![3D""=20](3D"http://www.fpinfomart.ca/img/fpinfomart_logo_136x36.gif"){kind=logo}
![3D""=20](3D"http://www.fpinfomart.ca/img/clear.gif")
![](3D"http://www.fpinfomart.ca/img/clear.gif"=20){kind=spacer}
Times = Colonist=20 (Victoria)
Saturday, July 28, 2007
Page: C6 / FRONT
Section: = Business
Byline: Andrew A. Duffy
Column: Business People:
Source: Times Colonist
It was a dream Herb Plasterer never got to =
realize.=20
But for the family left behind when he died in 1985, Herb's dream is =
very=20
quickly becoming a reality that is reshaping a big chunk of View Royal =
and=20
Saanich.=20
Plasterer, best known for establishing Fort Victoria RV Park, had =
always=20
envisioned turning a 80-hectare parcel of land he had the foresight to =
snap up=20
in 1961 into a public golf course.=20
His family has taken the first big step in making that happen with =
the=20
opening of the Highland Pacific Driving Range and Cafe.=20
The facility, perched at the top of Creed Road in Saanich, features a =
small=20
clubhouse, cafe and meeting rooms with a 44-stall, two-level driving =
range that=20
hits out into what looks more like a series of compressed and impressive =
golf=20
holes, complete with water hazards, than the typical range.=20
"We hear that a lot ... people feel like they're facing a course, not =
a=20
range," said Lyle Acton, general manager of the facility and one of =
eight=20
Plasterer family members you can find working at the course on any given =
day.=20
Acton, who is married to Herb Plasterer's daughter, Angela, said the =
project=20
is very much a a family affair, as it's funded by the family trust, and =
is being=20
built and will be run by family members.=20
"It is a real legacy, and that would have been important to Herb," =
said=20
Acton. "Family meant everything to him."=20
And thank goodness it's a sizable family -- Herb had five children =
and there=20
are 15 grandkids -- because when it's finished Highland Pacific will =
also=20
feature an 18-hole golf course and a 100-unit resort that will need =
staffing and=20
maintaining.=20
The course, which is currently under construction, will be finished =
in two=20
phases. The back nine will be completed next summer and the front nine =
is slated=20
for completion late in 2009. The resort will start when the course is =
finished.=20
Acton said there's no point building a golf resort without a golf =
course.=20
And while most developers would be scrambling to build a residential=20
component into the mix to maximize return, the Highland Pacific =
development is=20
progressing at its own pace and intent on sticking with its plan for a =
course=20
and resort.=20
"We're not driven by real estate," he said, noting because it's =
funded solely=20
by the family their timeline is fluid and flexible rather than being =
driven by=20
investors demanding a return. "It's all been made possible because the =
land has=20
been owned free and clear since 1961."=20
The land lay fallow for the most part until 1999 when the family =
decided to=20
do something with it. Until then, it had been used to hold some =
livestock and=20
for grazing sheep, although when the Trans- Canada Highway was being =
twinned,=20
the family grabbed some of the blasted rock to fill in some of the =
valleys on=20
what would one day be the golf course.=20
As the parcel was surrounded by two parks, Thetis Lake and =
Francis/King, and=20
a growing subdivision, there was a feeling that pressure could come =
requiring=20
them to do something with the land.=20
The family could probably have cashed in for millions by selling =
portions of=20
the land, as it was zoned to accommodate as many as 35 two-hectare hobby =
farms.=20
But Acton said they wanted to maintain control of the property, and =
this was=20
their chance to create Herb's golf course. It seems to have been much =
more about=20
honouring a patriarch's vision as it was about making money. "It was not =
for us=20
to fritter away his dream," he said.=20
These days the cost of buying the land alone would eclipse the =
estimated cost=20
of building the project. Acton said building the course itself will cost =
in the=20
neighbourhood of $3.5 million and said an estimate of $20-million total =
project=20
cost is probably in the right ballpark.=20
Herb still plays a big role in its development as the name Highland =
Pacific=20
was taken as it shared his initials and the rough, fused-letter logo of =
the=20
project was the mark he used when sculpting.=20
In keeping with the family theme, Acton said when the course is done =
they=20
hope to cater to the customer to allow busy families the chance to get =
out and=20
sneak in nine holes when they can.=20
"There was a perfect moment here (the other day) with a young family =
-- the=20
father and young son went out to the driving range and the mother sat in =
the=20
cafe with a Starbucks," said Acton. "Herb would have liked that." =
Illustration:
=95 Colour Photo: Debra =
Brash, Times=20
Colonist / Lyle Acton, general manager of Highland Pacific, said =
construction of=20
the 18-hole course will be completed in two phases, with the first nine =
holes=20
ready for next summer and the other nine done in 2009. The two-level =
driving=20
range and cafe are open for customers now.
Idnumber: 200707280060
Edition: Final =
Story=20
Type: Business; Column
Length: 764 words
Illustration Type: =
Colour Photo=20