A Valley home builder is dropping plans to purchase and redevelop a golf course in Ahwatukee. The Pulte Group ran into stiff opposition from a group of homeowners fighting to save the links.
Pulte proposed to build about 250 homes at the Ahwatukee Lakes golf course, but announced Monday it was unable to come to final terms with the property owner and dropped its effort to purchase the land for a planned community.
“We’re very excited they decided to pull out,” said Ben Holt with Save the Lakes, a neighborhood group that’s campaigned to keep Ahwatukee Lakes open to golfers.
Holt said now that Pulte Group is gone, he hopes the golf course owner will lower his price.
"And get a golf course operator and some investors to come in and purchase the course, put some money into it and restore it and begin operating it again as a golf course. That’s what the CC and Rs require,” Holt said.
In order to build on the golf course, Pulte Group had to get more than half of the neighbors and business owners to agree to amend the CC and R rules that limit how the property can be used.
"CC and Rs are contracts so everyone who lives on the golf course paid a premium to live on it and the CC and Rs, I believe, benefited a much larger group of people who would have to agree,” said Grady Gammage, a Phoenix-area land use attorney.
Gammage said there are too many golf courses in the Valley. They’re expensive to maintain and, frankly, golf isn’t as popular as it used to be.
“So, the plight of golf courses is not looking favorable looking forward,” Gammage said.
Ben Holt with Save the Lakes said if any other developer tries to purchase the golf course for new homes, his group is ready for another battle.