Cabela's closes on deal in Hammond

HAMMOND | The Nebraska-based mega outdoors outfitter Cabela's completed its $14 million purchase of Woodmar Country Club and its 93 acres of property Monday afternoon.

The sale closes the doors of a country club that has been the site of thousands of special events, public and private, during its 80 years. It also puts about $80,000 in taxable income into the hands of each of its 150 equity members.

Cabela's spokesman David Draper, who couldn't be reached for comment Monday, has said the company hopes to build a store as large as 150,000 to 250,000 square feet on the Hammond site, with access to Interstate 80/94 from Indianapolis Boulevard. Another employee of the chain said the company's policy is to make all announcements about new locations on its Web site.

Kenneth Reed, a Hammond attorney, has been a club member since 1969 and is a former club president. He said it was nice to have the luxury of going to the club Monday to say goodbye rather than being forced out. He described it as a "bittersweet" experience.

"It was understandably a very sad day seeing an institution like that being sold. However, we were able to avoid the situation that befell the Innsbrook members where they were forced out of their club by debt. We were able to walk out with all out debts paid, our heads held high and our equity intact because the members fortunately had a choice," Reed said.

He said he has the impression that many members will move to Briar Ridge Country Club in Dyer but that the New Innsbrook Country Club in Merrillville; Idlewild Country Club in Flossmoor; and Olympia Fields Country Club also are attracting some of the Woodmar members.

The club, now shuttered, has 45 days before it must vacate the premises. During that period, club members will have first call on its memorabilia at a private sale planned Nov. 20. A public auction of its remaining contents, including maintenance equipment, golf carts, kitchen equipment, furniture and fixtures, is tentatively scheduled Dec. 2.

Peter Lanman, president of the club's board of directors, said late Monday afternoon that "the sale is final."

"How do you feel when you lose something you've had for 35 years?" he said when asked for his reaction to the club's sale. "I feel empty. It will always be a part of me, but it won't be there for me to enjoy anymore. I'm disappointed and sad."

Mayor Thomas McDermott Jr., who has been leading the charge to bring the outdoor sporting goods retailer to Hammond, was buoyed and relieved that the deal closed.

"It's done," he said. "Cabela's has closed on Woodmar Country Club. The next job will be negotiating the incentive package."

The deal was in jeopardy until Monday morning because the state and Cabela's hadn't completed work on the incentive package, McDermott said. After getting the majority of Woodmar members to vote in August to sell their club, the key to the transaction was persuading Cabela's to close.

The company wanted assurances it would receive city and state incentives for the project, but the state balked because it didn't have all the information it needed to grant the incentives package.

The city approved Woodmar as a tax increment financing district, That means any property taxes Cabela's and other retailers in the district pay above the current level will be used for roads, sewer lines and other public improvements in the district.

But Cabela's also wants the state to use sales tax increment financing money -- the sales tax money the store would generate -- to fund the infrastructure that would exclusively benefit the store and surrounding areas. The Woodmar property lies within a specially designated area, one of a handful in Indiana that can tap sales tax to assist with development.

Cabela's talked about asking for a 60-day extension, but McDermott said the company decided to go ahead Monday after it received letters of support for the project from local economic development organizations, institutions, Hammond and a fax from the Indiana Economic Development Corp.

That fax informed Cabela's of three things, McDermott said: The Indiana Economic Development Corp. is happy Cabela's is coming to Indiana; it wants more information about the development of the outlots for hotels, restaurants and other retail; and it looks forward to negotiating an incentives package with the company.

"If it wouldn't have closed today, it (Woodmar) would have reverted to being a golf course," McDermott said. "Given the first vote and what's happened since, it would have been difficult. I imagine another vote could have turned out differently. ... Within an hour after receiving the IEDC's fax, Cabela's wired $14 million to Woodmar," the mayor said.

Cabela's currently has 14 retail locations nationwide. The newest is an 185,000-square-foot store in Rogers, Minn., which opened in late October. The retailer has announced plans to open stores in Gonzales, La.; Glendale, Ariz.; and Richfield, Wis., in 2006. In 2007, openings are slated for Reno, Nev.; Wheat Ridge, Colo.; East Rutherford, N.J.; and East Hartford, Conn.

Its stores feature large wildlife displays, aquariums, gun libraries, restaurants and meeting rooms in addition to extensive outdoor sporting merchandise. They are known to attract millions of visitors annually.

Although there still are a variety of hurdles before the store gets under way, McDermott said he is confident of success now that Cabela's owns Woodmar.

"This is a huge step in the deal," he said. "We have a developer's agreement to be worked out, a lot of details, but right now it's about the big picture."

Times staff writer Elizabeth Eaken contributed to this report.