Westshore Yacht Club Land Was Used to Build Nuclear Plant Components

After having so many issues in my Lennar home at 6111 Yeats Manor Drive, I decided to dig a little deeper into what was on Lennar’s Westshore Yacht Club neighborhood land before. I was shocked at what I found.

1968 was quite a year: the 747 was born, we orbited the moon, and we lost two great, historical figures – Martin Luther King Jr. and Robert F. Kennedy.

The Westinghouse Electric nuclear steam generator and pressurizer factory also became operational in 1968 and on the very land you call home today – the Westshore Yacht Club.

The red arrows on the Westshore Yacht Club land

You will see a red arrow/circle in a few of the satellite pictures. Pay close attention to that spot. It is visible in many of the pictures and appears human-made. I do not know what it is, but there is a newly developed condo building sitting on it at this moment.

Note: Because Google digitally builds the images of Castillo Tower at the Westshore Yacht Club because of altitude, it is in the satellite photos even before the tower was built.

Government and developer collusion and corruption in our backyards. https://t.co/W4geHeZqI2

— single white ML🌹 (@uhshanti) February 13, 2018

1968 – Westinghouse manufactures major nuclear power plant components

The clean, “smokeless,” $25-million plant consisted of nearly 300,000 square feet (which was nearly doubled after expansion) of high technology, automated, heavy manufacturing, testing, and inspection equipment, as well as a steam generation test facility.

During its operation, the plant manufactured and shipped major nuclear plant components to many U.S. and foreign power plants.

The products manufactured at this Tampa-based plant provide people with electricity throughout the United States and in Japan, Spain, Switzerland, France, South Korea, and other countries around the world.

In those early days in the nuclear power generation industry, before the creation of a dedicated a Nuclear Service Division, much of the service work on the nuclear components was done by the personnel at the manufacturing plants going to the field.

I’d personally love to know what was tested here during the Westinghouse days here at the Westshore Yacht Club.

A Westinghouse factory before WCI (Now Lennar) built homes on the land.

Factories sat on the Westshore Yacht Club property for 37 years before our neighborhood was built. Was proper land remediation done to ensure no land pollution or soil contamination?

Early 1980s-1988 Westinghouse factory abandoned

Due to nuclear concerns during the era, demand diminished and the factory was closed down and remained abandoned until 1989.

1989-1992 American Ship Building Company

For a few years after the plant closure, American Ship Building Company leased the manufacturing facility for the modification and fabrication of large ocean-going vessels.

Also during that time, the Westinghouse Southeastern Nuclear Technology Center’s engineering office, managed by Pete DeRosa, was located at the facility. It provided analytic support to Westinghouse nuclear plants under construction.

The Westshore Yacht Club made a dramatic transformation after WCI Communities (now Lennar) tore down the factory and buildings.

1993-2004 – Factory on Westshore Yacht Club remains abandoned

Although abandoned, the structures remained. A couple of interesting things happened during this time.

The abandoned Westinghouse factory remained on the land in 1995, the first year that Google has documented satellite images of the Westshore Yacht Club neighborhood. Notice the dark square remains in the picture.

2001 – South Westshore purchase

On November 7th, 2001, South Westshore Corp bought the land and structures for $6M from Ship House Inc. According to the documents, Ship House Inc. Still required access for a period for land remediation: 

A continuing right of access to Grantor to complete the environmental remediation described in section 13(b) of the Agreement of Sale between Grantor and Grantee dated May 18, 2001

September 13, 2002 – land remediation completed – or was it?

Here is what the Westshore Yacht Club area looked like in May of 2002. If completed remediation for soil pollution was in September of 2002, a lot of work happened quickly.

Image of the Westshore Yacht Club neighborhood in May 2002. September of 2002 marks complete remediation of potential soil pollution.

The problem? The rusting plant remained on the Westshore Yacht Club land.

In September 2002, cleanup was completed, and here is an image of the Westshore Yacht Club neighborhood in November of 2003 – 14 months after the documentation above was signed.

Taken 14 months after remediation, the rusting factory and buildings remained. How does remediation for potential soil pollution occur when these structures are still standing?

• Oh, and that black square is still there.
• And the rusting 35-year old factory.
• A factory that built parts for nuclear plants and nuclear submarines.
• A factory mostly abandoned for 20 years at this point.
• A factory that was not maintained (which is visibly evident).
• An abandoned factory that was just sitting there on land and soil. Land and soil that was absorbing whatever was coming out that abandoned factory and parts.
• Land and soil that WCI Communities (now Lennar Homes) would soon purchase, and we would soon call home at the Westshore Yacht Club.

March of 2004 – WCI Communities purchases land and factory.

WCI Communities purchases the Westshore Yacht Club land for a cool $16,000,000.

Remember, at this point, the land had ‘remediation’ completed.

This is what it looked like more than nine months after the acquisition – full rusting factory and abandoned buildings and all:

Nine months after the WCI Communities (now Lennar Homes) purchase and more than two years after remediation, the rusty plant, and abandoned buildings still stand on what will soon be the Westshore Yacht Club neighborhood.

Keep Reading: EPC Findings to Westshore Yacht Club Land Use