Facilities update: Gym, Golf, Clubhouse, Tennis Courts

Hi All,
We have a penthouse in Phase 3, Block 1 and are due over for another 2-week holiday on 19th October and was just wondering whether the Clubhouse & Gym is anywhere near completion yet?

Also does anyone know how you get to use the Tennis Courts?
Can residents use the Golf Course yet?

Is there a residents/committee meeting 19/10-2/11 that we could attend as it would be nice to meet some other owners after almost 2 years? ;o)
John

Hi. The club house is looking great, the gym fantastic, and the short skirts on parade on the tennis courts is a welcome view.
However, sadly that is all a dream.  We have no gym, no progress on the club house and the tennis courts do not exist.  You will see that the golf course is dead along with render and paint falling off the buildings due to the summer holiday makers hanging  their rotten towels over to dry. I hope we have not burst your bubble, and hope to see you when you are over.  We made the permenant move in May and although things are not progressing with Arenal, we are glad we made the move.  I am sure it will all come good in the end.   Ant & Jo Franks (Phase 2, Bloque 9).

John

What a shame we only came back on Friday and was there for two weeks we could have met up.  We own an apartment in Phase three bloque one also.

There has been no change to the club house and unfortunately due to a sprinkler problem the course is half dead.

We still had a fantastic two weeks and didn't hire a car this time.  If you want to read my visit report join the homestead forum for Benalmadena just google it and it will come up and under diaries you will find my report.

We are back out on 18 Jan and 20 Mar if you are around there at that time perhaps we can meet up.  We have made quite a few friends but it will be great when the club house does open so we can all meet up there.
Pam and Derek

Thanks for the prompt responses. We currently only use the apartment for holidays, however we resigned ourselves a long time ago that this development had some serious issues.  Like others, I am still trying to sort out the fact that our parking spot and storeroom are in another block!  However, like Ant & Jo, we are just hoping it comes good eventually.
Because of the kids, we will next be back in the February half-term, however we will now keep in touch on the forum.

John & Louisa Brown
+44 (0) 7887 713329

My apartment is in Block 3.  Whereabouts are the tennis courts in relation to the 2 schools and the clinic?  Are there any other facilities open to us yet?

Thanks

 

Hi

 

At the moment apart from the swimming pools no other facilities are open, though the new owners are starting to progress the golf course/club house etc.  There will be paddle tennis courts I believe in the future.  It never distracts from our holiday when we are there as we catch the bus by the school and go to the Pueblo, Arroyo and beach so much to do we are only there in the evenings!

 

Enjoy we do

 

Pam

.

Those of you with an interest in the golf course may find the following of interest. As I write a Blog on the dedicated Arenal Golf Forum and I am also a permanent resident of Arenal Golf I was asked by the new General Manager of the course, Rodrigo Villegas of Antequera Golf and AMUK ,if I would be a channel for communication on the progress of the course. I have attempted to copy and paste a recent email ifrom him nto this reply but have failed. The content of the email is as follows;

 

• Antequera Golf are expecting to sign an agreement for the maintenance of the "18 hole Pitch and Putt" and the Club House.
• They have started to work on the first 9 holes which were reseeded over a month ago.
• As soon as the agreement with Prienesur is signed they will call a meeting to update owners and answer their questions.
• He would like to celebrate the opening of the course with some kind of competitive event

 

I have thanked Rodrigo for attempting to let  owners know what is happening and have asked him to email me as further information becomes available. I will then pass this information on through this forum and through the Blog on the Arenal Golf Forum.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Hi Jenken,

                   Many thanks for your update on the Golf course and club house,

Many thanks

 

Samste

Hi all, thats good news jenken i for one cant wait until the opening,its been a long haul by all accounts but will be great in the end....

Well, I hate to be the bringer of bad news but I returned from a few days on AG and it looks to me like it will be many, many years, if at all before the golf course is completed.   That is unless you have a machette, compass and map in your golf bag.  I'm a keen golfer and when the course first started taking shape (countless years ago) it was very promising indeed.  Behind the clubhouse there were some very nicely manicured greens and fairways.  One hole in particular involved a pitch across a ravine.  Very nice.  Then there was the driving range, complete with practice putting green behind it.  Towards phase 3 and 4 there was the intricate series of holes that were set in a meandering water course and by phase 4 there was a large'is lake with a few holes and choice trees around it. 

