Photo courtesy Oregon Pacific Bank
Sponsored by Oregon Pacific Bank.
Construction Loan keeps Bar Run Golf & RV Resort on course
By Kelli Warner & Christine Sherk
The Bar Run Golf & RV Resort in Roseburg is on land that long ago was the South Umpqua River’s full domain. Through the years, as the river shifted course, a river bar remained, and there, in the 1960s, Umpqua Sand & Gravel – a longtime customer of Oregon Pacific Bank – opened for business, mining the river bar for rock, sand and gravel.
Part of a land reclamation project on Umpqua Sand & Gravel land, Bar Run Golf & RV Resort offers glimpses of the ongoing mining operations, as well as views of the South Umpqua River, visible at holes 8, 10 and 11. Designed by PGA professional and golf course designer Dan Hixson, it affords golfers a truly unique experience.
“The most unique thing about it is that it’s an old mine site that’s actually still under construction,” says co-owner of Bar Run, Kelly Guido, whose father founded Umpqua Sand & Gravel.
Under construction is the RV park side of the resort operations, which is designed to feature 70 RV spaces and eight small rental cottages. The resort project was planned prior to the pandemic, and construction began in the summer of 2020 with loan financing from Oregon Pacific Bank.
“We’re creating a destination,” Kelly says, and OPB’s loan financing allowed Bar Run to forge ahead. “A good opportunity, they don’t come along all the time, so you’ve got to have someone helping you out to move forward.”
Well-timed construction financing
The 18-hole golf course and the soon-to-be-complete RV resort promises to be a positive addition to the community and the local economy, says Merrill Taggart, Assistant Vice President and Commercial Loan Portfolio Manager at Oregon Pacific Bank. Merrill met with Kelly to guide the loan financing process for Bar Run’s RV resort.
“In construction lending, we’re looking at the viability of the project,” Merrill says. “Does the operating business produce enough funds to cover the debt service? If that’s the case, then we want to help business owners out. If it’s a dream to grow their business, we want to be included and involved in that process.”
Kelly has been banking with Oregon Pacific Bank for about 10 years. “It’s a small bank, and you go in there and everyone knows your name,” Kelly says.
The Bar Run dream is well underway, with 22 full-amenity RV spaces and four cottages finished, and 44 more RV spaces nearly complete.
Merrill likes the growing synergies of the co-located year-round golf course, that’s playable even in rainy conditions, and the RV park in a beautiful setting near many local wineries and recreational opportunities – a visitor destination draw, for sure.
“Providing a construction loan, having it be successful and the borrower reaching their dreams, for me that’s the ultimate reward of a loan officer, because you not only get to enjoy what they’ve built and what you’ve helped them fund, but I would say it’s the pinnacle of my job,” Merrill says.
“They’ve been really great to work with,” Kelly adds. “Merrill’s done a great job working through the whole process.”
Learn more about business financing solutions available and the benefits of working with a trusted loan manager at Oregon Pacific Bank.
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