mike biber takes over the otsego clubmichigangolfer.com/april07/spring0407_11-14.pdf · ridge by...

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By Jack Berry

In all the years that I’ve inter-viewed people, I’ve never metanyone like Mike Biber who

seemingly almost overnight hasbecome a major figure in Michigangolf with eight courses stretchingfrom Kalamazoo to the newestaddition, the historic Otsego Clubin Gaylord.

Biber summed up our lunchmeeting at The Capital Grille inTroy with an e-mail two days later:

thanks for the good timelaugh too muchtalk too muchwork too hardtalk about families too muchtoo much good foodthen back to worknot a bad combinationlike what we do

Like what he’s done is build acompany, Osprey S.A. Ltd., thatmanages nearly five million squarefeet of space in suburban officebuildings, medical office buildingsand industrial and warehouse spacein Florida, Texas, North Carolinaand Michigan.

Biber said that recreation isonly five percent of Osprey’s busi-ness but, like the bird it’s namedfor, it spreads big wings. It startedsmall, with “player-friendly” par71 Ridgeview in the 1970s inKalamazoo.

“It cost $200,000 back then andwe put $12,000 down. It was allthe money we had.”

Golf is in Biber’s blood. Hisfather, Walter, was pro in Lansing,Sault Ste. Marie, Jackson andfinally at Kalamazoo CountryClub. Biber said his father, RonLaParl of Battle Creek CountryClub and the late Reggie Myles Jr.of the Country Club of Lansingwere compatriots.

“I started working in the proshop In Kalamazoo when I wasfive or six. My dad had me paint-ing the bag room. He emphasizedjunior golf and started caddy schol-arships. He was an innovator. Hewas the first to have carts and thenhe almost got fired for puttingwomen’s clothing in the golfshop.”

In later years when Ridgeviewbecame available, Biber and hisbrother and sister bought it. It isdescribed as “an excellent choicefor senior players, families andkids wanting to play the game at arelaxed pace.”

With the late December acquisi-tion of the Otsego Club, Ospreyhas the blueblood of Michiganresorts, originally the private rustichideaway where the Fords and theBriggs and the Durants skied andplayed golf.

In between, Biber and his part-ners collected The Medalist, ademanding 18 hole course by BillNewcomb in Marshall, ManisteeNational’s two courses, Cutter’sRidge by Jerry Matthews andCanthooke Valley by GaryPulsipher (you can hook – thename comes from a lumberjack’stool) and Wilderness Valley’s twocourses near Mancelona, the first anice relaxed 18 by longtimeOakland Hills professional AlWatrous, and brawny Black Forest,one of Tom Doak’s early designs.

“Tom agreed to finish BlackForest for us – He said it’s thetoughest course he ever designed.And he agreed to look at Manistee.I’d also like to encourage him toredesign the Classic (Otsego’s firstcourse by William Diddle).”

Nothing was set on a date at thetime of this writing. Biber is hop-ing that since the courses are closeto Doak’s Traverse City home

Mike Biber

Mike Biber Takes OverThe Otsego Club

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they’ll be tempting, just a shortdrive instead of plane trips to thefar-flung properties he’s worked onsince becoming one of the most in-demand designers in golf.

Biber’s timing for expandingOsprey’s recreational properties –he was high bidder for KeithGornick’s Otsego Club – mightseem strange in view of the strug-gles in the Michigan market withthe downsizing of the automobileindustry.

“I’m a contrarian. I thinkMichigan is coming back. We’reMichiganders,” Biber said of hisfamily and his Brighton-based

company.Biber said when he and three

partners started the company sevenyears ago as a private investmentcompany, all of the properties theyinvested in were in Michigan.

“My job was to diversify andnow we’re in Florida, Texas andNorth Carolina and less than one-third of our business is inMichigan. It’s easy to lease 100percent in Houston, Tampa andCharlotte but not in Detroit. Butwe have 1.5 million square feet inDetroit and it’s fully leased.

“Everybody criticizes Detroitbut we think it’s on the rebound

and the automobile companies areworking hard. It’s a gamble for us.You take what the market godgives you and there are good pricesin Detroit right now,” Biber said.

“We have a good team withgood young people and we hope tobuild the company for their grand-kids.

“Golf is a tough business in atough economy in a tough state.We’re making money but not a lotof money. You’ve got to manage ithard and give good value. Whenyou buy low, you better have a lotof capital. You better be in thebusiness. It better not be a hobby. I

The Lodge at the Otsego Club

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didn’t buy a ski hill(Otsego) because I love toski. I haven’t skied in fiveyears.”

Osprey’s plan for Otsego,which Detroit steel magnateDon McLouth opened in1939, is renovating all of thecabins and lodge and con-structing a first class snow-boarding area. Michigannever can match the Rockiesfor ski terrain but you don’tneed a 14,000-foot mountainfor boarding.

The Gornick family,Keith and his father, Alan,before him, made “the Club”a family area for the halfcentury they operated it.Biber said he used to takehis family there but over theyears, as the youngsters gotbigger but the hill didn’t,they lost interest in skiing.Boarding has brought themback and Biber said “Keithand his family have meant alot to Michigan families andwe hope to carry on that tra-dition. Otsego is a little gemthat we hope to take to thenext level.”

Biber expects the combi-nation of Doak’s BlackForest, just a short drivesouth of Gaylord, andOtsego’s Tribute course withits spectacular views overthe Sturgeon River Valley, tohelp fill the resort’s 100rooms.

As for neighborhoodcompetitor Treetops, only afew miles east of Otsego,

Biber said “Thank God forRick Smith and Treetops.There’s 100,000 potentialcustomers driving right pastmy place.” And he likesArcadia Bluffs, Smith’saward-winning design justnorth of Osprey’s two cours-es at Manistee National.

“They’ve been wonderfulto us,” Biber said. “We hada wind shear that took out500 trees and they were thefirst to call us and offer ushelp. The best thing thatcould happen to us was tobe near them.”

There’s method to thatmadness too. Manistee hasrooms, Arcadia doesn’t.Golfers can stay and playManistee and drive on up toArcadia to play there.

“Four years ago I wasasked what is the bestcourse in the area. I saidCrystal Downs is first and itwould probably cost $600 ifyou could get on it. ArcadiaBluffs is next and it’s $180.We charge $60 and I said‘When you’re done, tell mewhich one you enjoyed themost.’”

Biber obviously enjoyswhat he’s doing and wherehe’s doing it. He cancelleda meeting in Floridabecause he didn’t want tomiss the first snowfall inMichigan.

“Now if it was the 50thsnow…” he said, laughingall the way. MG

Osprey

By Jack Berry

What’s in a name? Theumbrella name of sixMichigan golf proper-

ties and a private real estate trustbased in Brighton came whenMike Biber had a small home inOsprey, Fla., a town of 4,000 onthe Gulf of Mexico, south ofSarasota.

“I bought a little bitty propertythere and I needed a name for it. Ithought of a couple names andwas told they weren’t available,”Biber said. “So I said Osprey.They said that wasn’t available soI said Osprey SA Ltd. I was buy-ing a company in Spain at thetime and SA is company designa-tion and stands for SociedadAnonima.”

And what is an osprey?Ospreys are large raptors with awingspread of 4-1/2 to 6 feet.They plunge feet first into thewater for fish. They’re not only inFlorida and up the east coast butalso in northern Michigan waters.

Looking for a picture of anosprey for the company logo,Biber said a friend showed himthe back of a Canadian $20 bill.An osprey. MG