September 15, 2025

The Honorable Hunter W. Carroll, Circuit Judge

P.O. Box 48927

Sarasota, FL 34236

     RE:  Case No. 2024 CA 003022 NC

Dear Judge Carroll,

     I currently serve as the Chair of the Board of Supervisors for the Bobcat Trail Community Development District (the "District"). This letter is with regard to the case referenced above and the June 29, 2017, Mortgage between Celtic Bank Corporation (“Celtic Bank”) and Cloud Ten! Marketing Group, LLC (“Cloud Ten”). The subject property is located in Sarasota County, Florida, in the City of North Port, and within the boundaries of the District. As you are aware, the property is the subject of a foreclosure complaint brought by Celtic Bank in the 12th Judicial Circuit in Sarasota County, Florida, under which a Uniform Final Judgment of Mortgage Foreclosure was entered by this court on April 14, 2025. The court set forth that the property would be sold through a public sale on June 13, 2025; however, Celtic Bank subsequently filed a motion to cancel and reschedule the foreclosure sale for a period not to exceed ninety (90) days based on alleged negotiations with a buyer for the property, and the court eventually cancelled the sale.

     Now, as that 90-day deadline was approaching, on August 12, 2025, the defendant, Cloud Ten, filed a Motion to Stay Foreclosure Proceedings. Cloud Ten’s motion further requests that the court prolong these proceedings for an additional nine months based on another purported buyer interested in the property.

     While the District is not a party to the subject case, the District has been and remains very concerned about this matter for several reasons including the extremely poor condition of the subject property. For several years now, the property has not been adequately maintained. As you can imagine, this situation has a tremendous impact on the quality of life for the people residing within the Bobcat Trail and it has also had a noticeable impact on property values. Collectively, it was the sincere hope of the community that a new owner would take over the golf course property as soon as possible to make this long-standing problem a thing of the past. Unfortunately, the first postponement of the foreclosure sale created additional delay and it is feared that this latest effort by Cloud Ten will only continue to further drag this problem out for the residents.

            While the appearance of the property is a significant issue to the District’s Board, as well as many of the residents in the Bobcat Trail community, there are also growing concerns about safety hazards due to the deteriorating condition of the property. For example, the maintenance yard for the golf course property is located adjacent to the District’s community center and there are two large fuel storage tanks, one for gasoline and one for diesel fuel, that have been exposed and unattended to for approximately four years. This represents both a potential fire and an environmental hazard to the area. In addition, there is a fertilizer storage shed on the property that is not property ventilated. The electric fan within this storage shed is not functioning thus increasing the likelihood of chemical buildup in this structure. Further, there have been incidents of tampering and vandalism in the vicinity of the maintenance yard, one of which was reported to local law enforcement that included fire extinguishers being discharged on the property.

     It also appears that the golf course clubhouse located on the property has been vandalized. The clubhouse looks to be abandoned and unsecured, and there are open windows suggesting that break-ins may have occurred. This represents not only an aesthetic concern as it is located right in the heart of the Bobcat Trail community, but also a great security risk to the Bobcat Trail residents. And while it is not the last of the issues caused by the neglect of the golf course property, it is also noteworthy that the property’s irrigation system has experienced multiple significant leaks. These leaks have resulted in the waste of millions of gallons of water, which has also caused damage to surrounding landscape.

     The intent of this letter is just to make sure this court is aware that this matter is a great concern for the District and the residents of the Bobcat Trail community as they are being directly impacted. The District thanks you for your time and consideration regarding this situation.

                                                                        Sincerely,                                                  

                                                                                                                                                                                                                                  Steven Ball, Chair

                                                            Board of Supervisors

                                                            Bobcat Trail Community Development District