The Premier Sports Campus in Lakewood Ranch may soon become a Manatee County park, a move that would shift both the responsibility for maintaining the 140-acre complex and change the level of public access.

Rex Jensen, president of Schroeder-Manatee Ranch, sent a letter earlier this month to county officials offering to sell the campus to Manatee County for $5.2 million, the cost of improvements the developer has made to the property. That offer includes 126.9 acres of parking, 22 athletic fields and all on-site buildings. It also would include 36 acres set aside for an aquatic center. Officials say the cost could be covered through impact fee revenue collected by the county. County Administrator Ed Hunzeker told county commissioners in a workshop last week that the deal is being reviewed right now.

County officials say the land itself is worth about $20 million, so in terms of a real estate transaction the price would be a bargain, though it also takes all that land off county tax rolls. The biggest benefit may be in providing parkland in a part of the county underserved by public facilities, according to Danny Hopkins, Manatee County Recreational Division manager. “The area is growing exponentially,” Hopkins says. “This gives us an opportunity to defer some of the impact on Lakewood Ranch’s parks.” It also could assist in other infrastructure needs, and Hopkins notes the campus sits beside the site of a future high school planned to serve the Lakewood Ranch area.

The campus today serves a variety of sports, including soccer, lacrosse, field hockey, rugby, archery, senior games, Ultimate Frisbee, Special Olympics, flag football, youth football, Frisbee golf and punt/pass/kick football. The facilities have served as venue to local, state, regional and national sporting events. 

Charlie Hunsicker, director of Parks and Natural Resources for Manatee County, released an optimistic statement about the potential land purchase. "The addition of the Premier Sports Campus to our inventory of recreational spaces will greatly enrich the community’s recreation opportunities,” Hunsicker said. “The facility is consistent with the upcoming Parks Master Plan, and the acquisition of this site at cost only is a great opportunity for our community and the thousands of children who will be served.” 

But what would change if the campus, which already hosts countless scholastic and professional sporting events, were to be managed by the county? Hopkins says even if the land changes hands it shouldn’t disrupt any already planned tournaments coming to the campus, and the county would intend to use the facilities to host future events as well. Of course, such tournaments hold valuable economic impact to the region, something county officials don’t intend to disrupt. “If the county commissioners decide this is the way to go, we will find whatever operational opportunities to make it as seamless as possible,” he says.

The land in the future would have a different level of public access as a county park. The biggest question for county officials in evaluating the deal would be calculating the operational costs. No decision has been made yet about how much would be spent on the planned aquatic center, an amount that officials say will be determined by the scope of the facility, which could range from a community pool to a professional-level sporting venue. Also, no decision has been made as to whether the county would maintain the property with its own staff or contact separate management, as occurs with other major sporting venues under public ownership on the Gulf Coast. “It’s about finding the highest and best use for the community at large,” Hopkins says.