Kalispel Tribe poised to buy Spokane Country Club

The Kalispel Tribe is poised to buy the Spokane Country Club for $3 million according to a last-minute deal reached Thursday. At least two bidders were prepared to compete for the venerable club’s course and other holdings during a bankruptcy auction. The Kalispel Tribe of Indians entered the $3 million offer for the club’s 18-hole course, buildings and other amenities that sit along the south side of the Little Spokane River. A latecomer to the bidding process, a trio of real estate developers who run a Western Washington company called Pacific Ridge Homes, had put in a $3.1 million bid. The businessmen making that offer are led by Michael T. Kinney, and also include Mark Hagenbaugh and Michael B. Kinney. Their offer was not addressed during the Thursday court hearing. The tribe has said it will work with members of the country club but intend to fold the course into its expanding Northern Quest Casino entertainment offerings. Kinney had not yet disclosed what his plans for the club would have been: whether he would have attempted to preserve the private status of the country club or whether he would have opened it to the public. The club had hoped to sell the course to a group led by professional golfer Phil Mickelson. That offer, by M Group Holdings, was withdrawn earlier this month, leaving the tribe in a dominant buyer position. The country club filed for bankruptcy protection to stave off a series of gender discrimination judgments awarded to four women members. The agreement between the four women and the club would dedicate about $1.8 million of the sale proceeds to settle the contentious case and attorney fees. All ongoing litigation would cease. Another hearing is scheduled for later this month.