Jaffe Family
Plans to Lead HSB into When Horseshoe Bay Resort's founder, Norman C. Hurd, and other shareholders Ron Lynn Mitchell and Frank Dan King, sold their interests in Lake LBJ Investment Corp. in September of last year and turned the ownership of the resort over to the Jaffes, a prominent San Antonio family, a long-held dream of that family came to fruition. Recently Douglas Jaffe, son of Morris Jaffe, Sr., expressed his admiration for Hurd's outstanding accomplishments in the development of the resort to date, and reiterated the family's commitment to make Horseshoe Bay one of the truly great resorts of the world. "I have a love for Norman Hurd's dedication and accomplishments, and for what he has achieved for the resort," he said. "I plan to continue in the same vein. I consider it an honor and a source of pride to have the opportunity to continue the Horseshoe Bay tradition. I'll do my best to see Horseshoe Bay reach its full potentials. And, since this is a dedicated, single-family ownership, as it was in the past, we will be able to more easily reach this objective. "As stated by Norman Hurd, we're no more than 30 percent developed. Our goal is to make Horseshoe Bay the finest resort in the United States, and listed among the great resorts of the world. I have commited, and will continue to commit, whatever resources are needed to achieve these goals." Following the acquisition of the resort 10 months ago, Jaffe has put his own green — millions of it — into bringing this commitment to reality, beginning with improvements to existing amenities and the development of new ones. And plans are on the drawing board for even more world-class developments that will begin in the near future. 1996 saw the renovation of the building that once housed the Boardwalk Restaurant into a new amenity dubbed the Waterfront Pub and Eatery. This building contains several restaurants and lounges, including the Men's Sports Bar, the Ladies' Garden Room, The Deck Bar, the Teen-Can-Teen Club for young people and the Marina Club on the Mezzanine. Located adjacent to the Waterfront is another outstanding amenity called Kick-A-Poo Springs, a Norman Hurd-designed landscape and water complex consisting of fountains, falls, boulders, plants, statuary, totem poles and special lighting. Boat stalls allow for easy access to the Waterfront by personal watercraft and the outdoor pool tables and automated fogging system make The Deck at Waterfront Pub and Eatery a great lakeside adventure. 1997 heralded the opening of Bayside Fitness Center. The Jaffes spared no expense in creating an amenity not merely equal to the outstanding ones already in existance in Horseshoe, but one also a step above the norm in the fitness club industry. Bayside Exercise Pavilion features the finest available in exercise equipment, including a full line of Badger Magnum weight training equipment designed for upper and lower body training, top-of-the-line cardiovascular equipment featuring Woodway treadmills and Entertainment bicycles equipped with individual televisions and VCR systems, all with customized programming capabilities. Certified and degreed personal trainers skilled in the field of comprehensive fitness appraisals use computer technology to test vital signs, muscular strength, muscular endurance and flexibility in order to ascertain the right exercise for the individual. Bayside provides specialized spa services, and a staff of licensed therapists offer a variety of personalized care, including facials, manicures, body treatments, massage therapy and pedicures within the privacy of individual pamper rooms and climate-controlled environmental rooms with numerous features, including a unique rain forest effect designed to relax and help put the individual in tune with nature. Nearing completion is the conversion of a 99-unit Watergardens complex into a five-star luxury hotel operation that will create some 140 additional bedrooms. Called Adventure Inn, the new facility features lush tropical landscapes, theatrical lighting and manicured grounds. It offers individual in-room spa tubs and wet bars and one-, two- and three-bedroom townhome-style units, as well as two V.I.P. suites. Both suites come with a fireplace, kitchen and multiple decks overlooking an island boasting a waterfall, lush lancscaping, theatrical lighting and a gazebo veranda. Adventure Inn's clubhouse overlooks a large swimming pool set in a flagstone-paved terrace, surrounded with poolside tables and chairs and potted palms. Across from the terrace, multi-leveled oriental water gardens, massed tropical landscapes, six clay tennis courts