By KENDALL OWENS
T-H Staff Writer
Members of the Forrest City Lion's Club greeted news of the proposed golf lodge at Village Creek State Park with questions and enthusiasm Monday after hearing details of the lodge from Forrest City Area Chamber of Commerce Executive Director Danny Ferguson.
During the club's noon meeting, Ferguson outlined the proposal, which includes a 27-hole golf course. According to Ferguson, the lodge is expected to be an upscale lodge which will also include a conference center, pro shop, club house and sporting clays range. The project will be the first joint venture between a state agency and a private entity, with the state paying $7 million of the proposed costs of the golf course and lodge, and the developer carrying $15 million of the price tag.
"The developers paid to have an extensive feasibility study done before making their decision on this project, and the numbers came back favorably to do this. The golf course itself will be located in the Cross County portion of the park, and it will be a 27-hole signature golf course. They decided on 27-holes to better accommodate tournaments and to allow for more rounds of golf to be played during a year. The lodge will be a 124-room facility with a conference center, golf pro shop, spa and all of the amenities. This is going to be a pretty upscale project and the costs per night in the lodge are projected at $110. Right now, the green's fees are projected at $25.70 per round," Ferguson said.
According to Ferguson, projections from the study also showed that 55,000 rounds of golf were expected to be played during the course's first year of operation, with the lodge handling 70-percent occupancy. By the third fiscal year, the lodge and course are expected to bring in $10 million annually, which will be an additional $200,000 in sales tax revenue for St. Francis County.
The developers, Wellington International, LLC, have worked on projects worldwide, including Miami's Hyatt Regency Hotel and Convention Center, the Excelsior Hotel in Little Rock and the Biltmore Hotel Renovation in Coral Gables, Florida. According to Ferguson, the golf course designer, Andy Dye, has crafted 17 of the world's top 100 courses and hopes to make the Village Creek Course, which will be 500 to 600 acres, one of the nation's top 10 public courses.
"Andy Dye has developed several of the top 100 courses in the country, and he really feels like the new golf course could be one of the top 10 in the country due to the geology of Crowley's Ridge. He also has told us that he will work to conserve as much of the park as possible and make it more of a nature trail and golf course. Andy focuses on accuracy more than distance in a lot of his courses, so there are no plans to come in and just mow down 600 acres of trees," Ferguson said.
Ferguson also said that the developers hope to use popular golf outings in nearby states to draw golfers to the new facility.
"I'm not much of a golfer, but those folks that do golf know that in Alabama there is the Robert Trent Jones Golf Trail, and in Tennessee they have the Bear Trace, which is a collection of courses designed by Jack Nicklaus. We expect to get many of those same people that travel on those vacations to stop here and spend a day on another top course," Ferguson said.
Ferguson also addressed questions on what effect the new course would have on golf courses already in St. Francis and Cross counties. "I know that there is some concern of what will happen with the courses that we already have, but this may actually help them increase their income from visitors' green's fees. Many golfers that go to lodges like this will spend two or three days playing the course that's at the lodge, and then take a day or two and go out and play the other courses that are nearby. If that happens, then all of the courses in Cross and St. Francis County should see an increase in visitors," he said.
According to Ferguson, the decision to move the lodge to St. Francis County from Cross County came after the developers learned they could use St. Francis County's status as an Enterprise Zone to sell low-interest bonds to help with the cost of the project. The lodge is expected to be on the south end of Lake Austell, which is in St. Francis County. The golf course is expected to be near the existing tennis courts near Lake Dunn in Cross County, but Ferguson told Lion's Club members that the course may also see some adjustments due to the change in the location of the lodge.
By DAVID NICHOL
T-H Staff Writer
A lighted sign marking the entrance to the Forrest City Municipal Airport could be installed in the near future.
The Airport Commission met briefly Monday. No votes were taken, but the sign was one of the topics of discussion.
Board member Joe Williams said he had met with Forrest City Mayor Larry Bryant, who said a sign would be a good idea, as long as it wasn't too elaborate.
It is easy to miss the airport's entrance, especially at night.
