Texas billionaire Billy Joe “Red” McCombs and Bob Honts, his partner in the proposed Village at Wolf Creek, are considering the purchase of the 1,480-acre Flying W Ranch just west of Del Norte as a possible site for a golf course and village.
“We’re looking at it, and we’ll know in a matter of weeks if everything will work out,” Honts said. “We have no comment except that we’re excited about the property’s potential.”
The property is under contract with the sale dependent on studies of wetlands, floodplains and other issues, Honts said. The developers also have been looking at property for employee housing.
Village at Wolf Creek consultant Dusty Hicks said the property runs along U.S. 160 and up to the base of Indian Head mountain. The property has more than 2 miles of Rio Grande frontage. The Pinos Creek also runs through it.
“It’s about a mile to the (Del Norte) airport,” he said.
The ranch’s owner, Russ Wolfe, who also owns the Flying W Chuckwagon near Colorado Springs and Garden of the Gods, runs a small cattle and hay operation, Hicks said.
The property is about 28 miles northeast of, and 40 minutes away from, Wolf Creek Pass, where the developers plan to build the Village at Wolf Creek’s 2,172 residences, restaurants, hotels and shops. That site is on 287.5 acres they own adjacent to Wolf Creek Ski Area.
Honts said the developers are working on highway permits and other matters so that construction can begin soon at the Village at Wolf Creek, which lies 10,300 feet above sea level.
Honts has said golf courses were always part of their plans, but they obviously couldn’t build one at the village because of the elevation.
Staff writer Electa Draper can be reached at 970-385-0917 or edraper@denverpost.com.