and a covered tennis complex surrounded by water and fountains on three sides, combine to set Adventure Inn well apart from traditional lodging concepts. The rooms of Adventure Inn, combined with those of the Inn of Horseshoe Bay, the Beachhouse and the Hide-A-Way Inn, bring the total lodging accommodations to 500-plus, making Horseshoe Bay Resort's outstanding assets available to even more people who appreciate the finer things in life. The lodging facility strives to live up to its name, offering adventure, fun, relaxation and discovery in a luxurious setting in the one-of-a-kind world of Horseshoe Bay Resort. Jaffe also did major renovations to the Yacht Club, adding new furnishings, and made major purchases of transportation vehicles, including vans, pick-ups and people movers. At Slick Rock Golf Course, he added an irrigation and pump system, top of the line golf course maintenance equipment and a new fleet of golf carts. As Phase One of major improvements planned for all of Horseshoe Bay Resort's golf course, Jaffe upgraded all 54 holes and renovated all of the restroom facilities on the courses. In order to expand the amenities in Horseshoe Bay, Jaffe also purchased all of the land around the present amenities. "We're going to digest what we've already created and get things running smooth," Jaffe said. "At the same time, we plan additional amenities, and will start on them next year. We plan a total renovation and expansion of the Yacht Club's banquet and meeting facilities and the development of the 750-acre Hurd Ranch located between Horseshoe Bay and Horseshoe Bay West, which will include an 18-hole golf course, a major clubhouse, and first class recreational facilities. "We will offer estate-style golf course lots, a highly secured area, a golf instruction school, an equestrian center, an upscale retail center fronted on Highway 2147 and exclusive locations for high tech campus sites. "We plan to completely rebuild all of the greens at Slick Rock and construct continuous golf cart pathways, which will enable us to open the courses during the wet season. This will give us an average of 22 more days of golf a year. A major renovation of the Slick Rock Pro Shop will coincide with the green replacement." Jaffe stressed the importance of continuing to offer first-class golf at Horseshoe Bay Resort. "Horseshoe Bay is a golf destination resort," he said. "The other amenities here are compliments to our golf. We have the largest Robert Trent Jones, Sr. golf complex in the United States, and we take pride in maintaining it in the highest standards possible. It's an ongoing process of continually improving the aesthetics and playability of the courses, so that we're always going forward, instead of just maintaining the status quo. There's no such thing as staying even; you either progress or go backward. Our goal is to make Horseshoe Bay golf courses the best in the nation and listed among the best in the world." Jaffe added, "Because golf is the heart of the resort, and because of the continued growth of the amount of rounds played on the courses, it's imperative that we add 18 holes in the immediate future. We talked with the Fazio Group, and their reaction to the topography and beauty of the Hurd Ranch make it truly ideal for a great golf course. We will start on this project in the very near future." Jaffe explained also that he had owned the Horseshoe Bay Marina and had leased it to Bob Weed for years, but in May of this year bought the lease back in order to put its control back into the hands of the resort. After this move, Jaffe said, all of the amenities are now under one umbrella. "If you don't have full control of all the amenities, the quality of service varies and the experience of the guest can be one of mixed reaction. For instance, you can have great golf but lousy food. At Horseshoe Bay, we constantly strive to maintain the highest standards of quality in all of our amenities." Improvements to the marina are currently underway, and when completed will include extended hours of operation; expanded fueling facilities with separate boat and personalized watercraft fueling locations for quicker and safer fueling service; construction of the Kapalua Hut, which will provide watercraft rental services; and the addition of a new fleet of top-of-the-line deck boats, ski boats, tour boats, waverunners and all the accessories that make for an enjoyable lake outing. Renovations on the Ship's Store are underway, and a part of the change will be its new name, the Skipper's Hook Retail Shop. The shop will specialize in water sports equipment, casual resort lake-style