Point Roberts is at a bit of a crossroads. Does it remain a picturesque secluded hideaway by the sea or does it become a tourism hot spot known around the world?
A recent influx of Chinese investment would suggest the latter.
During the past five years millions of dollars have been poured into several projects, including the marina, housing developments and golf course, in the hopes of turning the American peninsula of 1,300 permanent residents into a vibrant tourism destination.
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Point Roberts Marina
Beijing businessman Gao Zhu and Chinese billionaire Chen Yihong bought the Point Roberts Marina in 2015 for $27 million. Since then they have spent $4 million on upgrades, putting in a new dock, improving much of the fire suppression and infrastructure, and continuing plans to upgrade the slips and moorage, among other things.
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“When Gao comes over here to meet up with me I will see him get out of his car and the first thing he does is take a deep breath of fresh air,” says Wayne Knowles, a realtor and developer who has lived in Point Roberts for 25 years who has his hands in many of the investment projects. “He loves Point Roberts because it is secluded, it is in the United States and it is close to Richmond. They see this as just a great opportunity.”
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Golf course re-born
Owner Kenji Nose had been looking to sell the Point Roberts Golf and Country Club for several years. He had a few offers, but nothing came of them so he eventually shut the course down in January of 2017. It sat idle for months, falling into disrepair, when along came another Chinese investor with a vision to re-build, re-brand and ultimately re-open the course.
Coco Luo, who lives in Richmond, owns two golf courses in China. She bought the Point Roberts course for just over $4.4 million in July of last year.
An avid golfer, business leader and philanthropist, Luo played the course several times a few years ago. It was then that she fell in love with not only the course, but the community as well.
Through an interpreter, Luo tells the Optimist that “she believes this is a great course and that she has a vision that the course can be a unique destination for golfers from not only the Lower Mainland, but from around the world. She knows business, she knows golf and she is confident she can turn this around.”
Ladner’s Wayne Carleton, the original course architect, has been hired by Luo as the director of operations to oversee the re-construction.
Since Luo bought the course, now re-named the Bald Eagle Golf Club, Carleton says work has been steady.
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“We have been cutting the grass down on the fairways, re-working all the greens, replacing and renovating all the bunkers, fixing cart paths, renovating the clubhouse and landscaping throughout the parking lot area,” he says. “We have a great team and lots of local contractors. We still have a lot of work to do, but we are starting to see the fruits of all of our labour.”
Carleton is pleased to be working with Luo and to be a part of the course’s resurrection.
“It’s a huge component to the community. We will probably be one of the largest employers on the Point,” he says. “I think everyone was very disappointed when the course closed. Now that we have committed owners who want to make it what it once was, people are excited about that.”
Future plans include a larger clubhouse with space for more dining, banquets and potentially some rooms for overnight guests.
There is also a real estate component with 34 building lots expected to be on the market towards the end of this year or early in 2019.
Bald Eagle Golf Club is scheduled to open on May 20.
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Seabright
A major housing development is finally on the horizon.
Zhu bought a stake in Seabright Farm, a 60-acre site on a beautiful bluff overlooking the Gulf of Georgia, in 2012.
It has taken several years to get permits in place, but following final subdivision approval in September of 2016, the project is now well on its way.
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Frank Li is president of Mengfa International Resources Inc., which has a controlling interest in Seabright and many of the other investment projects currently underway in the community.
He says almost half of the 58 homes of the development have been sold, seven houses have been built and all the servicing and roads are in place.
“It’s been a long process,” Li admits. “We just don’t want this to be a place where people come over for gas, buy a few groceries or pick up a parcel. We want them to stay. We want to change the perception.”
And to change that perception, Li says it is critical all of the investors work together.
“Naturally we want to do things together. It is not just about golf or sailing at the marina, we want to create and organize events and activities jointly, which makes it better to promote tourism opportunities for the area.
“Many have been interested about the golf course and buying the course for several years, but they haven’t found the right fit. Coco and her team are the right fit. Three years ago when we first came to Point Roberts we just focused on our own business. Now we see what the opportunities can be if we work together.”
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Blackfish Resort
But it’s not all about Chinese investment.
American developer Steve O’Neill has been trying to build the Blackfish Resort in an old cannery building on Marine Drive for more than a decade.
Joel Lantz, president of the Point Roberts Registered Voters’ Association, has worked closely with O’Neill since the project was conceived.
Lantz says all of the permits have finally been approved and more financing is being sought.
He says the plan is to build 22 to 26 rooms with an option to expand, two restaurants and a spa to make it a true destination resort.
“If he can pull this off, it’s going to be quite a place,” says Lantz. “He is trying to make a place where it could truly be a destination spot. Everything would be there and you wouldn’t have to leave the property if you didn’t want to.”
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Community reaction
Any change comes its fair share of positives and negatives. Some in Point Roberts enjoy the peace and quiet and would prefer it to stay that way, while others welcome the investment and economic benefits these projects would bring to the area.
Armene Belless has lived in Point Roberts most of the last 25 years. She is not a fan of condo developments and questions whether the housing plans near the golf course will eventually take off.
“I understand why many people in the community want to see development. They want to have jobs and more people buying homes should mean more jobs,” Belless says. “Businesses that only have customers three to four months out of the year find it difficult, if not impossible, to survive, but having more summer homes won’t be all that helpful for our economy.”
However, she would love to see the Blackfish Resort vision finally come into focus.
“We don’t even have a B&B any more so his small hotel/motel with a restaurant and facilities for weddings and other conferences would actually bring some year-round jobs,” she says. “And goodness knows we need tourist housing. Hotel/motels right on the water like Steve’s offer storm watching in the winter while sitting by a fireplace... and bring in some business year round.”
Mark Robbins, president of the Point Roberts Taxpayers’ Association, feels the development projects in the works are generally viewed favourably in the community.
“It’s not an issue [whether they are Chinese investors or other investors], it’s not discussed,” says Robbins. “People are delighted – even non golfers like me – that there will be a restaurant open again at the golf course.”
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Tracy Evans, the owner of Breakwaters, formerly the Compass Rose, says she welcomes the new investment.
“I think it’s a healthy addition to the community. It has helped us re-start and re-boot,” says Evans. “When you look at the investment down at Seabright, here at the marina, at the golf course, things were sitting stagnant, especially the golf course, but the investors have come in and it’s bringing some life. It’s all positive. We are certainly seeing a lot more Chinese customers coming in as well. It’s a good, healthy boost to the economy.”
And a healthy boost to the economy is what it’s all about, says Knowles.
“I understand some want that peace and quiet and reject change, but these are not projects that will destroy what we have. They will enhance what we have.”
