Today, like many other Sunbelt developers, Bonita Bay is being squeezed by debt and plunging sales. But its biggest problem is a dispute over the deposits homeowners plunked down for memberships in the golf clubs, a marina and other clubs. Many members want to quit the clubs and get their money back for reasons ranging from cheaper golf elsewhere to the desire for ready cash. Their membership agreements say the deposits -- up to $185,000 per member -- are refundable on demand, a relatively unusual stipulation homeowners say was a big part of the appeal of joining.
Yet Bonita Bay says the agreements also stipulate that the rules "may be amended from time to time," thus allowing it to cancel the refund policy at its discretion -- and that at any rate, it can't pay the money.
And class conflict everywhere.
Some residents say the issue of buying the clubs has created bitterness between the wealthiest homeowners, who often have golf memberships, and less wealthy residents who enjoy the landscaping but resent pressure to contribute to the purchase of the clubs.