Weeds, brush and trash now overrun a once beautiful golf course in the Oso Bay neighborhood on Pharaoh Drive and Ennis Joslin. Plans revealed to local residents at a weekend meeting could be bringing the long neglected property back to life.
Developer Jeff Blackard of McKinney, Tex., presented plans for the course, which closed four years ago. He proposes taking part of the 18-hole course and building a new club house, tennis courts and an upscale European-style village of shops and condos around a man-made lake. The golf course would be reduced to nine holes to make room for the new development.
To make his dream a reality, Blackard will need 75 percent of the neighborhood’s residents to approve a change in deed restrictions to the land. Currently, the entire 120 acres is deeded for use as a golf course only.
The course closed in 2010 because of waning membership. Designed by Ralph M. Plummer, ASGCA, it opened in 1964. Today is is an eyesore.
Blackard’s proposal is not the first to bring the course back to life. Only a year after the course closed, Houston developer Jim Charnquist presented a similar proposal to Blackard’s. That plan included a hike and bike trail and swimming pool.
Reaction from residents at the weekend meeting was mostly positive. Some residents oppose the plan because of traffic concerns along Ennis Joslin, where the entrance to the residential is currently planned. For neighborhood reactions and to follow the development, check out the Pharaoh Valley Neighborhood Association Facebook page.
VIDEO ABOVE: A 3-D visual of proposed development to the Pharaoh Valley Golf Course presented to area residents by developer Jeff Blackard of McKinney, Tex., on Saturday, Feb. 1.
