http://www.golfcalifornia.com/departments/features/february-coastal.htmBill Gayne's comments got me to thinking about Dos Pueblos, a course near Santa Barbara by C & C that was never built. I was given a copy of the investment proposal with the understanding that though it looked like a green light was forthcoming, it was not a done deal. As the old link above notes, it died. Over 10 years and $3 Million were reportedly spent by the developer for naught.
Before starting a thread "why is golf so expensive", or better yet, "why do we need another freaking course when there are already 35-40k in the world", think about these threads. Thank God that such an outstanding real estate company as DLC has the commitment, patience and deep pockets to overcome the many unnecessary obstacles to turn unused, often environmentally impaired, privately-owned land into places of shelter, commerce, and enjoyment.
Someone sent me a link that Frisco, Texas, my current hometown and the site of the new PGA complex, was named by some organization as one of the best places in the U.S. to buy a home. As a long time real estate professional, I was typically amused when Californians and New Yorkers would describe Texas as the Wild West in terms of zoning and construction regulations. That was certainly not my experience when interacting with various planning staff, permitting, city councils, the CoE, etc.
Only when I saw first hand the hoops that my colleagues and investors in those states had to jump through did I begin to appreciate the "growth may not be necessarily a bad thing" attitude I confronted regularly in Texas. Watching Frisco's city leaders recognize that other people coming to the area, many from CA and NY, may want to share our attractive lifestyle has been somewhat reassuring. Sure, traffic is getting worse, water resources and other growing pains have required more attention. We have our share of NIMBYs- more so in Austin where DLC has a newish project- but thus far their concerns have been noted without allowing them to summarily crash development. One of the main reasons that water resources are an issue here is the great difficulty in getting lakes and reservoirs approved and built to collect the vast amounts that flood into the rivers and the Gulf, but that's a subject for another discussion.