Now, the place resembles a nuclear holocaust.  None of the above exists anymore. It's saddening.  There are fields of 5' nettles and the lake area is fenced off.  You wouldn't think there was any golf holes there now, EVER.  The fairways between phase 3 and 4 are back to sand/gravel.  The clubhouse shows no signs of being touched for 3 years aside from when they fenced it off years ago.  You can't get to see the holes behind it now but I would suspect they too are destroyed.  The funny thing is they have some sprinklers watering the nettles :D   If it wasn't so tragic it would be funny.

Being one of the first people to move into AG on Phase 1, I've witness the AG machine in action.  I honestly can't see any golf being played here for 5 years, if at all.  Aside from Phase 2, which is maturing and prettying up, and Phase 1, which obviously is mature and complete, I can't see anybody else buying on the other phases?  Why would you buy something in Chernobyl?  I felt for one particular owner who had his 'for sale' sign up - right in the middle of all the cr4p.  Who's going to buy that?  It looked worse than a Glaswegian council estate, even with the sun shining.  The only chance those vendors, including the new company, have of shifting anything is to get that golf course and club house completed yesterday.  Maybe if punters are looking around and people are 'living the dream', playing golf on their own course with the sun shining and life in the club house and driving range, they might want to buy.  As it stands, I'd rather sleep in a cardboard box in London than one of those units.  I'm just glad we're on phase 1 and even then we're considering selling.

 

 Well Oliverson,

Lovely to hear from you again and your usual doom and gloom updates on Arenal Golf.You may regard the later phases on Arenal golf as a nuclear holocaust or Chernobyl but we are more than happy with our apartment on Phase 4 block 7 and certainly enjoy the comforts of a modern well constructed apartment (Slightly more comfortable than sleeping in a cardboard box in London)

There are problems with the promised facilities but in this present economic climate nothing is going to happen too quickly and pressure needs to be applied by the communities in ALL PHASES to Prienesur to complete these facilities.By talking down certain phases on Arenal Golf all that is achieved is downgrading the whole development including phase 1.

Dave.

 

I'm sorry you find the truth so upsetting, and it is. 

Two years ago, when the golf course was showing signs of promise, I took my friends to see it and they remarked how much it looked like a Sheffield council estate, or Milton Keynes and much as I'd like to refute that, they are correct.  It's a hell-hole of concrete and weeds.  Understandably you are upset as you have an apartment on the latter phases and are thus saddled with a depreciating asset but don't hold it against me for pointing out the truth.  The truth that you know but don't want to hear. 

When we bought our apartmetn 5 years ago the agent(s) had bought a couple of apartments 'off plan'.  We felt 'miffed' that those apartments were on Phase 4 and that it was considered to be, quote, 'the jewel of the crown' but we were happy with our purchase.  Wind your clocks forward 5 years and the translation of 'jewel of the crown' must be 'piles of the 4rse'.  What was supposed to be the finest phase on the development has proved to be the worst and if you are honest, you know it.

Sorry to burst your bubble folks but the whole thing is an accident!

 

 

I realise that you may find it hard to believe Oliverson,but many of us on Phase 4 are more than happy with our apartments and enjoy overlooking what has now become a nature reserve, with many different forms of bird and other wild life. I for one would be happy if it stayed that way. It's a much more interesting and relaxing environment than a golf course!

We never had any expectations of living in the "jewel of the Arenal crown" but we did have an expectation of a superb view from our terrace and that's exactly what we've got. 

Yes, there have been many trials and tribulations on the way to completion for all of us, and doubtless there will be more to come, but that has led to the formation of strong and supportive friendship networks that all of us on Phase 4 value.

Your truth is clearly not our truth. I wish you well in your search for utopia, but it's not a search that we need to make any more.  We've  found ours.

 As you admit Oliverson you are considering selling your apartment on phase 1 so maybe its you who is saddled with a depreciating asset not ourselves as we have no intention of selling our apartment on phase 4 and are more than happy with it's location and pool facilities and expect in time the rest of the promised facilities will come about.We never heard of 'the jewel of the crown' quote when we purchased off plan over 4 years ago but we're more than happy with our view of the golf course and part view of the sea from our terrace.

