[12] Warren received a COVID stimulus check in 2020 as he had reported large losses previously. "I still think it could be something special," the 52-year-old Hitting golf balls can be frustrating and it often feels like youre never making any [], Do Golf Balls Float? This is a question that has been asked by many people and it is a very valid question. The resort features our world class 18 hole golf course, Lajitas Texas Golf. And frankly, I dont think Smith even knows. in the spare beauty of borderlands. Dallas businessman Kelcy Warren believes he can. In Rexs time Lajitas consisted of the trading post and an old cavalry post that was used as a hunting lodge, and Rex met Mischer when he came out for deer and dove hunts. Unincorporated community in Texas, United States, "Old Cemetery In Lajitas, Texas, A Tiny Town That Abuts Big Bend National Park In Southwestern Brewster County, On A Bluff Overlooking The Rio Grande River In The Northern Part Of The Chihuahuan Desert", "Mayor Clay Henry III: A Word About the Mayor", "Clay Henry - Famous Beer-Drinking Dead Goat", "LAJITAS, TEXAS (414950), Period of Record Monthly Climate Summary", "Lajitas Resort: Why you better go now - El Paso Inc.: Publishers Column", "Death: Frank Q. Dobbs, producer, director and writer for television and movies", https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Lajitas,_Texas&oldid=1140605444, Unincorporated communities in Brewster County, Texas, Short description is different from Wikidata, Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License 3.0, Source: Western Regional Climate Center, Desert Research Institute, This page was last edited on 20 February 2023, at 21:47. John Spong writes primarily about popular culture. Our 27,000 acre Texas resort is famous for its solitude, natural beauty and rugged desert environment. H.W. By then, consultants and friends had convinced Smith that the dream could be real, and toward that end he had already spent $40 million, which he estimated would be half of his ultimate outlay. Had he really sprayed a compound on the ground in front of the Lajitas boardwalk that would keep dust from kicking up? When Lajitass marketing team suggested that all the resort needed to take off was a visitor with A-list celebrity credentials, one Tom Cruise or Tiger Woods, Terlingua just laughed. Lajitas is also somewhat famous for having a drunk goat named Clay Henry for a mayoryes, you read that correctly! It is at an altitude of 2,200 feet on a bluff overlooking the Rio Grande at the San Carlos ford of the old Comanche Trail, in the northern part of the Chihuahuan Desert and at the southern extreme of the Rocky Mountains. The name comes from the bars design, a dug-out cave/mineshaft, and it has always had a more permissive atmosphere than the rest of the area. The ultimate fate of Lajitas wont be decided by any new owner. By the mid-1980s, Lajitas became a resort town with 15 businesses serving 50 people. The border then seemed about forty miles wide and mixed like the sounds in a Doug Sahm song, half-Mexican, half-white, with nobody too worried about which half was which. Locals speculated that he was struggling financially, and the monthly Big Bend Gazette reported that Lajitas was not the only Smith-related enterprise to recently declare bankruptcy. Young as he was, that was surprising, so when he returned, I asked him how somebody with such a hard time getting around wound up in a job as physically demanding as carpentry. I was doctor, vet, lawyer, marriage counselor, pharmacist, and an importer of wax. I was writing a story that would run in the May 2002 issue of Texas Monthly on Smiths vision for Lajitas: the creation of a world-class, five-star golf resort and an exclusive development for multimillion-dollar vacation homes. One part Texas frontier town, and one part golf resort, Lajitas is 100% pleasure. Soon, they sat in an outdoor living room by the outdoor His whole model was based on the idea that he could somehow tame the desert, refashion it to suit his plan, and it was just a matter of time before his vision became known as Smiths Folly. Location & Hours 21701 Fm 170 Lajitas, TX 79852 Get directions Edit business info Amenities and More By Appointment Only Accepts Credit Cards Good For Kids Private Lot Parking 2 More Attributes About the Business Escape to Lajitas Golf Resort, no place like it in the world! He gave her $100 more, then walked out of the place as if everything was fine. Lajitas is mentioned extensively in Red Dirt/Texas Country artist Wade Bowen's song "Day of the Dead" recorded in October 2017. "It didn't feel right. Working at Lajitas Golf Resort | Glassdoor The original Lajitas church and cemetery are still in town and are among the best places to visit in Lajitas. [5] [24] He also owns an 8,000-acre ranch near Cherokee, Texas, [5] the 20,000-acre Lajitas Golf Resort and Spa in Lajitas, Texas, [25] and a private island near Roatn, Honduras. Big Bend is a diverse region with endless possibilities for adventure and discovery. A short time later, he returned on his jet and to Dallas. These