Following his 2010 graduation from Indiana University, Matt Welter traveled to Scotland to caddy at fabled Kingsbarns outside of St. Andrews. During his time there, Welter discovered the two worlds of caddies. One, was that looping at a place such as Kingsbarns is a once-in-a-lifetime experience, particularly for an American with a degree in economics; Two, was that day-to-day living experiences for an itinerant caddy can leave a lot to be desired in terms of housing and commuting.
Whether it was at Kingsbarns or any high-end golf club or resort around the world, Welter knew there had to be a better way for caddies to live.
To research a solution, Welter went to this generation’s most successful owner/developer of high-end golf resorts – Mike Keiser.
“I showed him my concept over lunch at the Dunes Club in New Buffalo, MI.,’’ Welter said. “Later that month I was on a plane to Bandon Dunes,’’ Keiser’s flagship property in Bandon, OR.
Matt Welter (Dormy House)
By the time he met Keiser, Welter had five years experience as the founder and owner of a growing development company. That experience and success gave him a clear understanding of the process and all of the parties involved.
The result is Dormy House – a pair of houses in the Staff Village at Bandon Dunes Golf Resort. Comprising a total of 62 beds (15 studio apartments and eight two bedroom apartments) for the employees on approximately one acre of land, Dormy House serves as a prototype of sorts for golf club and resort workforce housing that can be built almost anywhere in the country.
Welter currently is working with the Keiser family and the city of Bandon on some mixed development neighborhoods, including more Dormy Houses and single-family homes.
“Maximizing land efficiencies and cost efficiencies,’’ Welter said. “Housing is a big issue in attracting people to work. It’s important that they can stay in a place for a foreseeable amount of time – not forever – but until they can get their feet on the ground.’’
Photo: Dormy House at Bandon Dunes Golf Resort (Dormy House)