The Bridgewood Golf Course Master Plan project is an outstanding example of the full range of services that Martenson & Eisele, Inc. provides to its clients.

 

The planning process for the 100-acre project began with an analysis of site development issues, including access, soil characteristics, environmental features, site drainage, utilities, and zoning. The information from this phase was used in the project’s next phase in which recommendations were made on the development options for the property. The focus of the planning process moved away from the physical characteristics of the site to the market characteristics of the local economy for industrial, office, and residential options, and the availability of, and need for, infrastructure improvements. The information from these two phases was used in preparing a development plan that involved renovating an old 18-hole golf course into a 9-hole golf course surrounding mixed use residential, hotel, restaurant, and office. 

 

The main access to the site is from a frontage road of a six-lane U.S. highway. In addition to the highway, surrounding land uses include single-family residential, a foundry, and railroad tracks. Most significantly, a navigable waterway flows through the site, and large areas are in the floodway and flood fringe. Multiple environmental permits were required to allow development. Municipal rezoning and conditional use permits were also secured.

 

The main aspects of the master plan for the site was the level to which the golf course should and could be renovated, including whether it should have nine or eighteen holes; and determining which of the client’s ideas for the mixed use development were feasible on the site. As decisions were made, the emphasis shifted to developing the layout that would best address the particular aspects of the golf course while maximizing the return on investment through the mixed use components of residential and commercial.

 

We continued to work with the developer on the construction of the site, including surveying and engineering work.