60 homes in Bay golf course proposal

Chris Gardner
A mystery developer has approached the Hawke's Bay Golf Club with a proposal to redesign the course and build up to 60 homes on the site.
The proposal, outlined in papers sent to Hawke's Bay Today, includes a restaurant, gymnasium, health club and a pool at the 57.5ha site at the end of Valentine Road, 10km from the centre of Hastings. The club opened in 1969 as the Flaxmere Golf Club and changed its name in recent years.
At a special meeting last night called by the board of management, chaired by Mike Maguire, about 100 of the 400 members were told of the proposal.
Though Mr Maguire was not available for comment this morning, club manager Kerry Brosnan said the proposal would ensure the future of the course - the newest of the four major golf courses in the region.
Mr Brosnan said the proposal was by no means final, and was subject to change as the plans for the development unfolded.
"It's just an idea, and may not be feasible," he said. Consultant for the developer, Alan Pierce, would not disclose the developers' names, but said the "prime instigator" was a local.
The members who attended the meeting agreed, in principle, that the proposal should be dealt with by postal ballot with a 75 percent majority necessary for it to go ahead.
Mr Pierce believed the development could be completed within two or three years and would include a better golf course than at present.
He hoped the postal ballot would be completed within one or two weeks, allowing the developers to move on to the contract stage, and later the resource consent stage. The briefing paper from the club's board said there were two issues surrounding the offer.
"Existing members must continue to enjoy a golf course of no less standard or challenge than the current course and that the long-term future of the Hawke's Bay Golf Club must be secured."
The board, it said, was also adamant that any proposal must protect the staff.
The club's board of management thought the offer needed further terms and conditions before members got the "best deal" for them in the current circumstances.
The board said all the club's legal expenses arising from the sale should be met by the developer, all foundation members should have rights to use all the facilities proposed, and immediate family members of golf club members should be offered rights to the complex for a discounted rate.
The board also seeks for the retention, in perpetuity, of an 18-hole golf course with playing rights secured against the title of the land, blocked tee times for members on Saturdays and at least two other weekdays and the club must have first right to buy back the course if it is ever sold.
The unnamed developer has offered a non-refundable deposit of $20,000 that would be paid on signing the agreement, which would remain in club coffers in the event that resource consent cannot be obtained.