days, Clay Henry can be found (stuffed) at Starlight Theatre in Terlingua, but Clay Henrys descendants continued to act as mayorat least until his grandson met a gnarly fate. to the community and about music. Seven or eight hours in a car gives you a sense of how far this is from civilization. He also hosted monthly dances and impromptu barbecues, when conjunto bands, crossing back into Mexico after performing stateside quinceaeras, would stop in and play for free beer. Sitemap. Lajitas is on the western edge of Big Bend National Park in southwestern Brewster County. According to the Handbook of Texas, the community had a population of 75 in 2010. When. empty and spiritual. Its just spectacular.. Business is apparently booming at its new home, a course that has been perennially named among the top five or so in the state. It was mounted on a pediment in the middle of the golf courses putting green on Thursday, according to Scott Beasley, who manages the course for Dallas-based WSB Resorts and Clubs. He also donated $103,000 to President Donald Trump's 2016 campaign. When Steve Smith bought the remote Big Bend town of Lajitas in 2000, he dreamed of building a lush, five-star retreat that would attract the likes of Tiger Woods and Tom Cruise . "Now I've got to go back to a different world," he said. A private buyer shipped it to a Lajitas golf course owned by oil and gas billionaire Kelcy Warren almost exactly two years since the Confederate General was pulled from its perch in what was then Lee Park. [2][3][4] He also serves as member of the management council of ETP Enogex Partners LLC, co-CEO of ETC OLP, co-CEO and co-chairman of La Grange Energy and of US Propane LLC. [10], The 90th Fighter Squadron of the United States Army Border Air Patrol had a sector that traveled to Lajitas from Eagle Pass. The private owner is Addison-based attorney Ronald Holmes of Holmes Firm PC, a friend of the course who was down in Terlingua for Thursdays dedication. it made people feel nervous," she said. To be fair, Smith did do some good. Due to the closing of the Terlingua quicksilver mines, the number of residents in Lajitas had dwindled to four. Saying Goodbye to Fairfield Lake State Park, Miniature Cattle Have Ambled Into Our Hearts and Onto Our Modest Acreages. The round-trip drive to Alpine for big groceries is 190 miles. Farming along the floodplain caused an even further boom, causing Lajitas to build a store, a saloon, and a custom house in 1912. They talked about reopening the border crossing, reaching out For enough time to make money and the businessman who can't seem to stop 21701 FM 170, Lajitas, Big Bend National Park, TX 79852-5015. We report on vital issues from politics to education and are the indispensable authority on the Texas scene, covering everything from music to cultural events with insightful recommendations. When the mines in nearby Terlingua closed in the 1940s, though, Lajitas also became a ghost town, with an estimated population of 4. People who drive out here have prepared themselves for the remoteness, said one stately desert spiritualist who asked not to be named. Reviewed October 12, 2021 "She certainly has the coolest house," he said. When I met him nearly two years later, he was thinking differently. Apart from teaching my students in class, we also go outside the four walls of the classroom to physically experience what was discussed in class. View 72 homes for sale in Lajitas, TX at a median listing home price of $89,000. This desert golf resort has breathtaking views that make it hard to believe that it is in our own backyard! There was a reason Big Bend hadnt already been overrun by the wealthy: the Chihuahuan Desert. ocotillo plants. 10 or more click here, Traveler rating: 7.0 But its a thin margin to begin with, and it just didnt play out for him., The idea that the desert could somehow be softened gets at a practical divide that would prove even wider. profit. kitchen and outdoor shower -- the woman who says she doesn't have The Big Bend is not the kind of place you want to drive through and look out your window at, Ivey continued. 5 Texas-Sized Golf Trips Worth Dreaming Over | Houstonia Magazine Ivey would even get customers prescriptions filled on his weekly runs to Alpine. Other bidders dropped out early and headed for the elevators, including an eight-man team of blue-suited lawyers representing a hotelier, followed by a couple of South Texas hunting buddies with fat wallets in the back pockets of their Wranglers. It's a place where many have long come to get away from material excess Opponents saw it as an attempt to rewrite history. I formerly head the sports department at the University of Michigan - Ann Arbor. That determination will be made by the desert. During droughts, people will live on water saved in rooftop rain-catchment systems, showering and flushing the toilet once a week. Skaggs also became successful in a candelilla wax business, the Lajitas Wax Company. [22] In 2012, press reports indicated he owned an estate on an island off the coast of Honduras. Of all the wrongheaded moves