A group of local builders pitched an idea during the Chesterton Town Council meeting Monday that envisioned reopening the Brassie Golf Club and building 155 housing units around it.
But the proposal was swiftly shut down by the property’s owners, PMM Chesterton, who don’t want to sell their land. Councilwoman Erin Collins, D-2nd, read a letter from Scott T. Crook, the chief executive officer for PMM Chesterton.
“I am not looking to cause a scene here but do feel it my responsibility to notify the town. I do understand they have a right to publicly discuss our property; however, to present their ‘future vision’ stands no ground and quite bluntly has no future,” Crook’s letter says.
The Brassie Golf Club, a public course, closed in April 2021. PMM Chesterton, which does business as Diamond Peak Homes, presented a concept plan for 600 units on 200 acres to the Advisory Plan Commission in May. The plan was met with skepticism by commission members, who said it was too many houses packed on the land.
PMM Chesterton has yet to present a revised proposal. But the owners have initiated a petition to annex 71 acres of the property into Chesterton from Liberty Township.
Around 60 people attended Monday’s Town Council meeting, many of them Brassie neighbors interested in the property’s future development. The meeting was held at the Westchester Library’s Baugher Center, which is serving as the council’s temporary home during the renovation of the Town Hall.
Mark Markovich of Mark 1 Construction was the designated spokesman for the group that calls itself “a Band of Builders.”
Markovich noted that during an Advisory Plan Commission meeting, Michael Herbers from PMM Chesterton once stated in passing that “everything is for sale.”
“So, we believed that an opportunity for us to purchase this green space/land existed. Enough for us to pay for a plan to be drawn by an engineering group and determine the feasibility of this plan,” Markovich said.
However, the builders never got a meeting with the PMM group to discuss purchasing the property and Markovich admits: “That ship has sailed for us.”
The main feature of their plan would be reopening the golf club and retaining roughly 160 acres of green space.
“All data and surveys show that the game of golf is on the upswing, especially with young adults and women. We know that the Brassie GC was always profitable,” Markovich said.
Markovich noted that there isn’t a public golf course within 10 miles of the Brassie Property.
“We believe that a smaller development with green space/recreational space to be the highest and best use of this particular parcel of land,” Markovich said.
But, as Crook of PMM Chesterton noted in his letter, the builders group has “no legal authority or approval in any capacity, related to this property.”
“We hope to continue to work with the town to find a real vision that will be great for the community of Chesterton,” Crook said.
In other business, the Chesterton Branding Leadership Corporation unveiled its proposal to create an Arts and Cultural District for the Downtown.
Hannah Hammond-Hagman, executive director of the Chesterton Art Center and a branding corporation member, said the purpose of the district is “to champion Chesterton’s already thriving arts and culture scene and historic charm.”
There are 12 designated arts and cultural districts in communities around the state. The Indiana Arts Commission awarded Chesterton a $10,000 grant toward the creation of the district.
During the past six months, the branding corporation solicited input from the community.
Rebecca Riley-Vargas, owner of Three Moons Fiberworks, who led the corporation’s effort, said that the proposed district would be bound by Grant Avenue and Indiana Avenue on the north and south, Calumet Road and South Fifth Street to the east and west. There are 50 cultural assets identified within the district.
Hammond-Hagman said that they would use the grant money to create a distinctive sign or sculpture.
The council authorized the town attorney to draw up an ordinance for the district.
Councilwoman Jennifer Fisher, R-5th, said that the branding corporation took on a “huge undertaking” and did an extraordinary job.
Councilman James Ton, R-1st, said he thinks the proposal is “visionary”.
“It has a great potential to move the town forward in so many ways,” Ton said.
Councilwoman Collins closed out the meeting by sharing that her stepson, Darion Collins, 25, had died from a drug overdose. The death occurred on Aug. 23 in Cocoa, Florida, where Darion Collins had moved 18 months ago.
“He had a depth of spirit that often went unseen and I loved him more than he would ever know,” Collins said.
Collins said that her main reason for sharing is as a community leader, she wants to see Chesterton do more to help people with addiction issues. She said, “It’s not a moral failing, but a public health crisis.”
“Too often we punish addiction instead of treating it. And too often we fail to provide real pathways of recovery and support for families. And, too often, we lose the dreamers, like my son,” Collins said.
Jim Woods is a freelance reporter for the Post-Tribune.