Small Town News

New golf course owner reveals plans; response still up in air

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Plans are still up in the air concerning the future of the Beaver Creek Golf Course, recently purchased in part by a local accountant.

The fate of the course was uncertain after the previous owners closed up shop earlier this year. The course failed to attract any bids at an auction on the steps of the Yavapai County Courthouse in Prescott, but James Spear stepped in and offered to purchase the 18-hole course for an undisclosed amount.

Spear, a 21-year-resident of the Verde Valley and a seven-year resident of Lake Montezuma, received a round of applause last week when he spoke to a packed house at the Beaver Creek Adult Center last week concerning possible plans for the golf course.

But the crowd was concerned about the possible future of the Ranch House restaurant, a focal point of the community's social activities for many years.

While being careful to remind the community that all planning is still in the very early stages, Spear said that the plan was to make the club a private five-star course, with reasonably priced memberships.

"We're going to do the best job we can when it's time," Spear said, "to make you proud of this course again. That's our objective. That's our aim."

Goodbye Beaver Creek Golf Club, hello to The Sanctuary at Beaver Creek, the proposed name for the course after redevelopment.

The crowd grumbled a bit at the idea of a private course and restaurant. Spear said memberships would be affordable, and that there would be cheaper social memberships available for people that didn't play golf but still wanted to use the restaurant.

Spear told the crowd that there would be several types of memberships, and that joining would potentially be cheaper or comparable to courses like the one in the Village of Oak Creek.

As for the restaurant building, Spear said there were plans to possibly expand the building while retaining its current exterior look.

"I am aware of its history," Spear said.

Spear also said that everything would be done to accommodate the existing men's and women's golf clubs and the locals who have supported the course over the years.

First on the agenda is to turn on the water at the course again, to nourish the decaying greens and to preserve the fish that live in the course's ponds.

The course itself will also undergo a redesign, one that necessitates the elimination of a driving range. Spear told the community to expect a lot of dirt-moving to take place. If all goes well, Spear said the course could be completed by October.

There are also plans to put in a swimming pool, Spear said. Overall, the goal is to hopefully attract professional golf tournaments to the course, Spear said, making the course a showcase for golfing in Arizona.

"We're going to rebuild it to [U.S. Golf Association] specs," Spear said. Spear later told The Journal that planning is still a work in progress. He didn't want to make any promis.es or reveal too much about what the future might hold for the course.

"I really can't go into a lot of details right now," Spear said.

Mark Lineberger can be reached at 567-3341 or e-mail CVEditor@larsonnewspapers.com

"We're going to do the best job we can when it's time ..to make you proud of this course again.

That's our objective. That's our aim."

James Spear

Beaver Creek Golf Course Owner



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© 2010 Cottonwood Journal Extra Cottonwood, Arizona. All Rights Reserved. This content, including derivations, may not be stored or distributed in any manner, disseminated, published, broadcast, rewritten or reproduced without express, written consent from DAS.

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