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Condominium Sales Underway for The Lodge at Northern Bay
Golf Resort and Marina Near Wis. Dells; Golf Course Opens in Spring
Condominium sales are underway for a $30 million lodge on the shores of Castle Rock Lake, at the ambitious $150 million Northern Bay Golf Resort and Marina, located a half hour north of Wisconsin Dells, in Arkdale, WI. The Lodge at Northern Bay will include 140 condo units, with most of them overlooking Castle Rock, Wisconsin’s fourth largest freshwater lake. The lodge, to open in December, 2006, will include a dining room and bar to seat 200 people, meeting space, a 20,000 square foot indoor waterpark, hot tubs, arcade, exercise room and a spa.
The hotel condominiums include fireplaces, balconies or patios, and flat screen televisions, with four floor plans available. They start at $360,000. The condominiums at the hotel, as well as other condominiums located along the golf course, in the woods and on the shoreline are marketed by the Liebe Hake Team at Keller Williams Real Estate.
The Lodge at Northern Bay, on the northeast shore of the lake in Adams County, is a joint venture between Northern Bay LLC, Waunakee, and RHS Companies, Inc., a real estate development company based in Madison, who have joined as 50 percent partners in the hotel project. Principals now at RHS have developed some of the nation’s largest and most successful hotels and waterpark resorts including Great Wolf Lodge.
The general contractor is PLANNING Design Build, Inc., Madison, the firm that has designed and constructed more indoor waterpark hotels than any other firm in the nation, including Kalahari Resorts at Wisconsin Dells and Sandusky, Ohio. In addition, Regency Hotel Management, headquartered in Sioux Falls, South Dakota, has been retained to manage the 320-acre resort. The firm has successfully managed national brands such as the Sheraton and other major hotels.
The 18-hole Northern Bay Golf Course, opening to the public next spring, is a major asset, according to Bill Ranguette, of Waunakee,Wi., a Northern Bay partner. It features nine signature holes replicated from courses such as Pinehurst, Augusta National, Oakland Hills and Pebble Beach. It is the only course like it in the Midwest and one of only a handful in the country. Replicated courses, by contract, must adhere to strict quality and landscaping controls, Ranguette said.
“Although weather conditions dictate the blend of grasses permitted, the undulations of greens must match the original course within one inch and tee boxes must include markers at the very same distances as the original holes for all sets of tees,” Ranguette said.
Cost for public play will be $75 for 18 holes, with cart, and reservations can be made a week ahead. Golf memberships are also available. Condo and hotel guests can make reservations up to a year in advance.
The condo/hotel will add amenities to the site that currently includes the golf course, outdoor swimming pool, kiddie pool and whirlpool, tennis courts, volleyball sand court and basketball courts. The pool clubhouse is also complete, along with the picnic area.
Ranguette said Northern Bay is attracting people looking for vacation condominiums where boating and water activities are important to them, as well as golf. Most purchasers live in the Madison, Milwaukee and northern Illinois area.
“They prefer to be near the action of Wisconsin Dells but not in the middle,” Ranguette said.
Nearly all of the 312 cedar and fieldstone vacation condominiums have been sold with more than 80 condominiums completed and the rest under construction. The 22 remaining condos range from $330,000 for a 1679 square-foot unit to $619,900 for a 2532 square foot vacation condo. Northern Bay also includes 47 home sites. All but two home sites have been sold.
Skipper Buds, the largest marina operator in Wisconsin, already has 52 slips completed, with a total of 269 ready by next summer. Northern Bay includes 2100 feet of lake frontage and 600 feet of sandy beach.
The project was previously a mixture of abandoned farmland, woods, an old campground and some dilapidated cabins along the Castle Rock Lake shoreline
The upscale development is a boon to Adams County. John Hay, executive director of the Adams County Industrial Development Commission said he estimates a tax base of $250 million when Northern Bay is complete, with an expected room tax of $1.7 million annually. In addition, when fully operational, the resort will employ 350 people.
To get to Northern Bay, follow I-90/94 north to HH (exit 79), north of Wisconsin Dells. Follow HH to the highway 82 intersection, turn right, cross the Wisconsin River bridge, onto Hwy Z for 14 miles and follow the signs, turn left on Dakota Avenue and follow the signs.
For condominium sales and golf reservations, call toll-free, (866) 784-2291. For condominium rental information, contact Sunset Property Management at (800) 350-0049. Online: www.NorthernBayResort.com
