I have always been leary of anything in print. The $17 Million for the irrigation "project" looked ridiculous to me, but so did a $40,000 front door that a friend of mine had installed in his house.
I am unable to link the "Los Angeles Times" article which was reprinted in the business section of Sunday's "Dallas Morning News", but below are some of the contents, verbatim.
"Yellowstone Club officials counter that only 20 percent of its 13,400 acres are slated for development. They point to a project they initiated in 2001 that irrigates the golf course with treated sewage that was destined to be dumped into the Gallatin River. The irrigation project cost $17 million, half of which was paid for by the club."
'I'm not impressed by a person's money' "says Mr. Blixseth, who with his wife, Edra, is beginning to turn a profit on their $200 million investment in the resort."
"Thirty-six members have completed homes...."
"About 50 houses are under construction."
"Stephen Burke, the president of Comcast Corp., is planning to break ground this spring. Microsoft Corp. co-founder Bill Gates owns the two lots next door."
"About 200 millionaires have joined so far".
Even assuming that all the figures are exagerated proportionally, the developer appears to be well in the black-
initiation fees- 200 members @ $250,000 = $50 Million
required property purchases- 200 @ $1 Million* = $200 Million
* property prices range from $1 to $10 Million
Tommy,
By definition, there can't be any Dems in the membership.
As to bothering with the place, with a net worth short of the minimum by five or six zeros, I can only dream. I inquired as to extra credit and a scholarship for being such a nice guy, a student of the game, and a true environmentalist, but received a very polite letter back saying that they doubt that the project would meet my very exacting standards.
I just thought that this was an interesting development in light of the concern that many on this site share regarding affordable golf. Like Dallas National, an ultra-expensive club for this part of the world, the Yellowstone Club appears to have done quite well. Maybe golf is heading back to its roots in this country when it was a game for the rich. At its highest levels, this appears to be the case. The Wild Horses, Rustic Canyons, and Pine Dunes of this country appear to be too far and few in between.