The club stands to net $3 million from the sale of two parcels at the edge of the golf course, measuring 3.3 acres and 8.5 acres, to a housing developer. General Manager Jeff Keller said the club was not under pressure to sell the land, but wanted to “make sure the club will be pretty well off into the next century.”
Bend (Ore.) Golf & Country Club is close to signing a contract with a developer who could build 50 to 70 homes on two parcels at the edge of the course, the Bend-based Bulletin reported.
General Manager Jeff Keller did not disclose the proposed purchase price, or the potential buyer, but he said the transaction will net at least $3 million for the not-for-profit, member-owned club, which dates to 1925. The club wasn’t under pressure to sell land and will have several options for using the proceeds, the Bulletin reported.
“It was more to make sure the club will be pretty well off into the next century, which we will be,” Keller said.
The club has a total of 575 members who join for access to golf, tennis, athletic facilities and social events, Keller said. The golf course itself stands out because it was built at a walkable scale, and there are no homes in the middle of it. “It’s golf the way it’s supposed to be,” Keller said.
The club has already applied with the city of Bend Community Development Department for partition of its 230-acre property. One of the parcels is 3.3 acres. In earlier, informal meetings with the city, a developer contemplated building 13 to 17 single-family homes, the Bulletin reported.
A second parcel is 8.5 acres in the northeast corner of the course. Keller hasn’t seen the developer’s final plan, but said it will be something that fits the zoning for standard-density residential housing, which allows up to seven units per acre, the Bulletin reported.
The club’s roughly 200 equity members voted last fall to sell some property that isn’t currently part of the course, in order to take advantage of rising real estate prices, Keller said. The club has some debt from the installation of a $2 million sprinkler system in the early 2000s, he said, but it has never taken on debt to fund operations. Once the transaction is complete, a revenue committee will model various scenarios and help members decide what to do with the money, the Bulletin reported.
The club never publicly listed the property for sale, Keller said. Instead, the club requested proposals from developers and received several bids. At least one bid was for a much higher price, but the developer’s plan would’ve required a zoning change. “Having big buildings was not what we wanted,” Keller said.
Even at the standard residential density, the would-be developer can’t tie into the city’s sewer system until the southeast interceptor project is complete in 2018. Keller did not know when the developer hopes to start construction, the Bulletin reported.
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