IMPORTANT UPDATE
No buyer in sight, deterioration continues
With no buyer in sight, little seems to be done to restore or market the property to someone who will restore it. But now is an important time for those concerned to help make certain it will remain a golf course. See update below.
Thanks for your help to bring this beautiful golf course bac
July 27, mowing has begun
Bringing the course and community together!
NEARLY 400 ATTEND JUNE 6 RALLY
We are grateful that finally the long delayed mowing of Eaglemont has begun. But, why so long? City fines were to start next week. Is paying fines the only thing that will motivate Romano to do the right thing? The contractor says they will not be picking up the dead grass. The fire danger only increases.
Perhaps actual fines for violating the city codes will prompt Romano to do what's needed.
NEARLY 400 ATTEND JUNE 6 RALLY
Bringing the course and community together!
NEARLY 400 ATTEND JUNE 6 RALLY
Romano Capital, the lender and now owner's COO, Eric Christensen addressed the crowd eager to hear good news about a potential sale to the investor group. Stephen "Bulldog" Frostick representing the buyers also spoke. Will a deal be made soon? The community has real concern and frustration over Romano's insistence on "making investor's wh
Romano Capital, the lender and now owner's COO, Eric Christensen addressed the crowd eager to hear good news about a potential sale to the investor group. Stephen "Bulldog" Frostick representing the buyers also spoke. Will a deal be made soon? The community has real concern and frustration over Romano's insistence on "making investor's whole" despite the many mistakes they made that severely harmed the property.
Bringing the course and community together!
Bringing the course and community together!
Bringing the course and community together!
To date, about 150 of your neighbors have contributed to the legal fund to restore Eaglemont. The more there are the more the commitment is demonstrated and the better able we are to make certain of success in court and all that is needed to stop this destruction. We need your help to cover the legal costs and send a clear and unmistakab
To date, about 150 of your neighbors have contributed to the legal fund to restore Eaglemont. The more there are the more the commitment is demonstrated and the better able we are to make certain of success in court and all that is needed to stop this destruction. We need your help to cover the legal costs and send a clear and unmistakable message: we will get this course back in operation! Go to our FAQ for more detailed info about what is happening and why.
Update on Effort to Restore Eaglemont Golf Course
March 13, 2025
Dear Eaglemont Supporters:
Eaglemont stopped operating as a golf course April 2020, so we are now almost five years without our course and clubhouse. Many of us moved here to live in a beautiful setting on or near one of the most spectacular courses in the region that featured a beautiful clubhouse. What has happened is a tragedy, and we are very sorry to say that based on the best information we have, we are no closer to having this property restored than at any time in those five years.
Our hopes for restoration were based on information from Stephen “Bulldog” Frostick, who represented the White-Leasure company from Boise in attempting to purchase the course in early 2022. That’s when it was unfortunately sold to a convicted con man, Tim Langenberg, who stopped maintaining it and did nothing to prevent the vandalism of the clubhouse. Romano loaned Langenberg $2.6 million to purchase the property.
After discussing this with Romano Capital, the lender to Langenberg, who refused to take action available to them to stop the destruction, two homeowner families, the Haberlys and Barons, asked the Court to appoint a receiver. The receiver told the Court he would restore and then sell the course to an operator. Langenberg, along with Romano Capital, which chose to intervene in the lawsuit just a few weeks before the scheduled trial date, fought this action all the way, even though it would have helped Romano and likely “made them whole” if they had supported this request. The judge, Laura Riquelme, repeatedly granted their request for delays, then denied our request because of a pending foreclosure auction.
Since then, Mr. Frostick has had several conversations with Eric Christensen of Romano about purchasing. Mr. Frostick, in 2022, working with the White-Leasure group, offered $3.2 million for the property. But, despite several years of deterioration and a nearly destroyed clubhouse, Romano has insisted on a selling price of $3.6 million. We don’t believe any knowledgeable buyer would be willing to pay a premium for this property in its current condition.
We have reached out to Mr. Leasure directly to attempt to confirm his continuing interest but have not been successful in having a conversation with him. With no further action by Mr. Frostic, we have concluded that there is no viable buyer in sight. We have heard through different sources that Romano says they are talking to potential buyers. This is doubtful as any serious buyer would contact the City, the HOA, or the Restoration Committee as the legal action remains of public record.
