Wellington renews farm’s K-Park lease

J. Alderman Farms Inc. to stay on land through at least June 30, 2019.

Wellington e xtended for another year a lease with a farmer forthe village’s sprawling K-Park property.

The $40,000-a-year contract was approved Tuesday by Wellington’s Village Council. It keeps J. Alderman Farms Inc. on the land through at least June 30, 2019.

The farm’s use of K-Park has several benefits, Village Manager Paul Schofield told the council at an agenda review on April 23.

“It’s actually more of a swing for us than $40,000, because we don’t have to do maintenance on it and they take care of all of that,” he said. “The other thing that happens when we lease it to them is that property then becomes taxable. They are then responsible for paying the tax bill.”

Ta xe s on K-Park last year totaled $17,161, according to a Palm Beach County Property Appraiser’s database. J. Alderman Farms has leased the land from Wellington since 2010.

There is an “out” in the lease should the village find a buyer for K-Park or makea decision on developing it: Wellington must

give the farm 120 days’ notice, enough time to let it harvest any crops planted on the land.

The property has been farmland for years. The village bought it for $8.5 million in 2003 from the Kahlert family — the “K” in K-Park.

At the time, officials planned to use the land for a park, but that idea never was finalized.

The discussion then shifted in 2008 to developing an assisted-living facility on a 5-acre portion of K-Park along State Road 7. A $5 million contract was ready with a developer, who pulled out of the deal.

Since then, several options have been discussed for K-Park, including a Palm Beach State College campus, a mixed-use development and an “innovation center.” All were rejected.

Wellington had town halls in 2015 to get residents’ feedback, but no discussions have been held since. The village in 2016 received an unsolicited bid for less than half the site, but it did not move forward.