Hear from an iconic golfer this Saturday at The World Golf Hall of Fame & Museum in World Golf Village in St. Augustine, Florida as Nancy Lopez speaks about her legendary career. The World Golf Hall of Fame & Museum will celebrate the life and career of Lopez during a special exhibition, Nancy Lopez: Pride, Passion & Personality. Lopez will visit the World Golf Hall of Fame & Museum on Saturday, January 15 to officially open her special exhibition. The Saturday event will be held from 4:00 to 6:00 p.m. Guests will have the opportunity to tour the museum, the new Lopez exhibit and attend her personal speaking event in the Museum’s Shell Hall. Tickets are $25 per person for this memorable experience, and can be purchased here.

Nancy Lopez became a member of the LPGA Tour in 1977 and won 48 LPGA Tour events during her impressive career, including three major championships. She took golf by storm in the late 70’s. In 1978 alone, her first full season on the LPGA Tour, Lopez won nine tournaments, including at one stretch, five tournaments in a row. Also in 1978, Lopez was the only woman to win LPGA Rookie of the Year, Player of the Year, and the Vare Trophy in the same season. Lopez was inducted into the World Golf Hall of Fame in 1987.

The special exhibit at the World Golf Hall of Fame & Museum features more than 150 pieces of memorabilia from Lopez’s career, including LPGA Championship trophies, her trophy from the inaugural Solheim Cup and even the Ray Cook putter she used to win so many of her 48 LPGA titles.

In the initial programming of land use at World Golf Village, we planned for and secured 5,540,000 square feet of mixed use development rights. Those rights include 583,000 square feet of commercial use, 2,493,000 square feet of office use and 2,464,000 square feet of industrial use. In addition to the mixed-use rights, there are 1,225 hotel rooms available for construction at World Golf Village. As is the case with most planned communities, services, businesses and commercial development “follows the rooftops”.

The St. Augustine golf course community commenced construction in 1996 with the privately-funded, privately-built I-95 Interchange (now “Exit 323”). Over the past 14 years of development, many stores, offices, hotel rooms and mixed-use establishments have been built in the community – offering great service and convenience for both residents and guests. At the start of a new decade, the residential components of the community have reached the mid-way, build-out threshold. Along with approximately 3,650 more residential units yet to build, we have tremendous office, industrial and mixed-use development opportunities (“commercial”) to follow on.

The World Golf Village commercial opportunities are on advantageously located lands that have been complimented with beautifully designed and implemented infrastructure. The commercial sites are easily accessible and some are highly-visible from the passing interstate traffic. All of the commercial properties are secured through controlled adjacencies with high-quality development standards and are graced with the continuity of a comprehensively-designed unified sign program. From an “addressing” and “association” stand-point, the commercial opportunities are superb; second to none in the region.

I love living and working in our St. Augustine golf course community and this year I am particularly excited to make more time to enjoy all the exciting things we have coming up in the Village.

1. The World Golf Hall of Fame IMAX Theater is reopening in 3D at the end of January.
2. The Nancy Lopez exhibit is opening at the Hall of Fame in mid January.
3. My first Relay for Life event is on April 9th & 10th in World Golf Village – Join our team and walk with us!
4. Isles of the World is being completely revitalized.
5. Playing golf at the King & Bear and Slammer & Squire with my husband and my dad.
6. Recognizing our great teachers from Wards Creek Elementary and Mill Creek Elementary through Davidson Realty’s new “Character Counts” teacher appreciation program.
7. Celebrating our successes in 2010 with staff and agents at our Awards Banquet.
8. Getting to know the new General Manager at the Renaissance Hotel, Jeffrey Oliasami, better.
9. Welcoming a couple of new tenants into Davidson Realty’s beautiful Executive Suites.
10. Our first real estate class at the Davidson building conducted by Florida Real Estate Institute starts January 31st.

Here’s hoping that 2011 brings more fun, more time with family, and more new construction! All the predictions point to a continued slow real estate recovery. I hope everyone has a great year!

The other evening I was listening to the end-of-season wrap-up analysis about the records of my favorite SEC college football teams. You know the kind; how games were determined by controlling the line or running the ball or time of possession or the big play or the trick play or ball-control or by minimizing penalties or playing to the end and being in the game until the last second. Usually, one of the commentators will mention that the best teams won by scoring more points, really. Sometimes they will acknowledge that the players were “coached-up”. Rarely, does the twelfth man get any of the credit – since all big-time college teams almost always sell-out their stadiums anyway.

Yet, there is still room for novel insight in the prognosticating arena. Witness this sage comment by an analyst who was using multi-syllabic words to convey his sports acumen when he stuttered out that his winning team had the “want-to” more than its opponent. Yes, the “want-to”.

I got to thinking how the want-to would be a great thing to cultivate during the Holidays and apply into the New Year.

I got the want-to to pay off all my 2010 bills before 2011. I got the want-to to start the New Year with great, ambitious goals – attainable with the right amount of want-to. I got the want-to to be healthy, wealthy and wise next year – but will settle for losing weight and exercising by using my want-to to succeed. I got the want-to to be more than I can be if I can just keep up my want-to. I want all my friends and family to get the want-to to want to help one another, since 2011 will no doubt challenge our collective want-to. I got the want-to to get comfortable with not wanting anything (material) and to continue wanting peace and prosperity for all.

