A small city in Kansas is on the verge of doubling the number of courses local and area golfers have to play.
The Hutchinson News has confirmed plans are about to become public for a group of investors who bought the former Cottonwood Hills course, five miles east of Hutchinson, to redevelop the 619 acres into two 18-hole courses, along with a 9-hole, 3-par course. Hutchinson has approximately 40,000 residents and sits about an hour northwest of Wichita.
Salt Lick Golf and Hunting Resort will go before the Reno County Planning Commission on Jan. 15 to request rezoning and a conditional use permit that will allow the redevelopment to begin this spring with a potential opening date in 2028.
A public hearing at the county public works building in South Hutchinson will consider rezoning a small portion of the acreage from residential to agriculture, along with a conditional use permit to allow the three golf courses, along with a clubhouse and 36 cabins for overnight stays by golfers.
The cabins would house 200 people and be similar to facilities provided at nearby Prairie Dunes Country Club. That’s where an increasing number of golf enthusiasts fly in or drive to Hutchinson for one of the nation’s top-rated golfing experiences.
Who are the investors behind 2641 Wanamaker?
County Planner Mark Vonachen says the concept calls for a destination golf development by a group of investors from Topeka, Kansas City and Lawrence using the corporate name of 2641 Wanamaker, a building owned by Klausman in Topeka. The course is being designed by C.E. Golf Design in Overland Park.
2641 Wanamaker is one of the LLCs of Topeka developer Jim Klausman, who is listed as the resident agent on the Kansas Secretary of State’s Office website, with the principal office listed as 3024 SW Wanamaker Road, Suite 300.
Klausman has had a number of developments in Topeka, including Wheatfield Village, which includes high-end apartments, a luxury hotel, B&B Theatres Topeka Wheatfield 9 and three restaurants.
Klausman also owns a number of properties in downtown Topeka and along and off S.W. Wanamaker Road. Currently, Klausman is trying to negotiate with the city of Topeka over unpaid taxes and special assessments at the Lauren’s Bay development. Shawnee County is suing Klausman for the unpaid taxes of 86 properties owned by Klausman LLCs.
How much will be invested in the Hutchinson golf courses?
So far, developers haven’t publicly unveiled their anticipated spending, but Vonachen says it is certain to be a multimillion-dollar investment.
Also unclear is whether Salt Lick will be available for members only or open to the public, something expected to be known at next week’s public hearing.
Cottonwood Hills was closed because of financial problems several years ago with the course abandoned. It fell into decay until the northeast Kansas group bought the land last year and hired crews to completely dismantle the original course designed by professional golfer Nick Faldo.
Originally, developers planned to sell course adjacent houses, but none were ever built after a variety of water, sewer and construction problems.
The new owners, Vonachen said, are only interested in the trio of golf courses along with supporting cabins, clubhouse and food service.
Along with Prairie Dunes, Hutchinson has a city-owned course in Carey Park and a course at Highlands, a recently formed small city northwest of Hutchinson, which also has struggled at attracting golfers other than residents living around the course.
Once ready for play, Salt Lick will double the number of local courses, along with providing deer and other hunting during winter months when most golfers idle their clubs until spring.
(This story was updated because an earlier version included an inaccuracy.)