Revitalization Through Golf: Harbor Shores Breaths Life into Benton Harbor, MI

In the 1980s, 6,000 manufacturing jobs went by the wayside over an 18-month period in the Benton Harbor-area of Michigan, located along the shores of Lake Michigan. With the mass employment exodus, a majority of the buildings sat empty for years, leaving roughly 3 million square feet of industrial materials and contaminated soil—enough to fill a football field 80 feet tall.

Harbor Shores: Transforming Michigan’s Great Southwest from KemperLesnik on Vimeo.

Fortunately, Harbor Shores Resort has led a multi-purpose development over the past 10 years that has brought a world-class residential, hotel and golf amenities that collectively signal a turning point in Benton Harbor’s history.

“Before construction of Harbor Shores, the area was in need of a monumental project that could have the scale to bring about real change, with a focus on Benton Harbor,” said Jeff Noel, Vice President of Communication & Public Affairs for Whirlpool Corp. “While the golf course may generate most of the publicity, this community is consistently working on projects to ensure a better quality of life for everyone. Using golf to bring people together to give back remains an ongoing mission and is the proud center of the Harbor Shores story.”

 

 

 

 

 

 

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The Jack Nicklaus Signature Design golf course was a core component of the development located on the shores of Lake Michigan and the Paw Paw River. This community revitalization stands as a remarkable testament to a vision made possible by $900 million in strategic investments, a collective set of projects with collaborating community leaders and organizations led by the Whirlpool Foundation and its benefactor, global home appliance leader Whirlpool Corporation.

Notably, the course, which will be hosting the KitchenAid Senior PGA Championship through 2024, is one of Jack Nicklaus’ 18 favorite designs of all time, and was built largely on what was once polluted land crowded with factories: holes No. 4 and No. 5 were a dumping site for a company that made automobile brakes. Similarly, holes No. 14 and 15 were a former Superfund site once occupied by a company that used radium and mercury to manufacture components for fighter planes.

 

 

 

 

 

 

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Fortunately, remarkable engineering and vision have resulted in an immaculate golf course that runs across four remarkably diverse and beautiful terrains including a photogenic setting along the coastal dunes of Lake Michigan.

 

 

 

 

 

 

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The First Tee of Benton Harbor was also created as part of the development. Headquartered at the Harbor Shores Golf Club, the program impacts more than 1,000 children annually, and is the only First Tee program of its kind in the Midwest to be located at a golf facility.

Today, Harbor Shores is one of the region’s best places to live, work and play. The development has become part of the community fabric, bringing jobs, pride and a discerning class of travelers to its thriving community. The resort dedicates itself to ensuring that more than 40% of its employees (golf course and hotel) are from the distressed census tracts in and around Benton Harbor. In all, more than 3,200 new jobs have been created by community partners, including the Cornerstone Alliance and Berrien County economic development organizations in the area, since 2010. The economic impact from area tourism revenue has seen significant increases each of the last five years, and, with the help of golfers and friends alike, hopes to bring many more years of success to the surrounding community.

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