Local ownership group Konmer Venture, LLC, closed the deal on the Vallejo, Calif., property May 29, with plans to transform it into a tourist and business attraction, including a hotel, 5,000-sq. ft. restaurant, and event space.
After being for sale for years, private Mare Island Golf Club in Vallejo, Calif., has been purchased by new owners who want to add a hotel, restaurant and banquet facility to the property, the Vallejo-based Times-Herald reported.
The four-member ownership group, Konmer Venture, LLC, closed the $2.1 million deal on May 29 with previous owner Castle Linksters. The new owners said they hope to transform the 18-hole course into a tourist and business attraction. They envision a hotel of 120 to 150 rooms, a 5,000-sq. ft. restaurant offering California cuisine and a banquet facility large enough to host business conventions, weddings, graduations and other special events, the Times-Herald reported.
In looking to invest in a golf resort project, they said Vallejo’s location between Wine Country and San Francisco—and plans to add a Mare Island ferry stop next year—factored into their purchase decision, the Times-Herald reported.
“This is a perfect location,” said San Francisco resident Allan Sam, one of the four partners. “You come here, spend a few days, play golf, go to Wine Country.”
Fellow partner Allen Mark, a Milbrae real estate agent who’d heard through the grapevine the course was for sale, said the hotel would be a $30 million to $40 million project. He said it would be akin to the Ritz-Carlton Half Moon Bay, “but not as high-end,” the Times-Herald reported.
“This would be more mid-end,” Mark said. “We like the demographics and the location. We want it to be a destination point.”
Mark said he became aware of the investment opportunity through his friendship with Steve Harker, who owns Touchstone Golf, the company that’s managed the Mare Island Golf Club since 2008. Touchstone’s management services, including its 33 Mare Island golf course employees, have been retained, the Times-Herald reported.
Two of the partners, Randy Zhang and Tracy Qiao, are Chinese nationals who’ve relocated to the Bay Area and plan to use their connections in China and the Asian golf community to promote the course as a travel destination. Zhang said his family owns two four-star hotels in Jinan, the capital of Shandong province in Eastern China, the Times-Herald reported.
“We became interested in doing a hotel in California,” Zhang said.
The group also said it plans to add more native plants to the course to reduce water use. “We are going to be doing a few holes every year to get that done,” Mark said.
The owners are considering installing solar panels in their construction plans, the Times-Herald reported.
“We’re just really excited to have a new group of owners come in with a vision,” General Manager Chris Archuleta. “And from what I’ve gathered, the sky’s the limit for what can be done out here. We’re all excited about having new blood.”
The ownership change won’t have any immediate effect on hours and rates, Archuleta said.
Previous owners Castle Linksters purchased the property in 2003, hoping to build homes on the course. However, the company encountered development problems and its plans were scrapped after the housing bubble burst, General Manager Chris Archuleta.
“We wish the new owners good luck and hope the city of Vallejo will work with them to support their vision,” said Ken Ruekert, chief financial officer at Castle Companies. “We think that it will be good for the island.”
Originally opened in 1892, the former Navy base golf course was placed under the city’s care in 1995, when the base was in the process of decommissioning. At the time, the course was nine holes. Vallejo also briefly owned the property between late 2000 and late 2001. The course changed hands twice more before Castle Linksters purchased it, the Times-Herald reported.
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