SMR expands Country Club offerings

Lakewood Ranch developer Schroeder-Manatee Ranch obviously wouldn’t agree the country club experience is on the decline.

SMR is investing more than $25 million in a three-year period to retain and attract members to the Lakewood Ranch Golf and Country Club.

It opened its newest 29,000-square-foot clubhouse, called “The Lodge,” at the Royal Lakes golf course in Country Club East April 19, just as it closed the existing Lakewood Ranch Golf and Country Club clubhouse for a major $5 million renovation that includes tearing down and then expanding the kitchen. The lounge and administrative offices will remain open during construction and the entire club is expected to be open again by Thanksgiving.

“It’s a commitment,” Country Club General Manager Wayne Piazza said. “We’re not going anywhere. The community is not getting smaller. You have to meet the need. People don’t want to leave the Ranch. This is just another amenity.”

Lakewood Ranch Golf and Country Club already has 3,600 members across seven membership classifications. Since the opening of the Lodge, it has added more than 40 new members, Piazza said.

The Lodge’s design and offerings are a reflection of focus groups and surveys conducted with country club members. It is primarily a dining establishment, featuring a more “upscale casual” menu, with pizzas and smaller plates — lobster grilled cheese, smoked brisket, lump crab on a fried green tomato and other offerings.

Windows around the perimeter offer diners a view of the golf course. There’s also an open kitchen, so guests can watch their food being prepared and interact with kitchen staff. It also has an event lawn and putting green. Within the facility, there is a pro shop, a cart barn, separate access areas for deliveries, and kitchen and staff support spaces.

Country Club members Candace McMahon and Jim McNamara are enamored with the new facility.

“The openness is so fabulous,” McMahon said. “I feel it’s so comfortable being here. SMR got it right. It’s truly a reflection of what the members wanted. I feel like I’m in a resort.”

McNamara agreed.

“They make it easy for us to enjoy ourselves,” he said. “It makes the whole country club experience enjoyable and complete.”

Last month, the country club also opened its newly renovated athletic center, which features new state-of-the-art equipment and about 7,000 more square feet of space primarily for fitness classes, bringing the total square footage to about 18,000 square feet.