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Dennis Wood

By Dave Warren

The development known as Indian Ridge has experienced a series of ups and downs. From its inception to numerous lawsuits to federal fraud charges, it has been considered a thorn in the side of many Stone County residents and it’s something the county commissioners are well aware of.

Earlier this week, The Ozarks Sentinel sat down with Presiding Commissioner Dennis Wood to discuss the county’s position on the ill-fated development. Wood, who was not serving at the time of the  proposal to build the condominium complex just outside of Branson West, said in order to understand how we ended up in the current position, one needed to know how it all began.

“Like any other development that comes before us, it started out as a great dream,” he said. “The commission supports growth. If we didn’t we would certainly struggle.”[adsenseyu1]

With an understanding the developer would work to be certain the project lived up to expectations, and with completion bonds secured, the board decided to move ahead.

“The county back then, as now, did everything they could for growth and worked within all of the requirements that we place on any developer,” Wood said. “Subsequent to that, the developer decided to sell some of the land development to a developer in Colorado. That was Plot 34. Again, that developer applied and met all of the requirements the county had. At that time, we were excited about the growth it would bring.”

That was then, before the economic recession hit and the primary lending source for the development collapsed and the FDIC stepped in.

As the FDIC began to go through records, some disturbing trends were discovered, and, according to a source inside the federal investigation, fraud charges were sought against the developers.
All the time, principal developer Joe Shirato told the board of commissioners, month after month, for two years, the FDIC would soon release the funds for the project. It never happened.

Instead, the developers found themselves in trouble with federal agencies and facing suits by sub contractors, property holders and workers.

The development know as Indian Ridge found itself in a quagmire of legal wranglings that are ongoing and likely will be for some time to come.

IN 2011, the two development companies entered a plea of guilty to a federal charge of violating the Clean Water Act.

In a press release at the time, it stated, “Two companies pleaded guilty in federal court Monday to violating the Clean Water Act in the development of Indian Ridge Resort Community in Branson West, Mo.
Two firms involved in the development of Indian Ridge Resort Community – Indian Ridge Resort, Inc., represented in court by owner and president James E. Shirato, Sr., and North Shore Investments, LLC, represented in court by owner Donald Snider, Jr. – pleaded guilty in separate appearances before U.S. Magistrate Judge James C. England to the charge contained in a Sept. 1, 2010, superseding indictment.
By pleading guilty today, both companies admitted that they failed to prevent storm water runoff at the construction site from discharging silt into Table Rock Lake.

Construction activities at the site, including clearing, grading and excavation, disturbed approximately 600 acres of land southeast of Highway 76 and Highway 13 from August 2006 through June 2009. The failure of Indian Ridge Resort and North Shore Investments to abate, control or slow the erosion from the construction site persisted through at least the end of August 2011.”

The legal problems have continued to escalate for both Shirato and Donald Snider, Jr.

“When that happened, it was out of the county’s control,” Wood said. “If people do things that are illegal and are subsequently charged with fraud by the federal government, there’s really no protection for the county.”

Wood noted that the liens and suits currently in court need to be settled before the county can do much. “Until the liens are settled, the county is restricted from collecting the bonds,” he said.

By playing the waiting game, Wood and the other commissioners are hoping to avoid a major pitfall.

“If we were to collect the bonds, it could require the county to finish the project,” Wood noted.

Given the deterioration of the project, that would costly. “That’s just not going to happen on my watch,” Wood said.”Far better to live with the eye sore for a while until everything is finalized.”

So what would a possible outcome be for the once highly touted project?

Given the nature of courts today, and facing federal charges, it is likely the plaintiffs with suits and liens will prevail, and likely be awarded property. Such a decision could well let the county off the hook as far as completing the project. The actual outcome is, however, most likely years away.

In the mean time, Wood said the commission is well aware of the anger some people feel toward the development, and the developers.

“I can understand people being angry with county leadership,” he said. But, we are also unhappy about where this went. You can’t protect yourself any more than the law allows. We will survive, but it will take some time.”

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