Post by L Roebuck on Dec 5, 2005 8:55:58 GMT -5
Blue Grotto for sale
By STEVEN RAY HABERLIN
Ocala-Star Banner
OCALA - For sale: 100-foot deep, freshwater cavern.
Blue Grotto springs, the popular diving spot just outside Williston, is being sold. The 14-acre site, which features a dive shop, home, campground and diving cave, will go to the highest bidder during an auction Thursday.
The auction company organizing the event began marketing Blue Grotto as a cave diver's paradise but quickly learned that potential bidders had something else in mind: water, as in for drinking.
William Bone, president of National Auction Group, the Alabama-based company conducting the auction, would not name names but said several municipalities have expressed interest in the springs. He said investors, mainly from Miami, and national and international water bottling businesses had also inquired about Blue Grotto.
''It ought to be quite an event,'' said Bone. ''It's a great natural resource. At first, we thought it would sell to a water bottle company. Now, it's 50 percent between dive center and municipality buying it for water, I guess to put a straw in it and drain it out.''
Established in 1974, Blue Grotto has remained a popular spot for divers, including those from Marion County. Anyone with an open water divers certification can plunge down the 100-foot cavern in waters that stay a comfortable 72 degrees. Well known among the diving community, the place has attracted the likes of Tiger Woods, the prince of Thailand and ''Star Trek'' creator Gene Roddenberry.
Ed and Judy Paradiso, owners of the Blue Grotto for 20 years, said they were selling the springs because it was time for a change. They decided to go the auction route, they said, because it was a the ''only fair way.'' However, Bones said Realtors suggested that simply listing the property for sale could take years to snatch a buyer.
The Paradisos said their hope was that Blue Grotto possibly remained a dive center, but at the least, a place where the environment is protected.
''We hope it goes to someone who cares as much as we have,'' Ed Paradiso said.
Though the St. Petersburg Times reported on Nov. 18 that the site could sell for $5 million to $15 million, attributing the figure to Bone, he disputed ever quoting the figure and explained that it was a price he had heard from interested parties.
The auction has generated about 100 inquiries, Bone said. But interest has somewhat tapered off. Bone explained that some potential buyers never performed water tests at the site after inquiring about the springs.
Cities and utilities in Florida, where populations are outgrowing water supplies, are expected to be among the bidders Thursday.
John Marshall, an attorney helping with the sale, said he was told that the interested cities ''were much bigger than Ocala or Gainesville.''
Ocala City Manager Paul Nugent said the city's water supplies were in good shape. The city has wells in the northeast quadrant and four years ago established a reserve well in the southwest section.
Williston, which promotes Blue Grotto to tourists on its Web site, wants to see the site remain a diver's playground and is against any efforts to siphon water from the springs, said City Manager Jim Coleman.
In 2001, the Paradisos obtained a bulk water-bottling permit from the state to pump 100,000 gallons per day from the spring. The spring, according to promotional material, produces a total of three-million gallons per day.
But buyers wanting to draw more water would have to convince the state that there was a demand and assure that the pumping would not dry nearby wetlands or drain water from other property owners' wells, said Michael Molligan, a spokesman for the Southwest Florida Water Management District.
The new owner would also face zoning hurdles if they want to truck water from the site. Two years ago, the Paradisos failed to secure a land-use change for two acres fronting Alternate U.S. Highway 27, which would have allowed them to build a truck depot. The plan, which was voted down by the Levy County Commission, drew strong opposition from area residents.
While the Paradisos said the state has expressed interest in the property, Molligan said his agency, which sometimes purchases springs for preservation, said it did not consider Blue Grotto an actual spring but rather a ''sinklake'' because the spring discharge does not flow to a water body.
Business at the Blue Grotto has remained strong, said Judy Paradiso, strong enough to ''support a house and family for 20 years.'' But she said she envisioned a dozen uses for the property: a timeshare, a hotel, an exotic fish farm.
Rowena Thomas is co-manager at the Devil's Den, an underground spring two miles from Blue Grotto. Divers from around the world often visit both places in the same day.
''Obviously, we hope it remains a dive center,'' she said. ''It makes a really nice time for divers.''
Steven Haberlin can be reached at steve.haberlin starbanner.com or (352) 867-4157. Steven Haberlin can be reached at steve.haberlinstarbanner.com or (352) 867-4157.
www.gainesville.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20051205/LOCAL/51204060/1078/news
By STEVEN RAY HABERLIN
Ocala-Star Banner
OCALA - For sale: 100-foot deep, freshwater cavern.
