New Player Appears In Summerhill Plan Bahamas-Based Company Is Negotiating To Buy The 51 Acres For Its Development Proposal

There might be an alternative to the dense Summerhill development proposed on Five Mile Prairie by Seattle developer Barry Margolese.

Five Mile resident Scott Brett is negotiating with Margolese to buy the 51 acres.

Margolese recently was given approval by the city to move ahead with plans to subdivide his land for 180 homes with about eight acres of open space.

Now Brett is penciling out a proposal that would include about a fourth as many homes, plus horse trails, bike and jogging paths and maybe an equestrian center.

Brett said he’s acting as an agent for the Bailett Corporation, a bank consulting firm based in Nassau, The Bahamas.

Brett has lived on the prairie for seven years. He said he grew up in the Indian Trail neighborhood.

“Our idea is to try to create something less dense, better for the neighborhood,” said Brett. “The company is in a position to do this.”

Brett said he expects to meet with Margolese in mid-February to discuss the proposal.

Margolese didn’t return phone calls.

If built as planned, Summerhill would be the most dense development on the prairie.

Margolese has volunteered to pay $200 per-home-built toward a park development for the neighborhood. He also agreed to pay a voluntary transportation fee of $1,430 for each lot.

The Five Mile Prairie neighborhood council has vigorously opposed the project, citing the high density, poor condition of roads and flooding problems in the area.

“We’d be thrilled if the new proposal happened. It’s precisely the kind of of development we would like to see up here,” said Steve Mumm, who chairs the neighborhood’s committee on zoning and development.

“His plans fit with the rural characteristic of the prairie. It’s a nice blend of development and open space,” he said.

“It sounds like he is interested in creating something that fits up here,” said Mumm.

Brett also has an idea to use the Austin corridor, which runs up and down the bluff, to provide biking and walking access to Five Mile Shopping Center.

“It would take some cooperation and work, but it can be done,” said Brett.

, DataTimes