fashions, gifts, souvenirs and sundries. The upscale Skipper's Hook will feature multiple level shopping, lakeside decks and direct access to the adjacent Waterfront Pub and Eatery for the convenience of members and guests. Sunset water cruises aboard a customized tour boat, the Bay Queen, are planned as a prelude to an evening of dining at the restaurants of the Yacht Club or at the Waterfront Pub and Eatery. In addition, plans are to provide a marina taxi service, offering members and their guests an evening voyage from their home to the Yacht Club's exquisite Captain's Table as a preamble to a special dining experience in which dishes are prepared tableside. Cocktails will be available aboard the boat. One of the most ambitious plans to date, however, is Horseshoe Bay Resort's FLY-GOLF. "In October (of this year), Horseshoe Bay Resort's newest amenity will 'lift you off your feet,' " said resort President Ron Mitchell. "Horseshoe Bay has purchased and is currently customizing its first in a series of DC-9 (jet) aircraft for the purpose of making Horseshoe Bay accessible to citizens of the United States, Canada and Mexico by the luxury of private air travel. (This) concept will allow individuals and groups of resort guests and members the opportunity to arrive and depart Horseshoe Bay on a luxury, all first-class aircraft. Overstuffed, recliner-style, high back lounge style seating, individual television viewing and all the personal service of a luxury ship will make future arrival at Horseshoe Bay an adventure within itself. With Horseshoe Bay Resort's FLY-GOLF we are redefining air travel convenience and service." Jaffe said Horseshoe Bay Resort is the only destination resort in the United States that owns its own transport category (commercial aircraft) airport, and that the resort's 6000-foot runway compares with the length and width of most municipal airports and can easily accommodate DC-9 and 737 jets. "All of the other premier resorts in the United States have to maintain a shuttle from the nearest airport to the resort, usually a trip of an hour or an hour and a half. Without our own airport, guests and members coming to Horseshoe Bay Resort would have to change airplanes and then we would have to shuttle them from (the nearest airport) to Horseshoe Bay and back. "We're acquiring two DC-9s, which will allow guests and members to travel non-stop to Horseshoe Bay aboard a luxury plane. We will be able to offer members and guests the opportunity to fly from here to any destination in the United States, where they can shop, see a play, dine, then return to Horseshoe Bay at the end of the day. We'll also offer special packages to all parts of the world. We will add one plane at a time as we build up our fleet. The idea is to constantly enhance the privileges offered to Horseshoe Bay Resort members and guests." Jaffe said also that Horseshoe Bay Resort has begun to witness more corporate executives establishing full-time residence here. "The central location, the airport facility and the quality of life at Horseshoe Bay lend themselves to business executives locating here," he said. "It's closer for them to fly to any part of the United States from Horseshoe Bay. For this reason, many executives are locating here, building either primary homes or second homes." The development of Horseshoe Bay Resort has cost a lot of money over the years — and will continue to require mega bucks, Jaffe said, but there are two primary reasons why the means have always been available. "Horseshoe Bay has never had a down year since it opened. Even in the 1980s in the worse recession in the history of Texas, Horseshoe Bay Resort continued to grow and prosper," he said. "We attribute that to the fact that a lot of Texans and members who had homes here cut back; they didn't go to Europe — they came to Horseshoe Bay. This is why we can continue to build outstanding amenities." Another reason, he explained, is that since the beginning, none of the shareholders have received any dividends. Every dime of the profits have gone back into developing — and maintaining — the resort's amenities. Not only that, Norman Hurd also has also taken money out of his own pocket to assure the development of the one-of-a-kind resort that he envisioned from day one. Jaffe said that over the past 10 months he has put millions of his own money into the resort, because he is committed to bringing to reality the vision that he shares with Hurd — that no other resort in the United States will be able to rival the quantity and quality of the world-class amenities and services found at Horseshoe Bay Resort. |
