Black Bull Run, a luxury golf-course community west of Bozeman, is building again after new owners bought it out of bankruptcy.
"Since Black Bull has (re)opened, we have seen a tremendous amount of interest," Marketing Director Elizabeth Barnett said.
Black Bull is located on 484 acres of what used to be the Leachman Angus Ranch on Love Lane. The community so far includes a handful of private homes, a swim and tennis center, and an 18-hole golf course designed by former PGA Tour golfer Tom Weiskopf.
This week, Black Bull is breaking ground on a new $1.3 million outdoor pool and fitness center, Barnett said.
"People will be working out this spring, and then we will be doing cannonballs in June, or as soon as weather allows," she said.
Several model homes are also under construction.
Black Bull has sold five home sites and secured contracts for three more, Barnett said, since this spring when a California real estate developer and Cross Harbor Capital Partners - the same company that purchased Big Sky's Yellowstone Club - bought the community.
Home sites start at $94,000. Club-built homes, designed by Bozeman-based Locati Architects, start at $505,000 - roughly half the price Black Bull was charging prior to the recession.
Barnett said Black Bull is also offering buyers a "build incentive." If home construction is completed within 18 months, Black Bull will take up to $30,000 off the price.
The subdivision filed for bankruptcy protection last year. At that time, co-developers Steve Barrett, who serves on the Montana University System's Board of Regents, and Craig Bryant attributed Black Bull's financial woes to slow home growth and the failure of its primary lender. In April, California real estate, oil and gas speculator Rob Schumacher bought Black Bull for $8.1 million with financing from Cross Harbor Capital Partners. Schumacher owns property in Bozeman, and his sister Sally Uhlmann is a real estate agent in town.
As of Thursday, Black Bull had sold 69 of 378 home sites and had 111 club members, Barnett said.
According to bankruptcy court documents, members have included Montana State University football coach Rob Ash, Barnard Construction CEO Tim Barnard and Chairman of Lehrkinds' Coca-Cola Bottling Co. Carl Lehrkind.
Barnett said Black Bull has started a nonprofit to benefit area charities and spent $3 million on operations and construction since coming under new ownership. That spending, she said, has resulted in 250 jobs and business for more than 100 local vendors.
"The new owners have a long-term vision and they're investing their money behind that vision," Barnett said. "The owners are in this for the long haul."
The sales effort at Black Bull is a cooperative effort between the developer and PureWest, Inc. - Bozeman's exclusive Christie's International Real Estate Affiliate.
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