I hope you get the want-to too and that your want-to will work for you.

There are very few nights that everything runs as smooth as last night did, especially for a Monday. When I got home from work, dinner was ready, kids were bathed and everyone was in an awesome mood. Dinner was perfect, neither child complained about dinner and no fights! Just as I was going to suggest we snuggle up and watch Frosty, the Snowman, my adoring husband asked if we would like to drive around and look at the Christmas lights in our St. Augustine golf course community.  I remembered that the World Golf Village social committee has an annual contest for the best light display from the King & Bear and Slammer & Squire and we needed to place our votes.

We loaded up in the mini-van with our hot chocolates and a Mannheim Steamroller c.d. boomin’ and began cruisin’ the streets looking for our favorite light displays to vote for. Apparently we were not the only family with this brilliant idea. The neighborhoods were decorated so beautifully. Streets were lined with twinkling snowflakes, jolly snowmen and whimsical blowups of Santa. There were “ooooohs” and “aahhhhs” from the back seat. The girls wanted to sit in front of many of the St. Augustine golf course homes and watch the dancing lights. I was reminded of how beautiful the world is looking at it through my daughters’ eyes. I saw magic and awe and I was reminded of the simple ways to really enjoy this magical season.

Who says you have to be a child to enjoy the magic of the holiday season? Those of us who are fortunate to call World Golf Village home, have the luxury of enjoying the holidays by going to downtown St. Augustine’s Nights of Lights. This year marks the 17th anniversary of the holiday display of tiny white lights magically lighting the downtown of this quaint city with plenty of stories to tell. The light display is kept up until January 31st. There is so much to enjoy besides the ambience of the lights illuminated in the waters of the Matanzas Bay. Just the view alone will make the staunchest soul a romantic!

My recommendation is to begin the night off with a glass of wine and a bowl of chili at Celar 6  located on Aviles Street. (Ask for Chris.) The atmosphere is warm and toasty with its brick walls lined with art, bottles of wine, stemware and beer – guaranteed to warm the tummy, bones and heart!

From there, you don’t need to drive around to see the lights – enjoy the scenery and leave the driving of the narrow streets to the professionals by catching the “Jolly Trolley”. Your ride will be accompanied by Christmas music, lights and the glorious surroundings of the nation’s oldest city – St. Augustine.

No visit to St. Augustine is complete without finishing the evening off with a visit to the “Tini Martini Bar” located on the bay front in the Casablanca Inn.  Sit on the front porch of the old inn, which is warmed by heating lamps and decorated for the holidays with tons of lights or sit inside the bar and enjoy your dessert – a decadent Godiva Chocolate Martini of course! If chocolate or martinis aren’t your poison – they offer a wide variety of wines and beers.

Living in one of the best Flordia golf course communities really does give one the best of old and new. Cold winter nights can quickly turn into warm summer-like days – perfect for a game of golf on the King & Bear or a stroll around the old city. The possibilities are endless! My last recommendation is to add the experience to your own 12 Days of Christmas list – you definitely will not be sorry!

This Holiday Season marks my 14th in North Florida. The best advantage of being able to host the Holidays here is that everyone wants to come. The weather is usually superb – the air is dry – the sky is blue and the good cheer flows.
 
While raising a family on the Holiday trail has its own joy – nothing beats being able to sit tight – and let the party come to you. No long pat-down lines – or surcharges on extra luggage and Christmas packages means that you can actually give a loved one something other than a gift card. No tail-gating at 80 mph – or extra sanitizing after frequenting public restrooms means that you can actually prepare and enjoy the cocktail hour when guests arrive. I remember when the Holidays were “work” – shuttling the children between the grandparents, making sure that everyone had equal face time. Now, the beauty and allure of where we live is what brings everyone here – and the memories get better and better.
 
Start with the typical Holiday weather – cool and dry with the French doors open wide and a fire on the hearth. Entertaining on the lanai, in the garden or on the pool deck is a wonderful way to capitalize on our local attributes. You can even try letting the children “camp-out” in the yard around the fire tray while the adults get some relief. You will also find this to be an excellent opportunity to show off the “summer” kitchen – since the Holiday season is perfect for outdoor cooking and dining.

Spa Laterra recently re-opened under new management at World Golf Village so I wanted to check it out. I booked an appointment to have the “Age-Defying Fountain of Youth Facial” last Thursday afternoon. I was pretty frazzled when I arrived. I had too much work to do and not enough time to do – and here I was taking a few hours off in the middle of the day! However, as I walked through the breezeway and caught a glimpse of the fountain and the infinity pool in the courtyard beyond, the tension started to ease away. Laterra is simply a beautiful place to be!

As I entered the lobby, I noticed the environment is as soothing as ever. The only change is the signature color is now blue. I think I like it better! I was greeted by a polite gentleman who showed me to the ladies lounge. Once I changed, a lady escorted me to the circular lounge with the rain shower fountain in the middle. Although the setting is impressive, I had seen it before. There was a new touch though…  sitting next to my chaise lounge was a tray with  a warm towel, hot tea and sweet chocolate – just waiting on me. It was this little extra touch that really impressed me. The few minutes I had in the lounge listening to the water fall eased the last of my tension away. When Mary came to get me for my facial, I was in the perfect frame of mind!