Rising above the quaint Okanagan Valley town of Peachland is Pincushion Mountain, so named for a fire that swept through in the 1800s and left blackened tree trunks in its wake. Its summit is the highest vantage point in town, offering a panoramic view of nearly one third of the valley, with Kelowna’s upscale Mission district to the west and the vast vineyards of Naramata to the south.

It is here, just below the summit’s unprecedented vista of mountain and azure lake waters, that a new, billion-dollar community is being built. Far from a cookie-cutter Okanagan real estate project, Ponderosa will gently exist among hundreds of acres of fir and pine forest, offering unparalled recreation opportunities in a natural setting.

Located in the centre of the Okanagan Valley, Peachland is a year-round paradise featuring 300 days of sunshine, 11 kilometres of accessible beaches and small town charm. It’s just 10 minutes from the urban conveniences of West Kelowna and perfectly situated for drives to golf courses, ski hills, orchards, vineyards and more than 100 wineries.

Starting construction this year, Ponderosa will be a community within a community, complimenting charming Peachland while offering a mix of housing opportunities, and all surrounding a new, Greg Norman designed, signature Okanagan golf course.

Inspired by the unique mountain terrain of the site, the Ponderosa Golf Course will be championship calibre that offers both challenge and playability.

“Our goal is to create a golf course that mimics the unique characteristics of the site as well as the surrounding familiarity of the town,” says Lee Marshall, design associate with Greg Norman Golf Course Design.

Known in golf circles as The Shark, Greg Norman is one of the most prolific international players in golf history. He was the number one ranked player for 331 consecutive weeks and maintained active membership in the U.S., European and Australasian tours. Playing many of the world’s greatest golf courses over his 25-year career led to an interest in golf course design.

In 1987, Norman established his design company and it has completed more than 70 golf courses on six continents. Award winning in design, many of Norman’s courses have been awarded the Audobon Society Award for environmental stewardship.

“Because each design bears my name, I personally make it my mission to get involved with every step of the golf course design process, from walking the virgin site, to planning and construction, to opening day,” says Norman, who called the Ponderosa land, “A magnificent site.”

During a visit to the Okanagan, Norman commented, “It’s like Napa Valley meets Lake Tahoe.” Vancouver-based Treegroup Developments Corp. is developing the Ponderosa real estate community in the Okanagan, and CEO Norm Porter invited Norman in 2008 to check out the existing 18-hole course. One helicopter ride convinced the golf legend of the site’s championship potential.

The Ponderosa Golf Course has been a Peachland icon and regional favourite for more than 30 years, offering unique terrain and lake viewpoints. With the addition of hundreds of acres of new land, Norman has been given a blank canvas to create a dream course. Norman’s design company has come up with a 7,100-yard course that uses the challenging elevation changes of the site by strategically placing the course among the existing slopes, benches and forest. Multiple tee areas, bunkering and landscaping will help define the course, creating a memorable and exciting experience for all levels of players.

The result will be a signature course gently wrapped around the base of Pincushion Mountain offering unprecedented lake views in a natural setting. Ponderosa will feature a mix of hole lengths and challenges, from a peppy 199-yard hole, to the forest-lined, 653-yard fairway next door. Wrapping up the experience for Ponderosa golfers will be the 532-yard 18^th hole, situated on a ridge running parallel to and offering awesome views of, Lake Okanagan.

Golfers will begin and end their Ponderosa experience at the world-class clubhouse, situated in the heart of the community’s new village centre. Within walking distance will be a vineyard and winery, luxury hotel, shops, restaurants and golf academy. Nearby will be the central plaza, featuring an amphitheatre and year-round, outdoor ice rink.

Built with pedestrians in mind, the Ponderosa community will feature miles of walking trails, linking residents and visitors to the village centre from all residential areas and out into the natural preserved areas, including up to the lookout at the top of Pincushion Mountain.

More than 2,000 housing units will be built at Ponderosa, one of the Okanagan Valley’s largest real estate projects, from resort-oriented condos to single-family and multifamily homes that will cater to all ages and income levels. Homes will feature sustainable, energy-efficient designs with year-round liveability in a thoughtfully designed community.

The new Ponderosa Golf Course is scheduled to open in 2011.

Did you know Peachland celebrated 100 years as a municipality on January 1, 2009? For the next 365 days, residents, tourists and Peachland alumni celebrated the town’s centennial. The town’s history can be traced back a further 100 years to the arrival of the first European settlers to the Okanagan Valley.

Peachland, B.C. – Work on Peachland’s largest development and only golf course is moving ahead with crews concentrating on fire fuel mitigation and fairway clearing. The project is on schedule with a 2011 target for opening the new Ponderosa Golf Course.

The Okanagan Valley used to be a fire maintained ecosystem but human intervention has interrupted the normal growth-fire cycle.
“The ecosystems in the valley here are used to having fires go through them every two to 20 years. Fire is a normal part of the ecosystem,” Forester Richard Swanson said in 2005. “We have stopped fires and we continue to have fuel build-up.”

Pine trees constantly add to the fuel load on the forest floor. Needles fall to the ground, as do branches and twigs. Mother Nature used to take care of the fuel through fire, which would clean out the debris and small trees, leaving open area stands of mature trees.
Aggressively fighting fires for the past 60 years has meant an accumulation of fire fuel. Now if a fire starts in the forest, it no longer hugs the ground and cleans out debris; it devastates and kills everything in its path.

If nothing is done, fuel loads will continue to increase, setting the stage for wildfires like the 2003 Okanagan Mountain Park fire and the 2009 Glenrosa and Terrace Mountain fires.

The District of Peachland embarked on a fuel mitigation program five years ago. Since then, hundreds of diseased, dead and dying trees have been removed from parks and public property. Treegroup will do the same on Ponderosa lands, eventually reducing the wildfire risk throughout one third of the town’s immediate interface areas.

Treegroup is committed to reducing the wildfire risk in and around the Ponderosa lands while protecting critical wildlife habitat. A plan is being developed to revegetate areas at risk of erosion because of beetle kill. A mix of deciduous and coniferous trees, adapted to the climate, will be planted to stabilize slopes and valleys.

Plans approved by the District of Peachland call for 60 per cent of the 400-acre development site to remain natural open space, parks and golf use.

Join legendary golfer, Greg Norman, Chief Robert Louie of the Westbank First Nation along with Norm Porter and Derek Chichak of Treegroup Developments Corp. for the official announcement of the new Greg Norman Championship Golf Course and new Ponderosa Community in Peachland, B.C. Community Open House is from 2 to 6 pm with the announcement taking place at 3 pm at which time Greg Norman will address the community. Taking place at The Gazebo at Heritage Park, Beach Ave. and 1^st Street, Peachland, B.C.