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When Capilano directors heard rumblings that British Pacific Properties might be willing to sell the club and its assets to the membership, the question of acquiring the golf course, clubhouse, furnishings and equipment began in earnest.
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continued from page 2 A Challenging Purchase By 1948, with their golf club venture now on a solid footing as an exclusive recreation area and a boon to real estate values, British Pacific Properties felt that it was time to draft an agreement tightening control of its investment. So, in 1948, a document was drawn up to replace the working arrangement the company had with the club that had been in force up to that time. The new agreement simply re-affirmed the established landlord-tenant relationship and set out the exact details of that relationship. The agreement, dated July 29, 1948, was intended to remain in effect for a period of ten years. It lasted seven. In the early 1950’s, Club President P.E. (Ed) Paulson heard rumblings that British Pacific Properties might be willing to sell the club and its assets to the membership. The question of acquiring the golf course, clubhouse, furnishings and equipment began in earnest, and in September, 1954, a special committee was appointed with the defined purpose of purchasing Capilano Golf & Country Club from the company. The committee was composed of Doug G. Allison, Colonel David M. Amoore, Ken Black, Brice Evans, Dave Kinnear, E. T. (Taddy) James, Hilliard Lyle, Ed Paulson, and Dan McLean. In a remarkably short time, the direct, no-nonsense McMahan had amassed a huge log of information from golf clubs in various parts of North America concerning their modus operandi, entrance fees, costs, and all other such items that would help provide a working pattern for the costing of the Capilano takeover bid. After this blunt warning from McMahan that the whole takeover plan was in imminent danger of collapse unless the required money was raised, the membership finally came through. At a Special General Meeting held in the Hotel Georgia on January 15, 1955, the membership accepted and approved the negotiating committee’s report recommending the purchase of the club for the proposed sum of $825,000. The club incorporated a new company, Capilano Country Club Ltd., and 1,000 shares were sold to members at $500 each, with the caveat that no one member could hold more than 20 shares. In addition, a $475,000, 20-year debenture was secured to close the deal. The Club's Future Is Secured On April 1, 1955, after many months of sparring, an agreement was reached and the club’s purchase offer was formally accepted. The membership was given possession of the golf club property, consisting of 160 acres of land ‘plus all its assets and fixtures', including two lakes and the clubhouse, for the sum of $825,000. In retrospect, that change of ownership a half-century ago represents the most significant turning point in the history of Capilano Golf & Country Club.
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The Capilano Golf & Country Club’s first annual meeting was scheduled for March 1940, and the membership count showed a roster of 233 men, 151 women and seven juniors for a total of 391.
The sum of $300,000 was set as the minimum needed to back negotiations for the purchase of the golf club, and with $180,000 already in the bank, there was little trouble rounding up another $70,000 through share issues. Then things got tough. When the fund drive for the extra $50,000 stalled as members failed to respond further to the offer of A class voting shares at $1,000 or B class shares at $500, McMahan declared a state of crisis. Supported by Bowers, who had already started his preliminary negotiations with the Properties’ people, he advised his committee that it would be pointless to proceed with the purchase draft until they had the $300,000 in the bank.