Why This Matters for Topeka People $$$$ Jim Klausman is a well-known Topeka developer with significant local real estate

 Salt Lick Golf & Hunting Resort (also called Salt Lick Golf Resort) in Reno County, Kansas, is the big project. It’s an ~$80 million destination resort on the former Cottonwood Hills Golf Club site (about 605–620 acres) roughly 5 miles east of Hutchinson, near Buhler Road and 4th Avenue / N. Victory Road area.

Site History

The property was previously home to Cottonwood Hills, a Nick Faldo-designed course intended as the centerpiece of a master-planned residential community with hundreds of homes. That vision never fully materialized due to infrastructure and financial problems. The course opened, struggled, closed (multiple times in some accounts), and fell into disrepair. The new owners cleared the old layout and are building from scratch to take better advantage of the natural sand dunes (30–40 feet tall in places) that make the area special—similar to the famous nearby Prairie Dunes Country Club.

Developers and Team

• Lead developer/principal: Jim Klausman (Topeka-based, associated with Midwest Health and various LLCs including references to 2641 Wanamaker and Prairie Lick LLC / Salt Lick LLC). Klausman has extensive Topeka-area holdings (Wheatfield Village mixed-use with apartments, hotel, theaters, restaurants; downtown and Wanamaker Road properties). Note: He has faced public issues with unpaid taxes/special assessments and county lawsuits on multiple properties in Shawnee County.
• Investors: Group from Topeka, Kansas City, and Lawrence areas.
• Golf architect: Todd Clark of CE Golf Design (with Ron Whitten and Brent Hugo). Clark describes this as a career pinnacle project—full free rein on 45 holes. Courses will be among the longest in Kansas (pushing 7,800–7,900 yards) with wide fairways, large rolling greens (8,000–14,000 sq ft), native grasses, and six sets of tees.

Project Scope: 45 Holes + Resort Amenities

Three-phase destination resort emphasizing multi-day stays, golf, and hunting:

• Phase 1 (Salt Lick Dunes focus): 18-hole championship dunes-style course routed through rolling sand dunes; clubhouse with event/dining space; night-lit putting course; practice facilities; ~48 lodging units. Soft opening targeted for fall 2027 / 2027 golf season; clubhouse into 2028. Construction is underway (as of mid-2026: holes shaped, irrigated, and grassed).
• Phase 2: Second 18-hole championship course (Salt Lick Prairie—more open prairie layout); 9-hole par-3 “CC’s Loop” for accessibility, match play, and short-game/repeat rounds; ~76 more lodging units.
• Phase 3: Additional ~60 lodging units.

Total lodging: Roughly 180+ units/cabins (early plans mentioned ~36 cabins for up to 200 guests; later figures scale higher). Includes restaurant/dining, retail/commercial elements, and guided hunting (deer and other game in winter months) to create year-round appeal. Overall mixed-use tourism destination with associated infrastructure. Full operational target: late 2028.

Financing: STAR Bonds and Local Incentives

This is a classic Kansas Sales Tax and Revenue (STAR) Bond project under K.S.A. 12-17,160 et seq., designed for major commercial/entertainment/tourism destinations that draw regional/national visitors. Bonds are repaid only by new sales tax revenue generated within the district (limited to developer-owned land). No diversion of existing county taxes and no county liability for repayment.

• STAR Bond request: Approximately $26–26.2 million. Project plans adopted by Reno County Commission (June 2026); final approval rests with the State of Kansas / Department of Commerce.
• District: Salt Lick STAR Bond Project District established via Resolution 2026-12 (May 13, 2026) after public hearing. ~605 acres. Kansas Commerce confirmed it as an eligible “major commercial entertainment and tourism area.” Feasibility study (Commerce) projects >50,000 annual visitors (many out-of-state), $25–35 million annual spending in Reno County (some earlier figures around $23–25M), with strong coverage for debt service.
• Private investment: Developer group has already put in ~$44.9 million of their own funds toward the ~$80 million total.
• Additional local incentives (approved June 2026 by Reno County Commission):
  • Industrial Revenue Bonds (IRBs) with 10-year 100% abatement on the incremental property tax increase (school capital outlay levy excepted). 4-1 vote (one commissioner concerned about county finances).
  • Community Improvement Districts (CIDs)—one per phase—with up to 2% additional sales tax (for up to 22 years) to reimburse eligible project costs. CID revenues cannot be used for STAR Bond debt service.
  • Transient guest tax (countywide outside Hutchinson/South Hutchinson) also advanced to support tourism promotion (and potentially project-related uses).

Phases are intentionally paced so the market isn’t flooded. Water rights, wastewater reuse for irrigation, wells, and lagoon systems have been addressed in presentations.

Status as of July 2026

• Under active construction.
• STAR Bond district created (May 2026).
• Project plans, IRBs, and CIDs approved (June 2026).
• “Full steam ahead” per architect Todd Clark. First 18 holes + key amenities targeted for soft opening 2027; full resort late 2028.
• Expected to complement (not compete with) world-class Prairie Dunes (which hosts major USGA events including 2029 U.S. Senior Open and 2032 U.S. Women’s Senior Open), elevating Hutchinson as a genuine golf destination. Good access (near Wichita, ~3 hours from KC).

Why This Matters for Topeka People

Jim Klausman is a well-known Topeka developer with significant local real estate (Wheatfield Village, Wanamaker corridor, etc.). This is a high-profile Kansas STAR Bond success story so far—private capital first ($45M+), then public tools limited to new incremental revenues generated by the project itself. Reno County moved relatively quickly and unanimously (or near-unanimously) on the district and plans once the feasibility study checked out.

For Topeka/Shawnee County observers (who deal constantly with TIF, CID, RHID, STAR Bonds, IRBs, and abatements on projects ranging from hotels and mixed-use to industrial), this is a useful case study:

• Strong private skin in the game.
• Clear tourism/visitor metrics from the state feasibility study.
• Phased approach + multiple tools layered carefully.
• Leveraging natural assets (dunes) next to an existing world-class attraction (Prairie Dunes).
• Potential model (or cautionary note, depending on your view of incentives) for destination recreation projects elsewhere in Kansas.

Critics have raised the usual points about tax abatements, STAR Bond diversion of sales taxes that would otherwise go to the state/local general funds, and whether the visitor numbers materialize. Supporters (including local engineers and commissioners) emphasize zero risk to existing taxpayers, infrastructure-light impact, and big tourism upside for a rural county.

Bottom line: This is one of the more ambitious pure destination golf/hunting resorts in Kansas history—45 holes designed to championship standards on a dramatic dune landscape, backed by substantial private money and a full suite of state/local incentives, with Topeka developer fingerprints all over it. Construction is real and progressing. Full operations targeted for 2028 to ride the wave of major events at Prairie Dunes.