Plans call for a $70-million to $90-million 270-room lodge, 300 vacation homes and condominiums and an 18-hole golf course here in Pierce County.
Members of the Tahoma Audubon Society, who filed the lawsuit against the project, have said they are happy the judge has required the project be scaled back somewhat. Developers, on the other hand, have said they might challenge the conference center portion of the ruling but overall are pleased with the judge's decision.
Casey also decided the 440-acre project's environmental impact study was accurate and thorough, it meets the criteria as a "master plan resort" under the state's Growth Management Act, which required the resort to be "self-contained" and "fully integrated."
The project has been in the works since the early '90s. Developers applied and received a conditional use permit from Pierce County in 1996. Officials also issued an environmental impact study of the project that same year.
The Audubon opposed the permit. And after a Pierce County examiner upheld the permit and the findings from the environmental study last year, the environmental group appealed that ruling, which was how the issue wound up in Superior Court.
The resort developers are Elbe business owners Gayle and Cora Adams. The pair is financed by by Portland businessman Selwyn Bingham.
Want to continue reading?
Become a Free ALM Digital Reader.
Once you are an ALM Digital Member, you’ll receive:
- Breaking commercial real estate news and analysis, on-site and via our newsletters and custom alerts
- Educational webcasts, white papers, and ebooks from industry thought leaders
- Critical coverage of the property casualty insurance and financial advisory markets on our other ALM sites, PropertyCasualty360 and ThinkAdvisor
Already have an account? Sign In Now
*May exclude premium content© 2024 ALM Global, LLC, All Rights Reserved. Request academic re-use from www.copyright.com. All other uses, submit a request to [email protected]. For more information visit Asset & Logo Licensing.
