantie Recreation Area.
“I have incredibly good news,” County Attorney Wade Vose told Okeechobee County Commissioners at their May 26 meeting. About one hour into the meeting, he received an email from the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers.
“The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers Office in Atlanta has approved our request for release of the easements,” he continued. “They have sent us the deeds.”
The commissioners unanimously approved execution of the deeds.
“Hallelujah!” said Commission Chair Terry Burroughs.
The Okee-Tantie Recreation Area is located inside the Herbert Hoover Dike, with the Kissimmee River to the west.
In 1971, the South Florida Water Management District (SFWMD) developed the site as the Okee-Tantie Recreation Area with a recreational vehicle park, campground, bait and tackle shop and marina. SFWMD ran the campground until 1991.
At that time, the district planned to close the park, but an extensive letter-writing campaign sponsored by the Okeechobee News persuaded SFWMD and the Okeechobee County Commissioners to work out a way to keep it open.
Okee-Tantie was conveyed to Okeechobee County by SFWMD. The popular RV campground operated at full capacity during the winter months until the hurricanes of 2004 substantially damaged the park.
After the hurricanes, part of the park was able to reopen, but a large area was heavily damaged and not rehabilitated. Occupancy and revenue began to decline, resulting in a decision by the county to close the RV campground and bait and tackle store in October 2012.
The county sought proposals for a private company to take over the campground. Guy Harvey Outpost and Elite Resorts initially proposed a long-term lease, and planned to rent the RV spaces to visitors.
At the June 9, 2016, county commission meeting, Guy Harvey representatives explained that after doing more research into the expense that the renovations would require, including replacing the utility lines, they determined that in order to secure the necessary financing, they need to purchase the campground portion of the property so that they could sell RV lots there.
This change in the proposal required the county to obtain permission from the state, since the state still had an interest in the property. The county completed the purchase of the state’s interest in the Hog Island property in October 2016. This allowed the county the option to sell the campground. The change in the proposal also meant the county had to go out for bids again.
At their Nov. 10, 2016, meeting, the Okeechobee County Commission adopted an ordinance that allowed the county to consider factors other than price when choosing the best “bid” on county property.
On May 16, 2017, the county received two proposals for the acquisition and redevelopment of Okee-Tantie Campground and Marina from Outpost Club Lake Okeechobee LLC (Guy Harvey) and Bass Pro Shops.
Bass Pro offered to pay the county $3 million, with $300,000 paid up front. Bass Pro then would have nine months to develop plans for the site. If, after that time, Bass Pro determined the project is not viable, the county would keep the $300,000.
Guy Harvey’s plan would have started with a lease for up to 48 months, at a rate of $1/year, followed by payments of $550,000 when the first phase was completed, and $550,000 when the second phase was completed up to 60 months. The county would also receive 1% of park receipts, with the rate increasing at half a percent every five years, for a max of the county receiving 5% of park receipts.
At their June 22, 2017, meeting, the county commissioners unanimously chose Bass Pro’s proposal to develop the campground.
On Jan. 16, 2018, the Okeechobee County Board of Commissioners officially signed the contract with Bass Pro to develop the Okee-Tantie Recreation Area.
The proposal overview states: “Our vision, as detailed within this document, is to create a nature-based, fishing resort destination that offers all visitors a variety of world-class accommodations, state-of-the-art marina facilities for fishing and boating, and genuine world-class hospitality.”
Since signing the contract, Bass Pro added another $100,000 to the down payment in exchange for a contract extension. The option was part of the original contract.
Bass Pro's concept design includes putting in a second marina, which would be exclusive to resort guests. The existing marina and boat ramps would remain open to the public. Because this plan would require dredging, this requires USACE approval. USACE began the lengthy process required.
In July 2021, USACE also found there was an easement on the property. “The Army Corps found this particular easement tucked away in West Palm Beach in 1938,” Okeechobee County Commissioner Terry Burroughs explained at the July 22, 2021, meeting of the Okeechobee County Commission. At the time the county signed the contract with Bass Pro, they had cleared the title with the state and had no idea about the additional federal easement.” It was later determined the easement was never recorded in Okeechobee County.