made at the new Lajitas, it was the sanitization of the trading post that broke the most hearts. Lajitas Golf Resort is an unexpected and fascinating oasis in the middle of the vast desert that makes up much of Big Bend Countryand today, Lajitas Golf Resort is nearly simultaneous with the town of Lajitas, TX. The store and saloon were operated by H.W. Was he actually planning on repopulating Big Bend with the superrich dust-averse? Smith believed that if he made it softer and more like other places, he could broaden the appeal. The Lajitas Golf Resort and Spa is a 20,000-acre golf resort business in Lajitas owned by Texas businessman Kelcy Warren, who bought the resort from previous owner Steve Smith while the business was going through financial distress. And on the other side of the highway and a tall adobe wall, the Cavalry Post and La Questa rooms opened up onto a swimming pool lined with ristra-strung arbors and a view of Lajitas Mesa. "It's the exclusivity. The gas pumps were gone, as were the willow leaves and goat-pen wire. The resort's unique destination is rich in Old West history. She said, You guys are execs at Lajitas, arent you? When they acknowledged they were, she said, I cant wait to tell everybody what redneck assholes you are. The table went silent, and when she walked off, one of the guys followed her to the bar and asked her not to say anything. If youre on a mountain out there and a cold front comes in, you could freeze and die, he said. Nobody really likes practicing their golf game. When he decided to sell, Smith, a 54-year-old Austin-based telecommunications tycoon, showed up unannounced and unknown, stepping out of his helicopter just before the auction began to buy Lajitas on a whim for $4.25 million. But it also served as a gathering place for the areas whites, Mexicans, and Indians, none of whom batted an eye at the towns other prominent, permanent resident, an old man who refused to wear anything more than his underwear, in which he would daily pan for gold in the Rio Grande. The biggest attractions that draw visitors to Lajitas, of course, are Big Bend Ranch State Park to the west and Big Bend National Park to the east. He bought a CD from her and promised [3] After two replacements of the original Clay Henry, the trading post and stable where the actual mayor lived is now closed and they goat no longer resides there. with a $4.2 million bid. Accommodations run the range from convenient and comfortable to resort luxury. It's a quick trip to Terlingua for other dining options, although we had breakfast at, The morning of our second day we explored the. At first blush, its almost impossible to tell the age of a resident of south Brewster County, and there are two good reasons for that. information click here By the early 80s, Lajitas on the Rio Grande had a 9 hole golf course, two lodging units, several condos, and was a local center of economic activity in Brewster County. Black Jacks Crossing Golf Course Awards & Accolades, For Sales Info, Contact: Scott Beasley 214-981-0758. The excellent bread pudding provided some redemption, but not enough to justify a $190 bill. making money. No stranger rode into town with his checkbook in his teeth to run up the bidding and take the place over. He received a bachelor's degree in civil engineering from the University of Texas at Arlington in 1978.[8][3][6]. If you get bitten by a rattlesnake, youll die. Fire Ants Have Unleashed Chaos in Texas for Decades. The resorts 250 workers made Lajitas the largest employer in South County, and it paid nearly 30 percent of the taxes for the schools in Terlingua. Lajitas International Airport is a privately owned airport for the use of the resort's guests and property owners located 4 miles East of Lajitas and 14 miles West of Terlingua adjacent to Big Bend National Park. The town hadnt changed a whit when he got out of college and took a job with new owner Mischer in 1977, except for the recent introduction of electricity and a regular telephone line. He restored the community in 1976 with his corporation's subsidiary, Arrow Development Company. I think that's the biggest thing that's In 2010, he bought the 3,500-acre BootJack Ranch near Pagosa Springs, Colorado, for $46.5 million. Dallas Businessman, Kelcy Warren, Acquires the Bankrupt Lajitas Resort CANDELILLA CAFE, Lajitas - Restaurant Reviews, Photos - Tripadvisor Commerce was interrupted by Pancho Villa and his bandits, bringing John J. Pershing and his troops to establish a cavalry post there in 1916. The crowds would grow to three hundred people and still be going when Ivey showed up for work the next morning, when he would finally shoo folks away. Carmichael, California, United States. But the other reason for the difficulty in determining someones age out there cuts the other way. As part of the contract, his son cleans up trash from the park once a month. In any event, last summer Lajitas borrowed $12.5 million from a financial house in Connecticut. The deal was complete, except for a few papers that remained to be The Lajitas area was then bought by Rex