We wish you the best of luck with the sale of your apartment if you do decide to sell.

If you're happy with what you've purchased then that's all that matters.  Perhaps in a few years time phases 3 onwards won't look so concrete-like.  After all, phase 2 is maturing now and doesn't look as bad as it did when owners started moving in.

As for depreciating asset, yes it only matters if you plan on selling right now at the bottom of the market but given we dont' and we bought ours a couple of years before the peak of the market we are somewhat insulated from the crash (still worth more than we paid for it fortunately). 

We're toying with the idea of a long-term let until we clear our minds about what we want to do.  The problem with holiday homes is that on the occasions you get time off work you feel as if you have to go there in order to justify their existence which means you miss out on other places to visit.  The world is a big, big place.  In the last 4 years we've only been to two destinations outside of AG and on the occassions we go back to AG we tend to do the same stuff, eat at the same places, etc.  It's a bit like groundhog day!

Still, when those clocks go back in October and the winter takes hold we might think again!

Hi There.

                I have just picked up on your post from the 19th October 2009,i had to chuckle a little ,as you may know i am on phase 3 ( the solid concrete phase ) were can you landscape here,as i say it is solid concrete everywere,what a shambles.you are quiet write though phase 2 is establishing,as there havent been any posts on Arenal Golf for some while,i wonder if you could inform with the progress on the pitch and put ( is there grass yet,and does it look like golf will be played) as the club house progressed with the tennis courts/paddle courts,etc.I know same old questions,but your response is valid.

 

Look after yourselves

 

Adrian

To anyone based on Arenal Golf,could you please give me an update and let me know how the

developement  is progressing,re golf course ,club house ,and general ammenities,i have not had chance to come out,

to spain for approx 16 months,but i hope to be out shortly,any information would be greatly appreciated.

Many thanks........ Adrian

 

 

 

 

I'm afraid there's been no movement re the golf course, Club House or other Sports facilities, only some basic hard landscaping has taken place on a couple of the waste ground areas and there has been some landscaping done on all the roundabouts apart from the one at the bottom of Heart Attack Hill. Prienesur have still not signed the contract with the company waiting to take on the managhement of the course and the Club House.

 

As soon as I hear (or see )anything you can be sure I will post the information!

Dear Sirs,

Many thanks for the information,i am gutted,i realy thought that the information i received 16 months

or so ago from the sales company would be carried out ,ie golf course ,etc,etc. I am sure you are busy ,

but, is the developement being kept to a good standard ,re cleanliness of the paths and roads,what about the

other phases,i am on 3 and the last time i was there there were a few people living on phase 4,what is the situation on all the

other phases,is anyone living in all these apartments.What is the situation with the swiming pools on the site,i have heard that

the majority have been closed ,if so which ones have been open for the summer,i am looking to come over shortly ,and i

will make another post when i know the exact date,

 

Many thanks for your valuedinformation.

Adrian

 

 

 I am not sure where you got your information about all the pools being closed. For a short period, at the beginning of the summer, all the Phase 2 pools were closed as there were licensing problems, and as far as I am aware one is still closed  due to structural problems. I believe the Phase 3 pools have been open all summer, as have those on Phase 4.

There are now completions in all thePhase 4 blocks, and we have been living on Phase 4 on a permanent basis since March 2008. Completions on apartments in Phases 6, 7&8 have not yet begun.

Most of the roads around the site are cleaned on a reasonably regular basis. Dog dirt ,like everywhere in Spain, is still an issue although on the whole things seem to have improved recently in that regard. There are problems on Phase 4 as our rubbish bins are not yet in use and we have been using skips provided by the developers until quite recently.

All the roundabouts, with the exception of the one opposite Phase 3, Block 1, have now been landscaped and work has begun on the hard landscaping on the site of the former builders compound and that of the proposed Aparthotel.

For regular information on progress you could try looking at the dedicated Arenal Golf website on which there is a twice weekly Blog keeping residents updated, as well as sections relating to the various phases.

If you would like the web site address please send us a private message and we will send you the details.

 

 

This message was last edited by jenken on 10/09/2009.

This message was last edited by jenken on 10/09/2009.