MIDLAND, Texas — Plans to close the Nueva Vista Golf Course and sell the land are still on the table. Midland City Council members could vote to approve a rezoning agreement that would allow the owner of the land to sell it and have it be developed into something else.
However, people who live in the Grassland neighborhood are trying to keep it from being turned into something else completely, such as a housing development.
Grassland neighbors said that if it won't remain a golf course, it should at least become a green space.
"We want to save the green space, save the recreation of course, but also preserve the wildlife that is here," Gayle Moore, a Grassland resident, said. "We want there to be butterfly gardens and walking trails and make this into a community area that’s good for recreation, that’s a beautiful green space, and that is available for everyone."
These neighbors worry that a housing development will lead to more problems.
"There’s fear about the schools being overcrowded," Moore said. "There’s fears of the drainage issues that could come. Those are some of the main issues that we are worried about and trying to protect."
On the other hand, Moore understands the owner wanting to sell the property and is completely in support of them doing it. This is part of the reason why city council gave Moore and the other residents an opportunity to come up with an alternative plan.
"We have been working hard to provide alternatives," Moore said. "We of course do want the owner to sell his land, and we also want to be able to keep this area. So coming up with alternatives where we can offer him someone to buy the land that would still keep it green."
One of those alternative plans is called For Midland.
"We are working to provide the walking trails, just the alternatives to make the space available, and it would be a nonprofit organization that could help the city of Midland offer recreation, offer wildlife preservation," Moore said.
The Save Nueva Vista group hopes they can get more time before council ends up voting.
"We have this many people who don’t want to see this land gone," Moore said. "You know these are the things that we have been working on. The time that you’ve given us, can you continue to give us more time to make this happen?"