Syracuse, N.Y. – A California developer has unveiled plans to turn the former Lafayette Hills country club into a resort community with nearly 300 homes, a 9-hole golf course, man-made lakes and public walking and biking trails. Lafayette Hills Estates & Country Club would be the largest housing subdivision built in Syracuse in decades, with homes ranging from $350,000 to more than $1 million. Sales efforts at the 160-acre planned community would be focused, though not exclusively, on workers drawn to the Syracuse area by the massive semiconductor plant Micron Technology plans to build, starting this year, in nearby Clay. Micron employees will be offered “rent to own” opportunities, allowing them to rent homes for one to two years, with a portion of their rent payments going toward the purchase of their home at the end of the lease. “The original vision was always to meet the housing demand created by Micron’s arrival,” said Kassie Smith, founder of KS Global Development. “But once I walked the site, I saw an opportunity to create something much greater — a vibrant, lifestyle-focused community that blends natural beauty with thoughtful planning.” Texas-based B3R Investments bought the shuttered country club on Lafayette Road two years ago from real estate investor Mike Muraco for $3 million. Muraco closed the country club in 2013, and property soon fell into disrepair. Smith, who launched her development career in Las Vegas, specializes in building lifestyle and resort communities and is partnering with B3R on the Lafayette Hills project. Smith said her company plans to seek planning and zoning approvals from the city in May and begin site work later this year. Keplinger, Freeman & Associates architects, RZ Engineering and VIP Development Services have been engaged to prepare her company’s applications to the city. The former Lafayette Hills country club straddles the Syracuse-town of Onondaga line south of East Seneca Turnpike. The new community is still being designed, so details could change. But currently, plans are to build nearly 300 single-family detached homes, attached townhomes and executive homes on the site. Construction would occur in three phases, with the first two phases consisting of 263 single-family homes and townhomes, man-made lakes, parks, a fitness center, a community clubhouse and pool, and an integrated walking and biking trail system on the Syracuse side of the property. The third phase would be built on the Onondaga side of the site and include a 9-hole executive golf course, at least 25 “estate” homes, many of which would overlook the golf course, a fitness center, and a large clubhouse with a restaurant and lounge and event space for weddings and other occasions. The community would have a homeowners association to maintain its community facilities, but its streets, lakes, and walking and biking trails will be open to the public, Smith said. Membership would be required to use the golf course, but membership will be open to the public. Residents of the community will be able to purchase a membership at a discount. The original clubhouse on the property was demolished on the town’s orders in 2023 after vandals caused enormous damage and set fires in the building. Smith said a new clubhouse would be built on the same spot where the old one stood. Its restaurant, lounge and event space would be open to the public, she said. All homes in the community would be priced at market rates. Smith said the townhomes would start at $350,000, single-family homes at $400,000 and estate homes at $1 million. The single-family homes and townhomes would each have 1,600 square feet of living area and a garage, she said. The estate homes would be considerable larger, but “not mansions,” she said. She said she plans to begin site work on the first phase of the development this year, with a model home open for tours in the spring. Homes would be built at least 10 at a time -- more, depending on demand -- with sections manufactured in controlled conditions in factories and assembled on site to speed construction. “We could get 60 homes up within 12 months,” Smith said. Plans for the first phase include two man-made lakes with pedestrian bridges over them and walking and biking trails surrounding them. Smith said the lake would be large enough for people to canoe or paddle boat on. A community clubhouse to be built in the first phase would be open only to residents and would feature a pool, and basketball and pickleball courts. Smith said she is seeking financial assistance from the city to cover the $3 million cost of extending sewers from East Seneca Turnpike down Lafayette Road to the development site. Additional assistance would be required from Onondaga County to extend the sewers to the town side of the development, she said. City officials have expressed support for her plan and are seeking a state grant to assist with the cost of extending the sewers, Smith said. Ultimately, property owners in the development would pay for the sewers through sewer district fees on their property tax bills, she said. If financial assistance is not available for the sewer lines, her company might consider building a private sewer system similar to one at the nearby Nob Hill Apartment complex, she said. The exact number of estate homes built in the third phase would depend on whether sewers are extended to that portion of the project. Onondaga Town Supervisor John Mahar said the site’s current single-family zoning would require minimum lot sizes of a little less than half an acre if the property has sewers, and even smaller lot sizes if the zoning is changed to planned residential. However, the lot sizes would have to be at least two acres if the developer has to install on-site septic systems, he said. Mahar said town officials have been speaking with county officials about extending sewers down Lafayette Road and are looking forward to seeing the Lafayette Hills site redeveloped to help meet Micron-driven demand for new housing. “The key is the sewers,” he said. Micron has said it will spend up to $100 billion over 20 years to build a massive semiconductor fabrication plant in Clay, 17 miles north of the Lafayette Hills site. Micron says the plant will employ 9,000 people when fully built, with another 40,000 jobs being created at supply chain and other companies attracted to the area by the project. Onondaga County officials are expecting the Micron project to result in a surge in the area’s population, creating a need for a sharp increase in home construction. Rick Moriarty covers business news and consumer issues. Got a tip, comment or story idea? Contact him anytime: Email | X | Facebook | 315-470-3148