Blue Grotto springs, the popular diving spot just outside Williston, is being sold. The 14-acre site, which features a dive shop, home, campground and diving cave, will go to the highest bidder during an auction Thursday.
The auction company organizing the event began marketing Blue Grotto as a cave diver's paradise but quickly learned that potential bidders had something else in mind: water, as in for drinking.
William Bone, president of National Auction Group, the Alabama-based company conducting the auction, would not name names but said several municipalities have expressed interest in the springs. He said investors, mainly from Miami, and national and international water bottling businesses had also inquired about Blue Grotto.
''It ought to be quite an event,'' said Bone. ''It's a great natural resource. At first, we thought it would sell to a water bottle company. Now, it's 50 percent between dive center and municipality buying it for water, I guess to put a straw in it and drain it out.''
Established in 1974, Blue Grotto has remained a popular spot for divers, including those from Marion County. Anyone with an open water divers certification can plunge down the 100-foot cavern in waters that stay a comfortable 72 degrees. Well known among the diving community, the place has attracted the likes of Tiger Woods, the prince of Thailand and ''Star Trek'' creator Gene Roddenberry.
Ed and Judy Paradiso, owners of the Blue Grotto for 20 years, said they were selling the springs because it was time for a change. They decided to go the auction route, they said, because it was a the ''only fair way.'' However, Bones said Realtors suggested that simply listing the property for sale could take years to snatch a buyer.
The Paradisos said their hope was that Blue Grotto possibly remained a dive center, but at the least, a place where the environment is protected.
''We hope it goes to someone who cares as much as we have,'' Ed Paradiso said.
Though the St. Petersburg Times reported on Nov. 18 that the site could sell for $5 million to $15 million, attributing the figure to Bone, he disputed ever quoting the figure and explained that it was a price he had heard from interested parties.
The auction has generated about 100 inquiries, Bone said. But interest has somewhat tapered off. Bone explained that some potential buyers never performed water tests at the site after inquiring about the springs.
Cities and utilities in Florida, where populations are outgrowing water supplies, are expected to be among the bidders Thursday.
John Marshall, an attorney helping with the sale, said he was told that the interested cities ''were much bigger than Ocala or Gainesville.''
Ocala City Manager Paul Nugent said the city's water supplies were in good shape. The city has wells in the northeast quadrant and four years ago established a reserve well in the southwest section.
Williston, which promotes Blue Grotto to tourists on its Web site, wants to see the site remain a diver's playground and is against any efforts to siphon water from the springs, said City Manager Jim Coleman.
In 2001, the Paradisos obtained a bulk water-bottling permit from the state to pump 100,000 gallons per day from the spring. The spring, according to promotional material, produces a total of three-million gallons per day.
But buyers wanting to draw more water would have to convince the state that there was a demand and assure that the pumping would not dry nearby wetlands or drain water from other property owners' wells, said Michael Molligan, a spokesman for the Southwest Florida Water Management District.
The new owner would also face zoning hurdles if they want to truck water from the site. Two years ago, the Paradisos failed to secure a land-use change for two acres fronting Alternate U.S. Highway 27, which would have allowed them to build a truck depot. The plan, which was voted down by the Levy County Commission, drew strong opposition from area residents.
While the Paradisos said the state has expressed interest in the property, Molligan said his agency, which sometimes purchases springs for preservation, said it did not consider Blue Grotto an actual spring but rather a ''sinklake'' because the spring discharge does not flow to a water body.
Business at the Blue Grotto has remained strong, said Judy Paradiso, strong enough to ''support a house and family for 20 years.'' But she said she envisioned a dozen uses for the property: a timeshare, a hotel, an exotic fish farm.
Rowena Thomas is co-manager at the Devil's Den, an underground spring two miles from Blue Grotto. Divers from around the world often visit both places in the same day.
''Obviously, we hope it remains a dive center,'' she said. ''It makes a really nice time for divers.''
Steven Haberlin can be reached at steve.haberlin starbanner.com or (352) 867-4157. Steven Haberlin can be reached at steve.haberlinstarbanner.com or (352) 867-4157.
www.gainesville.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20051205/LOCAL/51204060/1078/news