Resort Happenings & Updates

February 12, 2010

After being in limbo for more than 29 months, Izatys Resort will have a new owner in a transition that involves a pair of well-known Izatys players and buyer Roy Winjum.

The 78-year old south shore resort on Lake Mille Lacs will be run by Jason and Sherry Tollette until the sale is closed with Winjum, a Faribault businessman. Commerce Bank currently owns the resort. The close date is projected for June 2010. The Tollettes will run the resort through the 2010 season as Winjum prepares a transition team and plan.

A purchase agreement was signed on February 12th. Details of the purchase were not released.

The deal could be a boost to 130 Izatys lakeside town home owners and several thousand Village at Izatys Timeshare holders. Those groups suffered a drop in property/timeshare values with the resort going into bankruptcy and closing, coupled with the recent recession and loss of amenities. The sale should also help support local businesses as vacationers return to Izatys.

Sherry Tollette said that Club 19 will open April 1, starting with weekends. The couple stated that Izatys will be bringing back some fine dining nights in the Shore Room, more live entertainment on weekends and some theme events. Early business tallies put things on the upswing as there are more scheduled weddings than at any time since 2001. Corporate sales are also rebounding. The Tollette’s will hire staff to operate the hotel, Club 19, Blackbrook Golf Course and Walleye World and Marina for the entire 2010 season, according to Jason Tollette.

One staple of yesteryear returns as The Cheeseburger Open Golf Tourney is back after a two-year hiatus. The Stars on the Water Band from San Diego is scheduled to return for the June 19th event. Former Golf Pro Mark Kern will return to run the Pro Shop.

Right now, things are running full speed on the planning side as Commerce Bank scurries to get a needed liquor license from Mille Lacs County and certification from the Minnesota Health Department. The Tollettes will need to hire staff and train a small army of employees to ensure quality service.

Work will also begin on resurrecting the front nine of Sanctuary Golf Course, which was mothballed two years ago and is in dismal shape. The plan is for Mike Eden and staff to have the course ready in time for the 2011 golf season. Tollette said that additional dollars have been budgeted for more and improved course equipment and several key shop needs.

The Tollettes are not newcomers to Izatys.

Jason served as general manager of Izatys from 2003 to 2005 and was the golf pro from 1998 to 2002. The couple teamed up as overall property managers last year for Commerce Bank, which has owned the resort since late December 2008. They helped recruit local businessmen Rand Syverson and Brandon Niesen who successfully ran Club 19. And they had local bait shop owner Bill Lundeen operate Walleye World in 2009. Tollette is the selling agent of the property as part of his Meyer Commercial Real Estate business in St. Cloud. Jason’s father, Dick Tollette, will also devote some time to helping out with the golf course planning and improvements. He and his wife, Marvy, own the Stone Lodge on the property.

Sherry has served in hospitality sales for the last 10 years, leaving a job with Torgerson Properties and Hotels in Maple Grove as sales director for Hampton Inn last year to help out at Izatys. She is spearheading Izatys sales and marketing and will also help with property management.

“I like to call myself the fun director,” Sherry said enthusiastically. “My favorite job as you know is poolside bingo coordinator.”

Owners and vacationers can expect to see some changes and upgrades at Izatys this year. The 28-room hotel reopens with some added amenities, including microwaves and mini-refrigerators in each room,” A recent insurance claim stemming from an August 2007 storm is pending with Commerce Bank and may be used to reroof both the hotel and clubhouse and possibly add needed paint and repairs to both outer buildings.

Golf Memberships are available now and can be purchased replying to the Izatys web site pdf file. And a rental pool is being developed to help accommodate larger corporate groups. For more information, see Izatys.com for golf and rental pool information.

Winjum owns and operates a pair of successful smaller resorts, one in Faribault and one in LeCenter, MN. He signed the purchase agreement Friday and is preferring to keep a low profile during the transition and until the sale is complete, Jason Tollette said.

Winjum has privately expressed several noteworthy visions for expansion of the property but wasn’t available for comment today. April 25, 2009

Izatys: Some Positive News for a Change!

 Just when the Mille Lacs faithful had heard enough about the recession, a fidgety stock market, and an ice barrage on the Big Pond's South Shore, Izatys came out of its long slumber Saturday morning, jolting the local economy with a potential big boost. Jason Tollette, a St. Cloud Real Estate Developer, announced that he and a consortium of local businesses would open Izatys for operation this summer, making speculation official. Tollette, who spent two years as the general manager at Izatys during its peak years, said Blackbrook Golf Course would open May 1. BayView owner Rand Syverson and partner Brandon Niesen, who owns Morningstar Market in Wahkon, announced they would open Club IX in mid May with a full bar and abbreviated food menu and operate a pool bar on weekends from Memorial Day through Labor Day. And local bait shop icon Bill Lundeen stepped forward to announce he will run the Marina and Walleye World for the summer, offering bait, tackle and fuel services. To top it off, the Izatys Townhome Association and the Village at Izatys governing boards gave approval to fund the operation of the swimming pool to complement the total package. Together, that puts Izatys back into action after a 19-month layoff. Tollette said that when Izatys is filled to capacity in both lakeside townhomes, beach villas and Village timeshares that more than 1,000 people occupy the property. He credited Commerce Bank and its partners who took title to the property late last year after Izatys Resort LLC was liquidated in Chapter 7 bankruptcy in the fall, closing in early October 2007. Tollette stated that the bank is injecting more than $500,000 into to the property to get it marketable for sale to a viable owner. He said the bank will payoff more than $400,000 in back taxes to Mille Lacs County Monday. As could be expected, the mood at the Izatys Townhome Association owner meeting was festive with the news and owners cheered and clapped as each local businessman stepped forward, pledging service and asking for support. While there won't be wholesale improvements, Tollette said that the sandtraps on Blackbrook would be redone and that all stumps would be removed from that course. Izatys Pro Shop is now open and offering $500 single memberships, $850 Couple memberships and $1,000 memberships for a family of four. We'll provide you with phone numbers fo the pro shop, Club IX and Walleye World when we receive them. In addition to the resort opening, Par 5 Drive continues its pace toward pavement, which is expected to be completed before the end of the summer as part of a South Harbor Township road project. With the fishing opener still 13 days away, we might have already seen this season's biggest catch!

Due to the confusion among Izatys Resort visitors and The Village at Izatys Timeshare owners, we would like to clarify that Izatys Resort is not/ does not affect your timeshare ownership or usage.