Germantown Country Club moving forward
Ground could be broken this summer on a project that would turn the Germantown Country Club into a development of single-family homes.
Farmington Kimbrough Development Group (FKDG) hopes to present site plans for the project in March to the Germantown Planning Commission and Design Review Commission.
In September the Germantown Country Club went under contract with FKDG, which plans to build single-family homes on the 180-acre site between Wolf River and Farmington boulevards. The group hopes to turn in the site plan application by February and present the plans in March.
“Our plans and our hopes are that we will absolutely close the purchase this year,” said Spence Ray, a FKDG partner and Mcneill Commercial Real Estate vice president. “We would love to break ground sometime at the end of the summer, July or August, if we are to get the support and approval.”
In addition to Ray, FKDG partners include Mcneill Commercial Real Estate President Phillip Mcneill Sr., Union City-based investor Bill Latimer and Layne Capital Management President Mark Layne. The group was created specifically for this development.
The site plans include 381 singlefamily homes ranging from 2,500 to 6,500 square feet, a pool, a pickleball court, a central community lodge and a biking-pedestrian trail that ties into the Germantown Wolf River Greenway.
The group does not plan on rezoning the site or keeping existing country club components in the development except for some bridges.
Ray said the development will also include common open space, which would be maintained by a park area association. He said although some Germantown residents enjoy a big yard, there are others who cannot keep up with the preservation, so the project will include houses for those looking to still live in Germantown without the hassle of maintaining the land around it.
“It’s kind of a blend of urban planning but in a residential setting,” Ray said.
Ray said FKDG looked over a list of concerns from neighboring residents and tailored the project to meet the needs of future residents and the site’s neighbors. One of the top concerns on the list was adding a buffer of land between homes and the new subdivision.
“Everywhere the country club property touches and the adjoining neighbor, we gave it a 100-foot buffer,” Ray said. “That buffer is not just someone’s backyard, it’s a true 100-foot buffer where there’s nothing going on it.”
The development will have seven phases, with each including about 55 homes built along with the amenities. Ray said the project construction is expected to last five to seven years.
“It’s a large development, but it’s a win-win for everyone,” Ray said.
FKDG kept an eye on the property since the country club closed in February 2019. The closure was announced in January 2019 in a letter from ownership to members, citing financial issues.
The Anderson family owned the club for years, then it was transferred into Mary Anderson’s trust before her death in 2018. The city bid on the club in April 2019, intending to turn the property into a park, but city officials said its $2.49 million bid was rejected.
Arizona-based Millennium Companies said it entered into an agreement to buy the property in July 2019, but in March 2020 it announced it was discontinuing discussions to buy the club.
Millennium Companies had plans to turn the site into a subdivision with single-family homes, condos, a nine-hole golf course and a park. It opted out after having trouble compromising with neighbors.