The sale’s finalization ends two years of legal battles over deed restrictions, wherein residents sought to keep the property a golf course to maintain homeowners’ property values. A joint purchase of the property will restrict redevelopment opportunities to those agreed upon by 75 percent of nearby homeowners.
After a two-year battle over deed restrictions, the sale of the Atascocita Golf Course property in Humble, Texas has officially closed, the Atascocita Observer reported.
Concerned residents started the Sensible Solution committee earlier this year with the purpose of maintaining the property as a golf course and keeping it from being developed into anything that would decrease homeowners’ property values, the Atascocita Observer reported.
Local resident Kevin Kilgore, Sr., expressed interest in the purchasing the property and opening it as an event facility.
“When we heard Kilgore was looking to purchase the main clubhouse and remodel it to be a hospitality venue, the homeowners decided to approach him to see if he might be interested in purchasing the golf course as well with funding help from the residents,” Bob Garlington, one of the committee members, said.
The group developed a plan to purchase the 27 holes on the golf course and the clubhouse from Pinehurst Trail Holdings and restrict it to golf course use only. They purchased the land for $750,000 and proceeded with the deal, the Atascocita Observer reported.
The committee encouraged resident to attend a meeting to discuss plans.
“We asked the residents to bring their checkbooks; we wanted to make this happen,” Garlington said. “We ended up raising $375,000 from the residents, which made this deal final. The current status of the golf course has had a negative impact on our home values so this will bring value back to our properties. If we allow for the heart of the Atascocita community to deteriorate, that affects everyone.”
The purchase of the property was funded half by Kilgore and half by the residents, homeowners and businesses in the Pinehurst and surrounding communities. The land was permanently restricted to golf course use only, which was the goal of the litigation filed two years ago by several of the residents against Pinehurst Trail Holdings, the Atascocita Observer reported.
The sale of the property was finalized August 16 and the land restrictions can only be modified with the agreement of 75 percent of the homeowners adjacent to the former golf course property.
“This was an important decision for me. We have been good stewards of the Atascocita and surrounding communities as owners of Kids R Kids so the community and residents are very important to us. It was the right things to do,” Kilgore said about the purchase.
The Atascocita Country Club was sold May 15, 2009 by owner ClubCorp to Pinehurst Trail Holdings LLC, which consists of a group of local investors. Residents complained that for the most part, the golf course has become overgrown and some of the holes are still damaged from when heavy-duty trucks removed trees cut down after the drought, the Atascocita Observer reported.
C&RB covered the legal battle in June: “Pinehurst Trail Holdings Waits in Legal Limbo Over Atascocita CC.”
Kilgore has been approached by two golf groups who are interested in investing in the course in the future and he is continuing to work on the financing for the clubhouse. The purchase of the property secures the water rights for the course and the clubhouse so the land cannot be developed as anything else and they can continue to water the property, the Atascocita Observer reported.
“If the property does not become a golf course again, we might be able to turn the land into park space where the residents can enjoy the trails and the green space. For now, the area will be called the Atascocita Golf Preserve. We are very excited about what will happen next and the efforts of the homeowners were amazing,” Kilgore said.
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