Dear Friends & Neighbors,
It has been almost four years since I envisioned the Sand Canyon Resort. Although I learned that the EIR process could take many years, I never imagined that it would be so challenging to convert a small portion of an existing golf course into a resort. Since turning in the project plan to the City of Santa Clarita in February 2018, it took two and a half years to get the draft of the EIR released to the public.
Although it was not easy to endure the long process, I was able to spend more time refining my vision for the resort. Unlike most other developments, it takes hundreds of design considerations to develop a 380-room luxury resort spread out over 24 acres. I didn't want to build just another five-star resort. I wanted to create one that offers special experiences to the visiting guests and has a "wow" effect with many of its amenities.
Construction projects typically involve many design and engineering disciplines like civil, architecture, interior design, structural, mechanical, plumbing, electrical, solar power, fire sprinkler, kitchen, lighting, landscaping, swimming pool and more. It's very difficult to maintain close coordination and collaboration among these various disciplines and projects commonly encounter many surprises usually found during construction, causing delays and incurring higher costs. In the US, you cannot find a full-service architecture and engineering company that can design and complete a "turn-key" project.
Another challenge I experienced was the difficulty in visualizing the buildings. Initially designed in 2D using Autocad software, the drawings were not easy to understand, especially by a non-design professional like myself. I always wanted to be able to visualize the exterior facades and interior spaces to ensure it met my expectations.
To overcome the current realities of the construction industry, I set up One Stop Design, LLC in Los Angeles over a year ago and hired various designers and engineers who could design buildings with the latest 3D software programs like Revir, Autocad 3D, Rhino and Enscape. Although I had never worked in this field, I played the role of conductor and orchestrated all aspects of designs.
We ended up redesigning and optimizing the resort's site plan and the architectural design of the buildings. We reduced the grading area and volume by half, reduced the retaining walls by 80 percent, the building foundation area by 20 percent and saved an additional eight oak trees.
We also wanted to implement eco-friendly building systems. The resort will be off-grid with
100 percent of its energy needs supplied by Tesla Solar Roofs and the accompanying Tesla Powerpack battery system. A greywater system will recycle "once-used" water and reuse it for landscape irrigation. We adopted a cold-formed steel framing structural system which arrives prefabricated and is simply assembled at the construction site, minimizing waste, construction time and noise. We continue to explore other environmentally-friendly building materials and systems.
Recently, we created a website - SandCanyonResort.com - to share the project design with the community. The renderings are more than just images but real scale representations of different areas of the resort. On the website, you can also find additional documents and drawings from the project.
Not only will you be able to see how much effort we have put into creating a beautiful resort, but also the many hurdles we have gone through to get approval of the Environmental Impact Report (EIR).
Although the EIR shows no significant impact which cannot be mitigated, the project continues to face opposition from two local community organizations. The website has links to various documents that address their concerns - for example, the worries about traffic and fire evacuation. We have spent considerable efforts and resources to ensure that these concerns are taken care of.
We are requesting a zone change for 24 of the 300 acres of the Sand Canyon Country Club. The zone change would allow just a portion of the abandoned nine holes to be converted into the resort. The remaining 50.9 acres would be dedicated to the City of Santa Clarita as open space in perpetuity.
Most of the members of the organizations opposing the project will not even be able to see the resort, which is located almost half a mile from Sand Canyon Road, hidden within the golf-course grounds.
It is our sincere hope that you will support this project and our efforts to enhance the lifestyle of the Santa Clarita community. Please log onto SandCanyonResort.com to learn more and stay up to date on news and developments.
Steve Kim, CEO
Sand Canyon Country Club

Benefits of the Sand Canyon Resort
It's important to focus on the project's many benefits that will enhance the local community's lifestyle.
• Nearby, convenient lodging for visiting guests
• Family-style, buffet restaurant with international cuisine serving three meals, seven days a week
• Gourmet full-service restaurant serving authentic, regional Italian cuisine
• Beautiful spa and gym facilities
• Tennis and pickleball courts
• Exciting children's playground
• Dog park
• 2.5 miles of walking trails
• Increased safety with nighttime patrol services provided to adjacent Sand Canyon neighborhoods
• The resort will also bring added value to the citizens of
Santa Clarita.
• 500 new local jobs in the hospitality, leisure and
well-being sectors
• Increase in the annual local economy by $57 million, per the Santa Clarita Valley EDC report
• Contribution of millions of dollars to the city via the hotel bed tax
• Large banquet hall for community and private events
• Increased property values for local homeowners
Please visit SandCanyonResort.com for additional information and updates.