Cimarron CC: Back to Life
For any local golfers who once played the challenging Cimarron Golf Course, or the many people who spent time attending social/city functions at Cimarron Country Club’s beautiful facilities, the thought of it dying on the vine, so to speak, was a depressing thought, as if life doesn’t already have more than its fair share of melancholy.
For many locals with money, not to mention wealthy Mexican nationals, they thought they had bought a home next to, or at least in the near vicinity of, a beautiful green course with lush landscapes, beautiful water hazards.
By 2022, the bloom, though, was off the rose and the grass had turned brown.
The old pro shop looked like some abandoned fish shack in Port Mansfield, and even the once beautiful country club’s main building looked like something out of downtown Detroit.
It was clear just by looking at the course that if someone didn’t keep the fairway grass cut, the rough cut to a reasonable length, it was just a matter of time before the place would be crawling with rats, possums, snakes, big cats, and more pests than any one pest-control company could manage.
For the City of Mission, the Mission EDC, the look wasn’t good at all.
Circa 1983/1984, when Cimarron opened, there was hardly any development along the expressway/ Shary Rd. corridor, but in recent years, the area, like most other areas in Hidalgo County, exploded with growth that hardly anyone 40 years ago could have imagined.
So, having a run-down, closed-up 200-acre country club just south of the I-2/Shary Rd. intersection was like having a blemish on a flawless face, a raging pimple on prom night.
Apparently, the City of Mission, in hand with the Mission EDC, thought so, too, and began negotiating with its owners, at that time the local Kamel family, approximately 10 months ago.
Rumors have been circulating for months that the city, with the help of the EDC, was going to try and buy Cimarron and restore it to its former glory. Or at least stop its decline (grass kept cut, etc.).
Monday, the City of Mission sent out the following good-news press release, which discusses how the deal went down and where it’s headed:
MISSION (2-24-24) – The City of Mission and the Mission Economic Development Corporation are pleased to announce the acquisition of Cimarron Country Club, a longtime landmark and championship golf course that for decades was the center of the bi-national social scene.
After extensive negotiations with the former owners, the Kamel family, and the Homeowners Association of Cimarron, the Mission EDC has successfully purchased the 200-acre country club and golf course for $5 million. The City of Mission provided the funding for the purchase, and the City of Mission and Mission EDC will market the facility with the goal of promptly selling the property.
Recognizing its significance, the City of Mission began taking steps in April 2024 to acquire Cimarron and restore it to its previous illustrious condition with the goal of bringing back dining, golf, social functions and business events that were the core of country club’s functions.
Following its closure inAugust 2022, the property fell into decline, impacting residents and leaving a void for entertainment in the area. Acquisition and redevelopment of this major community asset will improve the Cimarron area, elevate quality of life and pair it with economic development efforts that have seen Mission’s retail sales taxes recently increase by record levels.
“Gaining control of such an important asset was absolutely critical to Mission,” Mayor Norie Gonzalez Garza said. “It has been an eyesore for years, and that was no longer acceptable. This now means we can move forward with a positive plan working with Cimarron residents, the City, the EDC, and potential buyers to bring back the country club we all knew and loved and promote economic development in the area.”
As part of its revitalization efforts, the Mission EDC will seek a third-party buyer to purchase the 6,821-yard par-72 Cimarron Country Club – designed by David Bennett in 1983 – and assume ownership and management. The buyer will be responsible for making improvements.
A Public Improvement District (PID), once created and funded by Cimarron residents, will work with the buyer and assist in the improvements allowed under the law. A PID is a designated area where the property owner within the PID can fund improvements. Until a third party acquires the property, the City will maintain the property.
Under the new ownership, the facility will remain a private country club. The City looks forward to collaborating with the Mission EDC and HOA to identify a buyer and keep the community informed throughout this process. Several inquiries for information have already been fielded.