- June 24th, 2006, 11:05 am
#18987
Some of you guys may remember the discussion about a golf course up on the mountain. But nobody mentioned ski slopes. I'm not sure if this is strictly daydreams or what? But check out this doozy of a story from the fishwrap:
Could this be Falwell's Pigeon Forge?http://www.newsadvance.com/servlet/Sate ... 1967&path=
By Ron Brown
rbrown@newsadvance.com
June 24, 2006
Liberty University officials are considering plans that could turn Candlers Mountain into a multi-use recreational complex including a 100-acre lake, a golf course, a snow ski slope, a horse center, riding trails and a water park.
The Rev. Jerry Falwell, LU’s chancellor, said the “Liberty Mountain Development Plan” is in its infancy stage.
Falwell is looking for outside developers to serve as partners on the project, with the land being LU’s key contribution.
“We have a general master plan that is very flexible,” he said. “We are hopeful that pros that do this full time will help us create the best plan we can possibly create for this property.”
With 4,627 acres in hand, Falwell is setting aside about 1,200 acres for LU’s present and projected campus.
That means the school has 3,400 acres at its disposal for off-campus residential communities, shopping centers and a variety of recreational facilities.
Falwell envisions LU becoming “a cutting-edge university” where families, alumni, interested friends and supporters spend a few days every year with a variety of wholesome entertainment options available.
“It is my goal, if God gives me strength, to take the 4,600 acres we have and create something akin to Gatlinburg or Pigeon Forge, where Christian families come to relax in an atmosphere without alcohol, drugs and violence and where family-oriented entertainment is on every corner,” Falwell said.
Falwell said, with the opening of the new $20 million Thomas Road Baptist Church on the LU campus, the focal point of his future building plans will be on the mountain.
“We are committing ourselves now to long-term construction of student housing on Liberty Mountain,” he said. “We don’t see a time that we won’t be building there.”
Falwell has put his son, Jerry Falwell Jr., in charge of forging the development plan.
“He and his staff will be responsible to meet any and all interested parties to develop a master plan for mountain,” he said. “They are to turn the 3,400 acres into something special. We’re still tweaking. We’re talking to a lot of people.”
Falwell Jr., LU’s vice chancellor, said he is approaching the task with all options on the table.
Much of the mountain’s development will be dictated by the lay of the land.
The linchpin of several proposed projects is the expansion of a lake at Camp Hydaway, a summer camp owned by Falwell’s church.
Currently the lake is about seven acres. The university is acquiring surrounding land that would allow the lake to be expanded to 100 acres. The construction of the new lake will require the building of a new 60-foot-high dam.
The expanded lake would allow the ministry to build a water park, which could be a key amenity to an expanded Camp Hydaway.
“Right now we can have 250 to 300 kids up here on a given week,” said Jonathan Falwell, the executive pastor of Thomas Road Baptist Church. “We hope to expand to get between 500 and 600 kids.”
Just this week, a new 150-foot water slide was completed at the camp.
“We’ll invite kids from all over to come,” Jonathan Falwell said. “We want to reach out outside the church.”
The expanded lake would also allow LU to possibly field a college water skiing team, Falwell Jr. said.
The lake would also be crucial if the ministry were to build a ski slope from the top of Candlers Mountain heading north toward the city.
In the winter, the water of the lake could help in the production of man-made snow on a new ½-mile ski slope, which could also be used for snow tubing, Falwell Jr. said.
“The new lake would have a watershed of about 1,500 acres,” he said. “There should be plenty of water for snow making.”
If man-made snow won’t work, the university is also looking into a synthetic surface for the ski slope.
Preliminary engineering reports say Lynchburg’s winter climate could support a slope of man-made snow.
“The slope that we have has about a 500-foot vertical drop,” Falwell Jr. said. “Some of Wintergreen’s slopes don’t have that kind of drop. Our ski resort would be similar to what the Homestead has near Hot Springs.”
While preliminary planning goes forward for the lake and ski slope, timbering has begun to clear the way for horse-riding trails.
“Some schools in the state already have places where students can keep their horses,” Falwell Jr. said.
While he’s not committing to that, he said some type of horse center is a distinct possibility.
A trail cut across the ridge of the mountain would provide a spectacular view for riders, joggers and hikers, he said.
The church is also planning to build a mountaintop pavilion, which can be used for picnics or gatherings or simply as a quiet retreat for college students.
The pavilion will be shaped as an octagon similar to the current Thomas Road Baptist Church.
“The top of the mountain is a real asset,” Falwell Jr. said.
Last week, former professional golfer Larry Nelson was in town and expressed interest in building a golf course on the mountain.
“He’s got a development team that has built several golf courses,” Falwell Jr. said. “He heard about what we were trying to do up here at Liberty.”
In his 33-year PGA career, Nelson won 10 times, including two PGA Championships and the 1983 U.S. Open. He was the player of the year in 2000 on the senior tour.
“A golf course is something that would benefit Liberty, but it would not be something we would want to do ourselves,” Falwell Jr. said.
“We do have a golf team and that is something that would assist us in developing the rest of the property. All these things will give Liberty University something most schools don’t have.
“We feel we can become something unique in the whole country.”
- By LUOrange
- By ECC29