Nearly a year before the DeSantis administration sparked a public outcry with its plans to build golf courses on the valuable lands of a state park on the Atlantic coast, a nonprofit national veterans organization made a similar proposal to state and local authorities.

Sen. Gayle Harrell (R-Stuart) told the Tampa Bay Times that Lt. Col. Dan Rooney and his nonprofit Folds of Honor approached her last fall to draft legislation to build three golf courses on the grounds of Jonathan Dickinson State Park in Martin County, one of them with accommodations for people with disabilities.

She said Rooney and other members of the nonprofit team gave a video presentation about the group’s work with a Michigan golf course called American Dunes, which is associated with famed golfer Jack Nicklaus. The course’s website says it is “The Church That Jack Built.”

“It seemed like an amazing undertaking,” Harrell said, referring to the group’s mission to help military personnel with disabilities. “But not in our national parks.”

“I said, ‘That’s not going to happen,’ and advised them against it.”

Harrell was not the only one.

Harold Jenkins, chairman of the Martin County Commission, said Folds of Honor approached him and an assistant over a year ago with similar plans to build a golf course on the grounds of Jonathan Dickinson State Park. Jonathan Dickinson is home to the largest protected habitat for Florida’s squirrels, which are listed as an endangered species.

Jenkins told the Times the group was targeting several hundred acres of land whose “ecological value has declined.” Jenkins said the group knew he had no jurisdiction over any changes to the park, but wanted to gauge whether there was public support.

“I told them, ‘You’re going to start a war with the people,'” Jenkins said. He never heard from them again and said he was shocked to see earlier this week that the proposal to build a golf course at Jonathan Dickinson had resurfaced.

Governor Ron DeSantis’ office did not respond to questions from the Tampa Bay Times asking about Folds of Honors’ involvement in the current proposal to build a golf complex that would require demolition of employee housing, an observation tower and other park facilities.

A copy of the governor’s April 10 schedule shows that he met with Rooney in private. Details of that meeting remain unclear. The Times has filed a request for all meeting minutes.

Rooney did not respond to several requests for comment from The Times Saturday, including phone calls and direct messages on social media. Another employee at the nonprofit also did not return calls Saturday morning.

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Folds of Honor is a national nonprofit organization based in Oklahoma that awards scholarships to spouses and children of killed or disabled military members. and first responders. The company raised $55 million in 2022, according to recent public filings, and one way it raises money is by holding golf tournaments, including in Florida. Rooney’s Instagram account features several photos of him with Jack Nicklaus, including one in which he calls him his “childhood hero.”

DeSantis awarded Barbara Nicklaus, Jack Nicklaus’ wife, the Governor’s Medal of Freedom two years ago, thanking her for the couple’s philanthropic support of children’s health care. In a social media post, DeSantis called her the “First Lady of Golf.”

A Nicklaus Cos. spokesman, James Haggerty, told the Times in an email that Nicklaus Cos. and Nicklaus Design were not involved in these plans for the state park and only recently learned of them through news reports. He added, however, that Jack Nicklaus resigned from Nicklaus Cos. in May 2022 and “Nicklaus Design has no information about any projects he may or may not have pursued outside of our companies over the past two years.”

Jack Nicklaus’ son, Gary Nicklaus, is a commissioner of the state agency responsible for protecting Florida’s fish and wildlife. He began his service on the commission during the administration of Governor Rick Scott and was reappointed by DeSantis.

Neither Jack nor Gary Nicklaus responded to calls and messages on Saturday.

In addition to the Jonathan Dickinson State Park proposal, the DeSantis administration has put forward proposals to create amenities such as 350-room lodges and pickleball courts at eight other state parks. Hillsborough River State Park and Honeymoon Island in Pinellas County would both get pickleball courts under the plans.

Republicans and Democrats across the state, from the U.S. Senate to local governments, criticized the state’s plans and the rapid advancement of those plans this week.

On Friday, the Florida Department of Environmental Protection postponed a series of nearly simultaneous public meetings at eight locations across the state that were scheduled for Tuesday, citing “overwhelming interest.” The agency said new meeting dates would be announced soon, but it They are expected to take place in the week of September 2nd.

Henry Kelley, an Army veteran who lives in Pensacola and has participated in the Folds of Honor tournament at his local golf course, said the events are streamlined.

“They have sponsors all over the place with thick checkbooks,” he said, mentioning expensive coolers and other freebies given to attendees. The charity’s website lists partnerships with big-name brands such as Coca-Cola, American Airlines, Budweiser and the conservative talk show Fox & Friends.

“You can see that they are very well financed and very well organized.”