Ownership of the aging Weeki Wachee Springs tourist attraction is being transferred to the city of Weeki Wachee through a donation by its investors.
By ROBERT KING
Published August 5, 2003
WEEKI WACHEE - The shareholders who have reaped profits from running the Weeki Wachee Springs tourist attraction over the past four years have agreed to donate their company to the city of Weeki Wachee.
The small group of investors who formed Weeki Wachee LLC in 1999 hope to get a tax credit for their donation, which some officials have said could be worth as much as $1.5-million.
In turn, the city will gain control of the company's profits, which will be spent on much-needed repairs to the aging Florida landmark.
"The transfer of ownership to the city will mean that the city, and not a list of absentee owners, will be responsible for the operation of the attraction," Weeki Wachee Mayor Robyn Anderson said in a written statement.
The Weeki Wachee City Commission voted to accept the donation of the company at a meeting Friday. City officials were not available Monday to provide a copy of the donation agreement.
Attorney Joe Mason, who has represented both the city of Weeki Wachee and Weeki Wachee LLC in the past, was involved in crafting the donation after both parties waived conflict of interest concerns.
Mason said Weeki Wachee LLC will continue to exist and be responsible for the management of the tourist attraction. But the city with its nine residents will be its sole owner, similar to someone who owns all of the stock in a publicly traded company.
The arrangement comes at a crucial moment in the 56-year history of Weeki Wachee Springs, an attraction whose claim to fame is its underwater mermaid shows.
The Southwest Florida Water Management District, which owns the spring itself, the 440 acres surrounding it and the buildings on the property, had set an Aug. 12 deadline for Weeki Wachee LLC to repair and improve the park's aging infrastructure.
Failure to comply could result in a decision by Swiftmud to revoke the long-term lease held by Weeki Wachee LLC. Aside from the repairs that must be completed this month, the company was to make a $112,500 lease payment to Swiftmud by Aug. 30.
Jeff Farrar, who is the managing member of the investor group making the donation, said the move is in the best interest of the tourist attraction. He splits his time between Rhode Island and Florida; the other shareholders are spread across the country.
"We're a thousand miles away. We're absentee owners. And we realize that the most efficient use of the attraction is for it to be operated by local people," Farrar said.
The shareholders made money while holding the lease, though he would not say how much. Now, they have other interests. Farrar said the company intends to apply for a tax credit, though one isn't guaranteed.
In addition to the lease to operate the tourist attraction, Farrar said Weeki Wachee LLC's holdings include the inventory in the gift shops and other buildings as well as its moveable equipment - everything from beach chairs to floating inner tubes.
Swiftmud officials have asserted that they have the authority to approve such a property transfer. But Mason said there is nothing to approve because Weeki Wachee LLC is still the leaseholder that will be operating the park.
- Times staff writer Robert King covers Spring Hill and can be reached at 848-1432. Send email to rking@sptimes.com