Williams said there is a catalog from which the board might get the idea for some sign styles.
Board Chairman Bill Hays suggested that Williams and Homer Jacobs study the catalog and recommend two sign styles to the full board. He said the sign should be a nice one without being overly expensive.
"We've got a good airport, we've got a quality airport," said Hays. "It needs a quality sign."
On another matter, Hays told the board members that a non-directional beacon has been purchased, and should be installed within four weeks. "This is a piece of safety equipment that, I think, will be a big help to pilots," said Hays.
Jacobs gave a report on a paving project for airplane parking and an entrance to the taxiway. He said the job was pretty well finished.
Hays also informed the board that he had recently been informed that the Federal Aviation Administration has received reauthorization by both the House and Senate. Hays said that would eventually free up more money for the local airport.
It was stated at a recent meeting that the current funding for projects might not be enough to complete all the airport improvements planned.
There will be enough for the installation of such things as a runway end identifier light system and a precision approach path indicator will have enough funding. It was stated that there might not be enough funding to complete a seven-foot security fence.
Jacobs said some extra money from the FAA might be enough to finish the fence.
Hays said there might also be money for other projects.
"If we can continue to add to the security and safety of our airport, and the money is available, then we should do it," said Hays. "I want all of us to be thinking about projects we'd like to do."
By TAMARA JOHNSON
Managing Editor
A local nightclub was heavily damaged in an early-morning blaze that kept firemen from two departments busy for almost three hours today.
The fire was reported about 2:30 a.m. at the Player's Palace on County Road 206 (Turner Road) by an off-duty fireman who was traveling east on Interstate 40 when he saw smoke coming from the building's roof.
Forrest City Fire Department spokesman Jimmy Sandage said the cause of the blaze has not yet been determined, but firemen were planning to meet today with the club's owner, Jesse Baldwin, to review the fire and damage.
Sandage said Baldwin was not present during the fire, but had contacted the fire department earlier today in an effort to meet with firemen. "There are several different questions we're needing to ask him, but that's all part of the investigation," Sandage said. Although the fire is under investigation, reports at the FCFD show the preliminary investigation revealed no signs of foul play. According to Sandage, the fire is believed to have started in the office area.
Sandage said local firemen walked through the remains of the building after daybreak searching for the cause of the blaze.
A report at the FCFD today reported the entire building suffered smoke damage, and fire damaged about 70 percent of the structure. "There was more heat and smoke damage, but there was quite a bit of fire damage also," Sandage said.
The seven Forrest City firemen were assisted at the scene by seven members of the Palestine Fire Department.
Firemen placed preliminary losses at $50,000 on the building, excluding the contents.
A suspected thief who ran from police during an August court appearance was sentenced to the Arkansas Department of Corrections on Monday.
Issac Henderson, 32, of Forrest City, pled guilty to theft of property over $500 and was sentenced to seven years in the ADC during St. Francis County Circuit Court activity before Judge Harvey Yates.
Henderson was waiting to appear before the judge in St. Francis County District Court on Aug. 27, when he ran from the court building. At that time, he was charged with three counts of theft under $500 and criminal trespassing. He was captured a few minutes later when he was spotted by a state trooper near the Broadway and Washington intersection. Charges of third-degree escape and criminal impersonation were filed against him as a result of this incident.
In previous circuit court appearances, Henderson had received a five-year suspended imposition of sentence on a variety of charges stemming from aggravated robbery to possession of a controlled substance.
The Professor Pigskin Football Contest almost had its third double winner of the season last week when last week's winner, Edward Euwing, tied Michael Hill by missing just three of the selected games. Tom Bridges of Wynne missed just three of the selected games, but was eliminated from the contest when he failed to make a prediction in the tie-breaker game.
Going to the tiebreaker game -- Arkansas and LSU -- Hill gained the advantage by coming closer to the actual final score.
So Hill, of Forrest City, collects the $50 cash prize, which could come in handy with Christmas rapidly approaching.
One week remains in the 2003 Pigskin Contest and the final selections can be found inside today's Times-Herald.