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The Lodge


Note: The Ten Mile Lake Lodge is not a project of the Ten Mile Lake Association.  The Ten Mile Lake Association has neither approved nor disapproved of plans for the redevelopment of the site of the former Arthur's Restaurant.

The Ten Mile Lake Lodge: A New Paradigm

December 26, 2007, Updated February 6, March 20, April 25, May 28, 2008 and February 3, 2009

 This is a property that should “drip with quality and integrity.”

 – Jim Graves

A concept paper developed by Tom Cox and Jim Graves, winter/spring, 2007-2008 and winter, 2009. Your comments, criticisms, and/or suggestion are welcome; please send them to:

T.B.Cox LLC, General Manager

Ten Mile Enterprises LLC

5688 Fernhurst Drive NW

Hackensack, MN 56452

E-mail: tbcoxreston (at) aol.com

Tel. 218-675-6844

Cell: 703-955-2056

What’s happening?

A now year-old entity, Ten Mile Enterprises LLC (TME LLC), proposes to develop The Ten Mile Lake Lodge (TMLL) on the site of the former Arthur’s Restaurant on Highway 371 at Long’s Bay.

The purpose of TME LLC is to secure the property for the Ten Mile community and to develop the site in a way that will respect Ten Mile social, environmental and aesthetic values and provide an amenity on the lake that is greatly missed and highly desired by many Ten Mile property owners, area residents and visitors.

The Concept

TME LLC envisions an impeccably designed and appointed town home and restaurant complex on the site of the former Arthur’s Restaurant. With a quaint, intimate, personable, sophisticated feel the Lodge would incorporate:

§         An entry-level restaurant, open to the public, with a lobby/pub area (to serve as a coffee shop during the day) with fireplace and library/reading area, and a gracious dining room and open deck with seating for up to 131 persons, all with spectacular views of Long’s Bay.

§         Casual dining with a flair featuring a limited and changing menu with a commitment to fresh, high quality food and an emphasis on Minnesota-grown, organic and sustainable cuisine using the best of what each season has to offer.

§         A quality wine collection.

§         Six three-level twin town homes arranged in three sets of two, each town home with vaulted ceiling great room/dining room, gas fireplace, 2 baths, kitchenette and master and guest bedrooms.

§         Landscape architecture (contouring and plantings) to shield the Lodge from highway 371 and provide a feeling of intimacy and privacy.

§         A tastefully designed dock and waterfront with limited slips for temporary and/or summer-long mooring of lodging unit owner’s/renters’ boats and for Ten Mile restaurant traffic.

Lodging unit owners would belong to a “homeowners association” to which they would pay dues to cover management and administration expenses.

Lodging unit owners place their units in a rental pool, and thus enjoy an income from rental fees.

Management, Financing, Land Acquisition

Between December, 2007 and March 2008, eighteen Ten Mile lakeshore property owners and a Leech Lake resident committed $700,000 to the project and formed Ten Mile Enterprises LLC. The Minnesota Secretary of State issued a Certificate of Organization on February 8, 2008. TME LLC is member-managed. The group has asked Tom Cox to serve as its General Manager.

Members of Ten Mile Enterprises LLC

1.      Bruce and Jean Carlson

2.      Barrett and Cynthia Colombo

3.      Josephine Corr

4.      Bruce and Susan Edwards

5.      Jim Graves

6.      John L. Hartzell

7.      Donna C. Hartzell

8.      Bill and Kathy Jewell

9.      Shelly Knuths

10.    Jim Kohl

11.    Stan and Jeanie Kramer

12.    Randall L. and Patricia N. Olson

13.    Grant Oppegaard

14.    Patricia Ripken

15.    Dick and Marj Witham

16.    Matt Weresh and Curt Broek

17.    Richard and Diane Westmore

18.    The Williams Family (Mike and Katy Williams et al.)

19.    Richard and Marian Zejdlik

On March 25, 2008, the Cass County Planning Commission approved the reclassification of the former “Arthur’s” site (just under eight acres on the lake side of Highway 371) as Water Oriented Commercial (WOC -- a classification reflecting its actual use since the 1940s).

TME LLC closed on the property on Wednesday, March 26th, 2008.  The portion of the property on the East side (about 24 acres) retains its non-riparian Rural Residential classification.

In early April TME LLC engaged architectural services to prepare a massing study to show how the Ten Mile Lake Lodge could be positioned on the site in compliance with Cass County Land Use Ordinances governing WOC property. In mid-May an Image Study was developed to provide a “feel” for what the new Ten Mile Lake Lodge might look like. In July, 2008, TME LLC selected Sharratt Design Company of Excelsior, MN, as architects to begin design development.

Construction Financing

In advance of construction, town homes would sell in the range of $250K - $400K so as to partially generate capital needed for overall construction and related costs. Other financing will be a mix of capital investment, tax increment financing and commercial loans. Groundbreaking for the Lodge would not occur until all town home units were sold.

Marketing, Sales and Management

Marketing arrangements will be made through the realty community, a judicious advertising program and word-of-mouth promotion in the Ten Mile Community and beyond.

Project Appeal

1.   Highest and best use of the property (provides a viable business and prevents incursion by an RV dealership or some other developer whose goals are socially and environmentally incompatible with Ten Mile values).

2.   The portion of the property on the East side of Highway 371 remains undeveloped except for the drain fields presently in place there.

3.   Provides an amenity for the pleasure and convenience of Ten Mile property owners, their families and others in the area.

4.   Accessibility by both land and water.

5.   Overflow housing for relatives, friends and business associates.

6.   A destination for those who like to stay in touch with Ten Mile out of season but who do not have winterized cabins.

7.   An enhancement of Ten Mile environs and property values.

Expectations for the Future

Plans for the Ten Mile Lake Lodge are in flux, with a number of issues still to be resolved. Economic conditions are not conducive to the development at present. Nevertheless, in the hope and expectation of eventual improvement in our economy, TME LLC is actively pursuing its vision in consultation with Cass County and the Minnesota Department of Natural Resources. TME LLC anticipates in time to come the successful establishment of the Ten Mile Lake Lodge.

 

 

 

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Revised: July 30, 2015.

This site was created and is maintained by G. Cox.
Please send any feedback or content to association@tenmilelake.org.

Ten Mile Lake Association, Inc. P.O. Box 412, Hackensack, MN 56452