Naples country club completes $15M, '2.0' renovation project

The Countryside Golf & Country Club in Naples has completed a three-year, $15 million renovation project.

The work included expanding dining, social and recreational amenities, while modernizing and nearly doubling the size of the community’s popular clubhouse, according to a statement. The club also added an 80,000-gallon resort style pool with beach entry and lap lanes as well as new parking areas.

Members, according to the release, called the project Countryside 2.0. The final piece, four lighted pickleball courts, was completed late last year. The project was celebrated at a semi-formal event held in the newly renovated clubhouse and featured dinner, dancing, fireworks, a magician and plaque dedication, commemorating the completion of renovations and the committee that worked to lead the success of the project.

Officials also boasted about the project coming in within budget — a rarity in the industry. “It’s so rare that I can’t even remember when a club was able to brag about that,” Countryside General Manager Joe Smith says in the release. “It came in within budget, and that’s a testament to the collaboration and great work of the Renovation Oversight Committee led by long-time resident Mike MacDonald, architect, civil engineer and general contractor.”

Walter Crawford, of Heatherwood Construction, the project’s general contractor, adds that “the only way to deliver a major renovation under budget is through meticulous planning, disciplined execution and strong leadership. Countryside’s leadership remained unwavering in their commitment to the budget from pre-planning through Certificate of Occupancy, and that consistency was a driving force behind the project’s financial success.”

Countryside’s leadership began envisioning “Countryside 2.0” nearly five years ago. The goal: build an amenity package to rival what the high-end communities are doing in Naples and east of Immokalee Road toward Ave Maria.

Countryside Golf & Country Club is a resident-owned gated golf community with 1,133 residential units, including 221 detached single-family homes. The private community rests among hundreds of tropical Florida trees and a tranquil 70-par, 18-hole Arthur Hills-designed golf course.