Developer Marshall Chesrown says he has accelerated the project schedule on his planned 650-acre Black Rock golf course and residential development in Kootenai County, which he now says will get under way in July and cost upwards of $30 million to bring to fruition.


Chesrown, a Spokane native who made his fortune in the auto business in Colorado, made the comments at a Gonzaga University Deans Business Forum last week and in an interview afterward. The project, which is to include an 18-hole private golf course and 381 home sites, will be located on property Chesrown owns on the west side of Coeur dAlene Lake just north of Rockford Bay.


Well attempt to get all the major dirt moved this year, Chesrown says.


Work already is under way on the redevelopment of the Rockford Bay Marina, which he bought separately to provide lake access to the golf course and residential development, which will overlook the lake. Chesrown already has remodeled a lakefront restaurant at the marina and renamed it Shooters Bar & Grill. He plans to open an office at the marina in August to serve as the headquarters for his real estate sales division. He says he also has reconfigured the marinas docks to free up more space for short-term boat parking.


In the meantime, Chesrown says he soon will open a temporary office in the Shops at the Coeur dAlene Resort, in Coeur dAlene, to publicize his project to the summertime crowds there.


Construction of the golf course, to be called The Club at Black Rock, will begin next year, and the course is expected to be open for play by mid-2002.


Home sales and sales of golf-club memberships also will begin next year, he says, adding that he wants to wait until the golf course is far enough along that potential buyers will be able to envision what it will look like when its done.


Residential construction should start in the spring of 2002, along with construction of the water and sewer systems needed for that part of the development, he says. Building lots will range in size from about three-fourths of an acre to up to two acres.


Black Rock will be a gated community with 24-hour security, walking and riding paths, an equestrian center, tennis courts, and swimming pools, he says.


Although about 15 lots will be reserved for extravagant homes, Chesrown says that Black Rock is not targeted at only the high end. There will be a full spectrum (of homes), from mid-priced to high-end.


Plans call for some eight-plex units to be built in the development, as well as a number of semi-detached homes that should appeal to older residents and those who dont plan to live at Black Rock year-round, he says. Depending on demand for different types of housing, the total number of housing units at Black Rock could rise, he says. The projects planned-unit development designation allows for up to 700 housing units, he says.


Chesrown says hes changed his expectation of how many people will live at Black Rock part-time vs. those who will make the community their year-round home. Initially, projections were that the split would be about 50-50, he says. Now, Its fairly typical for people to drive 20 to 30 minutes to work anymore, and it really is a nice commute, he says. I think (the ratio) is going to be significantly higher for year-round residents.


Exclusive golf course


Homebuyers at Black Rock will be able to buy memberships to the private golf course, or opt to buy what are called social memberships, which allow them to use the clubhouse but not play golf, Chesrown says. A limited number of memberships to use the golf course will be available to people who dont buy property in the development, although the public wont be allowed to buy social memberships to the club, he says. The prices of the memberships havent been determined yet.


Typically, golf-club memberships sell extremely fast, and youve got to restrict them at some point so that memberships continue to be available for people who buy homes at Black Rock, he says.


The 7,200-yard Club at Black Rock course was designed by Jim Engh, an award-winning golf-course architect who also was responsible for The Sanctuary, a private course located near Denver, Colo., that was named best new private golf course by Golf Digest in 1997. The Club at Black Rock will have about 1,000 feet of vertical elevation change, from the lakefront to the top of the canyons that overlook it, and has been designed so that no hole is visible from any other hole, Chesrown says.


The topography of the site, with its canyons, trees, meadows, and wetlands, was a big draw for potential golf-course designers, Chesrown asserts.


Everybody wanted a shot at designing this golf course, he says.


He chose Engh because The Sanctuary shares many of the same features as The Club at Black Rock, and because Engh did a good job of conserving the natural features of the property there, Chesrown says.


Chesrown bought the property that will house the Black Rock development more than three years ago from Spokanes Pring family. The Prings, who owned the Appleway Auto Group until 1997, at one time had plans to build a golf course on the property.


Chesrown, a University High School graduate, says he knew the Prings from his youth in the Spokane Valley, and had told them that if they ever wanted to sell their Rockford Bay property, hed like to buy it.


During public hearings before the Kootenai County Planning Commission late last year, Chesrown said that he was the sole owner of the Black Rock development, and that there were no other investors in the project.