Ivey, Jr., who brought electricity to the community in 1949 and sold part of it to Walter M. Mischer, a Houston entrepreneur and owner of Mischer Corporation. If youre traveling on the cheap, that could make a funny story. McGuirk sold his landholdings around Lajitas to Thomas V. Skaggs, who continued farming. property, Mr. Warren plans a largely hands-off approach. Make no mistake, desert life is hard, and the sacrifices required are made hourly. But the desert has always had a way of withering material [19] As he walked off I noticed that he was stooped and relying on a cane. "Black Jacks Crossing", designed by PGA Hall of Fame golfer, Lanny Wadkins. Tucked away in Southwest Texas between Big Bend National Park and Big Bend State Park lies the exquisite 27,000 acre Lajitas Golf Resort and Spa. 847-635-6550, send a fax to 847-635-6968, or write to The Permissions He gave generously to local fire and EMS departments. Voted #4 Course You Can Play in Texas Golfweek Magazine. Now $179 (Was $201) on Tripadvisor: Lajitas Golf Resort, Lajitas. 1 (877) 525-4827. Mr. Smith called it the Ultimate Hideout, but been a thorn in the side of the community," Mr. Leslie said. The vision for a resort at Lajitas began in the late 1970s, Too many decisions were made in the creation of the new Lajitas by people who didnt seem to think very hard about what they were doing. The store itself was stacked deep with every conceivable necessity, from bulk beans and flour to appliances, auto parts, clothes, and ranch supplies. Lajitas Golf Resort is open Mon, Tue, Wed, Thu, Fri, Sat, Sun. Lajitas Golf Resort and Spa in Terlingua - Orbitz Some links in this post may be affiliate links. nine-hole golf course, in addition to the thousands of acres of And he did sell plenty of beer, the most of any business in Brewster County, he estimates. The wild spirit of the Big Bend region is in full effect at this stunning course whose name pays tribute to U.S. Army Gen. John "Black Jack . signed. [26][27], "Kelcy" redirects here. Tel: 1-877-LAJITAS bankrupt resort and give Lajitas another life. You leave someplace nice, fly fifty minutes, and expect to arrive someplace nice. Holmes did not return a call about the donation. That effort ran out of steam and money in 2007, and a group of investors bought the property, cut the prices in half, and have created a luxurious and affordable environment for visitors to Texas Big Bend. Born in Gladewater, Texas, Warren grew up in White Oak, Texas, the youngest of four sons of Hugh Brinson Warren and Bertie Lee Kirby. Beautiful views yes. Sure enough, the hotel struggled to maintain even 50 percent occupancy, and a mere five private homes went up in his subdivisions. Smiths money was the safety net, the answer to every problem, be it the overall concept or everyday moves that didnt work out. in denim with a pink bandana around her neck and gray hair loosely If you make a purchase through one of these links, we may earn a small commission at no extra cost to you. Compare luxury resorts and resort hotels in Lajitas with Rent By Owner The resort couldn't turn a travelers to these 25,000 acres of Chihuahuan desert on the fringes of At the same time a number of cattle ranches and mining enterprises appeared in northern Chihuahua and Coahuila. Located just east of Big Bend Ranch State Park, a visit to Lajitas, Texas may leave you wondering: is this a town or a resort? Suite 2100 At some point in 2006 Smith decided to stop pouring his own fortune into Lajitas. John Poindexter, the owner of Big Bends Cibolo Creek Ranch resort, was among the last to arrive and the last to leave. Admittedly the place was in bankruptcy, but it was still open and promising no drop in service. But if you just paid $7,000 to fly your jet out there, $900 a night for a condo on the boardwalk, and $165 for greens fees, you expect a little more. A bankruptcy judge in San Antonio opened a three-month window for Lajitas to acquire new financing, but Smith, who by all accounts was still in love with the area, was unable to pull it off. "This thing is so beautiful, and there's nobody here.". The high bid at days end was $13.5 million, but the bidder, who wished to remain anonymous, hadnt offered enough money to pay all the creditors, and no deal was reached. Upward of thirty people would gatherMexican workers, snowbirds from the RV park, boatmen and floaters just back from a river trip, and college kids whod stopped in to feed cervezas to Mayor Clay Henry, the towns famous beer-drinking goat. The Lajitas property continued to change hands and in 1949 was bought by Rex Ivey, Jr., who hand-dug a well and installed a generator for the areas first electric lights. No spam, ever. February 2023 Reader Quiz: What Did You Learn? Mischer never made much money off the place and held onto it mostly out of love. On the day of the wedding, after our adventure in. [1] His father worked as a field hand for Sun Pipeline, a company now owned by Warren. He said his condition was a recent development. What Im Watching: Dallas Mavericks Basketball. According to Ivey, Mischer encouraged all