Aside from watching the continuing deterioration, the biggest concern is the possibility of the course being developed for residential housing. Unfortunately, we have also heard that Romano continues to believe this is possible. Apparently, the only action they have taken is to conduct a “detailed” market analysis, which simply shows there is demand for a variety of housing types in Skagit County. Duh.
A Big Request
This brings us to a very important request. We met with City officials recently to get an update on the City’s thoughts on the future of Eaglemont. We found, thanks to the efforts of HOA president Darlene Andris, that they intend to be vigilant with Romano in enforcing the city code that requires grass be mowed if it is longer than 12 inches. Last year Romano, despite serious fire risk, finally mowed on the day the City fines were beginning.
The City is in the process of a Comprehensive Plan update that will carry the City planning through 2045. There are differing ideas within the City Council about housing, the type of housing, where it should be concentrated, etc. The decisions will certainly involve the future of this property. City leaders are eagerly seeking input from the community in this important process. That means for those of us who want to make sure that Eaglemont remains a public golf course it is ESSENTIAL that the City leaders, especially the City Council members, hear from us.
There are several ways you can let your voice be heard. The City website for the process is found here: https://www.mountvernonwa.gov/1295/2025---2045-Comprehensive-Plan-Update
You can be put on the notification list for any information about public meetings and updates on this process by emailing your contact information including name, email, address and phone number to this email: PermitTech@mountvernonwa.gov
The City is encouraging citizens to take a short survey to indicate their preferences in this planning process. It will take about 10 minutes and is one way to register your concerns about Eaglemont and its future. Take the survey here: https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/XDKPJR5
We also strongly encourage you to contact City Council Members directly. It’s most important to contact the Council Member for the ward you live in. For most of us that is Ward 3 as the dividing line is Waugh Road. We’ve provided the ward map for you to confirm your Council representative.
We also encourage you to forward this email to any and all who share our interest in the future of Eaglemont. We need the City leaders to understand that there is very broad community support for Eaglemont. If you use social media, please reach out to your followers and urge them to get involved.
Your message to the City need not be long. We suggest something like:
“Eaglemont Golf Course is a very important part of this community and we urge you to make certain it remains accessible to the entire community as a public golf course, thereby contributing to the quality of life for community residents and increasing property values in this area.”
Navor Tecero, Ward 1
Iris Carias, Ward 1
Andrew Vander Stoep, Ward 2
Gary Molenaar, Ward 2
Melissa Beaton, Ward 3
Mary Hudson, Ward 3
Richard Brocksmith, At Large
The future?
The Eaglemont Restoration Committee, including the four families who were the plaintiffs in the legal action, remains active. Our most important task right now is to make sure the City hears from everyone in the community concerned about preventing development of Eaglemont.
We continue to work toward a meeting with Romano to discuss how we can assist any efforts they have to restore the property or sell it to a buyer who will restore it. But, we are also looking at other legal options such as a request for an injunction or property damages. There are two ways to ensure that development will not happen here. One is political, which you are needed to be a part of, the other is legal. Despite the judge failing to grant a receiver, she did recognize that homeowners have a right to require this be a golf course but the time to apply that right is when there is a change of use. Why she did not see that failing to maintain it and allow it to become essentially a cow pasture constitutes a change of use is beyond us. A different judge would likely see things differently.
Other options include forming a Parks and Recreation District as the City has advised. This would allow those within the district to purchase the property at the appraised value, which we are quite certain would be considerably less than the current asking price of $3.6 million.
We welcome any ideas or suggestions you may have for other options or actions we may take.
Thanks for your continuing interest and support.
The Eaglemont Restoration Committee
Kent & Gretchen Haberly
Gerald & Lynne Baron
Jerry & Peggy Anderson
Karl & Louise Kirchgasler
Community support essential
Checks can be made to SEAS, Inc., with Eaglemont HB#230316 written on the check. Mail to PO Box 1667, Mount Vernon, WA 98273. For questions or comments email Kent Haberly at khaberly@pugetsoundinvestors.com or Gerald Baron at gerald.baron@agincourt.us. In addition to the email addresses above, their phone numbers are: Kent – 360-202-0277. Gerald – 360-303-9123. We will update the website restoreeaglemont.com so please encourage those interested to visit the site which has information about how they can contribute. www.restoreaglemont.com.