Mountain Valley Golf Course has been purchased by a New York City-based developer of warehouses, according to documents filed in the Schuylkill County Recorder of Deeds office.
PNK P8 LLC, a Pennsylvania Limited Liability Corporation, purchased the Ryan Twp. property for $15 million on March 16, according to the deed.
In all, the sale involved 12 parcels owned by Mountain Valley Corporation and Yudacot Limited Partnership. The deed of sale was signed by Steve Cotler, president of both property owners, and recorded in the courthouse on March 27.
Mountain Valley, whose corporate headquarters is in St. Clair, announced the October closing of the golf course on March 25.
In a news release, the corporation said the complex was being purchased “for future commercial and industrial business use.”
PNK Group is a developer of multifunctional industrial buildings with logistics centers in Connecticut, Pennsylvania, Georgia and Texas, according to its website.
One of its available properties is PNK Mountain Valley, a 1.2-million-square-foot warehouse under construction on Logistics Drive in Ryan Twp., a short distance from Mountain Valley Golf Course.
The documents of sale do not indicate to what use the new owner intends to put on the 108-acre golf course and surrounding properties.
The sale generated $300,000 in realty transfer taxes – 2% of $15 million
The state will receive $150,000 and Mahanoy Area School District and Ryan Township each get $75,000.
In February, Ryan Twp. supervisors approved rezoning the golf course from residential to industrial. The change was requested by Mountain Valley and the Yudacot Limited Partnership.
At the same time, the supervisors adopted new ordinances regulating warehouses, data centers and solar farms. Among other things, they require water feasible studies and conditional use hearings to give the public the opportunity to be heard on the proposals.
In its news release, the owners of Mountain Valley said the decision was a difficult one that was not made lightly.
“Mountain Valley has been an incredibly meaningful part of the community for many years, and we are incredibly proud of the memories, events and relationships built there over time,” the statement said.
The properties owned by Yudacot Limited Partnership were acquired from Steve Cotler and Allan Yudacufski on Aug. 19, 2005. Those owned by Mountain Valley Corporation were acquired from Cotler and Yudacufski on May 26, 2004, documents of the sale indicate.
Located at 1021 Brockton Mountain Drive, Mountain Valley has two 18-hole championship golf courses and restaurant and banquet facilities for weddings, special events and corporate functions. It employs around 70 workers.
The company’s news release said the facility will close in the second week of October, after the completion of the 2026 golf season.
The announcement of its closing was greeted the surprise and sorrow by golfers and customers and corporate entities who use its banquet facilities.
Robert S. Carl Jr., Schuylkill Chamber of Commerce president and CEO, said it will be difficult to find a venue that can handle affairs that draw 250 to 300 persons in Mountain Valley’s absence.
While lamenting its loss, Carl said he understood the realities of business in an era of exploding property values along the Interstate 81 corridor. Land, he said, is often worth more than the business on it.
A petition on change.org, calls for Ryan Twp. officials to oppose industrial and large scale development of the golf course property, preserve its open space and look for alternative low-impact uses.
Brendan Welsh-Lowe, who organized the petition, worked at Mountain Valley several years ago.
“The potential for industrial or large-scale commercial development of this property,” he said, “is deeply concerning.”
Plans for development of the property have not yet been submitted to the township.