this. During sudden storms, their power will go out, and theyll be trapped wherever they are, the roads made impassable by flashing creeks trying to find the Rio Grande. If youve visited the popular Terlingua Ghost Town, youve no doubt heard about the mercury mining boom that led to the towns explosion in population in the early 20th century. For the American football player, see, "Executive Profile - Energy Transfer Partners - Kelcy L. Warren", "List of Public Companies Worldwide, Letter - Businessweek", "Inside Kelcy Warren's Dallas Mansion - WSJ", "College of Engineering at The University of Texas at Arlington", "Kelcy Warren emerges as one of Dallas' bold new philanthropists", "These Billionaires Received Taxpayer-Funded Stimulus Checks During the Pandemic", "The New Forbes Philanthropy Score: How We Ranked Each Forbes 400 Billionaire Based On Their Giving", "John Fogerty, Lyle Lovett, Bruce Hornsby, Jimmy LaFave put on a killer show on Kelcy Warren's ranch in the Texas Hill Country", "Why Kelcy Warren Named a Park For His Son", "Million-Dollar Donors in the 2016 Presidential Race", "Dakota Access pipeline company and Donald Trump have close financial ties", "The Texas Electric Grid Failure Was a Warm-up", "Stealth billionaire lays claim to Woodall Rodgers park naming rights", "Lajitas Resort: Why you better go now - El Paso Inc.: Publishers Column", "REVEALED: One of world's wealthiest men buys Kilkenny mansion for 12.6m - Kilkenny Now - Your City. Lajitas Texas activities designed to keep your family as busy as it wants to be. Its previous owner, Austin multimillionaire Steve Smith, lavished $100 million to turn the property into an exclusive refuge for the rich, with an 18-hole bentgrass golf course, upscale restaurants, old-world bar, 92 luxury rooms and Mayor Clay Henry, a beer-drinking goat. A Lajitas Golf Resort - UPDATED 2023 Prices, Reviews - Tripadvisor There was laughter from the table but not from the waitress. A major hotel chain. Ms. Ryan said the area is like a space station, big and Weve had the best year weve ever had, said Beasley. My first thought was, Id spend a million to spruce it up a little bit, he told the San Antonio Express-News shortly thereafter. Share. On Friday morning, after eating breakfast and making sure the Now, we all know people who wouldnt blink at a $33 breakfast. In 1999 Williams sold the resort to a group of investors led by Dickie Pamplin. He married Amy Hudson on June 3, 2010, in Dallas. 750 North St.Paul St. [2][3] He serves on the advisory board of his alma mater, the University of Texas at Arlington. It closed temporarily in 1910 and reopened six years later. About Lajitas Golf Resort. Dallas' Robert E. Lee statue has a new home. It was closed temporarily in 1910, reopened in 1916, and closed permanently in 1939. [12], Frank Q. Dobbs directed his first film, Enter the Devil, in Lajitas in 1972. Despite all this, Smith never did manage to get people to come in meaningful numbers, and when I stayed there in October, I understood why. At first, we only knew the buyer by his online auction nameLawDude. We also have an email out to Warren. Lajitas officially had a post office as early as 1901, but it did not become operational until McGuirk petitioned for its reestablishment in 1904. Fast forward another few decades, though, and Lajitas, TX experienced a curious twist of fate: a corporation from Houston bought the entire town, restored most of the buildings, and turned it into a resort for golfers and visitors exploring Big Bend Country. Unlike Mr. Smith, whose persona became intertwined with his But the place could be friendlier to residents on this side of the river. But after about three quick drinks, she started talking about how the kids she grew up with all called her a traitor for working for Smith. And the recollection of that night is one of the reasons there will be no pour-out on the porch for the death of Smiths vision. As an Amazon Associate, Lone Star Travel Guide earns from qualifying purchases. ), 17 Epic East Texas Towns + Cities to Visit. civilization. And hell, thats the appeal!, Linda Walker, who has run the Lajitas Stables for more than twenty years, guiding horseback tours near the park and into Mexico, is not rich. Copyright 2023, D Magazine Partners, Inc. We use cookies to ensure that we give you the best experience on our website. I even ran the rafting business out my back door, Ivey said. Be aware that cell phones may inadvertently change to Mountain Time and cause you to be an hour behind schedule. In mid-October, Lajitas was back up for sale. Find Lajitas Resorts and Resort Rentals. He loves it out west. lavished $100 million to turn the property into an exclusive refuge for Double check when in the area for the correct local time when visiting. Hundreds of trees, including pears and plums that had no business being in the desert, were ordered before there was a plan to plant them and then planted before there was a way to water them. McGuirk also funded the construction of a school. It brings a satisfaction, not of beating the desert but of surviving it.