Resort heading to Harris

Facility to include golf course, miniature golf, two pools, campsites, health club, amphitheater and horse trails.

HARRIS – The collapse of the housing market means that development isn't happening in Harris or elsewhere around the state.
But not everything has ground to a halt.
Bruce Fagan intends to transform 350 acres into a resort.
At an estimated cost of $35 million, the resort will include an 18-hole executive golf course, Olympic-size indoor swimming pool, outdoor pool, hundreds of seasonal campsites and overnight campsites, retirement homes for snowbirds, a miniature golf course, a deli, health club, ice cream shop, arcade, and outdoor amphitheater and conference center (with the ability to hold four conferences simultaneously). There will be 5.2 miles of roads that the resort will maintain, 3.2 miles of horse trails and 40 acres of stables.
The project will be built on the old Mold farm off County Road 9 on the east side of town.
Mayor Rick Smission announced the news during the city council meeting on Monday, July 14, 2008. He believes the development will be a boon for the city for several reasons.
One, it will generate $1.5 million in water and sewer access charges.
It will be a very attractive destination resort in the small town of Harris, said Smisson.
It will significantly increase the city's commercial tax base, which will lessen the impact on homes. The water and sewer use of the resort will be large, once again taking pressure off current users to pay for the new water and wastewater treatment plants.
And the presence of a large business is bound to attract other businesses.
Smission is confident the resort will succeed. He noted that people no longer want to drive all the way to Brainerd. "But they will drive to Harris," he said.
DIVIDED WE FAIL
Smisson acknowledged that the city is facing tough times. It incurred debt just as the economy took a turn for the worse. The collapse of the housing market led to many vacant homes, and the city is now looking after various abandoned properties. The city has not seen the number of housing starts that it anticipated.
Costs of materials have doubled. Natural gas has gone up significantly, and is over the amount the city had budgeted for the year, as has electricity.
Additionally, the city had to pay out wages in the maintenance department going back years, and still does not have the issue completely settled.
What's more, the city expected that the state legislature would send more local government aid this year. Instead, "We got nothing," said Smisson.
The economy is not expected to bounce back as quickly as economists had predicted earlier this year. Part of that is due to people fraudulently buying homes and then renting them out but not paying the mortgage bills.
It's normal to have some growing pains when you build new infrastructure, said Smisson. But its not normal to have these current economic situations.
To rise above, the city will need to work together, he believes.
"Divided we fail," Smisson pointed out to fellow council members.
"The power rests with this body to decide if we will solve our problems with real solutions.
I hope we will set aside our personal preferences and work together."
He expects a conditional use permit for the resort to come before the planning commission soon.