New West Feature

Failed, High-End Ameya Preserve on the Auction Block

By Kate Schwab, 7-20-11

	A shot of Bullis Creek Ranch, where the Ameya Preserve was planned, in Paradise Valley, Montana. Image courtesy of the ranch's official web page.

Bullis Creek Ranch, a property near Livingston, Montana, once planned as a high-end eco development complete with cooking classes by Alice Waters and dinosaur digs with famed Western paleontologist Jack Horner, has hit the auction block.

The ranch that would have been the Ameya Preserve, an ambitious and controversial gated community owned by entrepreneur and American Skandia executive Wade Dokken, was on the market for $30 million last year, according to Adam York of Sublime Public Relations, which represents the auction house.

Now the minimum reserve bid for the 11,000-acre property is set at $15.6 million. Sealed bids are being accepted through today, July 21.

Dokken bought the ranch for $23 million in 2005, according to York. His plan called for 300 luxury homes billed as the ultimate in sustainable living, with Waters and Horner among the celebrities involved. He met resistance from some local residents and conservationists who felt it would be wasteful and incompatible with the surrounding area and local culture. It was never completed.

The use of Horner’s name in promotional materials for Ameya also triggered a breach of contract dispute between Dokken and the Museum of the Rockies in Bozeman, where Horner served as curator of paleontology. The museum claimed Dokken failed to deliver on a pledge to establish a $2 million endowment, part of a $3.3 million gift to support paleontology efforts and to open a dinosaur excavation project on neighboring property. Dokken countersued, claiming the museum neglected to complete dig work that was already paid for and failed to promote Ameya, as well as change Horner’s title to include “Ameya Preserve,” as promised.

Much of the public criticism of Ameya has centered on the content of its marketing materials and web page, which is no longer accessible. Opponents argued that the advertising was deceptive and insisted that a high-end luxury development on the ranch would not be environmentally friendly. Dokken, whose personal bio emphasizes humble beginnings and family life, initially called such attacks a manifestation of “class envy.” He later apologized. Dokken spoke in-depth with New West in 2008, saying he wanted to create “the most sustainable community ever built” at Ameya, with plenty of room for wildlife and energy-efficient housing.

Dr. Pete Feigley, a Livingston ecological consultant who previously spoke against the Ameya project as unsustainable, said that while there’s no way to assess the potential environmental consequences of the sale now, any future development on the scale of Ameya could have “substantial” adverse impacts. In particular, the ranch sits on a location with strong wildfire potential.

“Pictures of the Wine Glass mountain from the turn of the century show it with very few trees,” Feigley said in an e-mail. “Today, the top is forested and the lower elevations are overgrown with juniper and many dead and dying limber pine, Douglas fir, and lodgepole pine. Someday, probably sooner than later, the area will again be relatively devoid of trees.”

The ranch’s own web page emphasizes its ecological importance, noting that 125 distinct bird species populate the area. According to the website, the ranch is also part of a popular breeding ground and migratory corridor for elk, wolves, lions, bear, moose and other wildlife.

Several buyers have expressed interest, including one bidder for the entire ranch, according to Tim Murphy, who is coordinating the auction for Hall and Hall. That means the ranch could go to one buyer without any division at all. Or it could be parceled out to several different parties. About 4,400 acres from the ranch holdings were previously sold three years ago, Murphy said in an e-mail.

The ranch’s 6,765 acres touted in the auction brochure include more than 1,200 acres of state-leased land, Murphy said. Nine tracts of varying sizes totaling 5,340 acres are up for purchase. The ranch includes a 9,000-square foot luxury home. 

The property comes with covenants, which Murphy described as “fairly benign, mostly related to design and siting.” Subdivision procedures are not legally complete on the offered tracts because the auction house is waiting to confer with the successful bidder. If the ranch ends up being divided, buyers will have the paperwork done by closing.

Attempts to reach Dokken or a public relations firm with knowledge of the Ameya Preserve for comment on the sale were unsuccessful.

Park County commissioners did not respond to messages requesting comment. A member of the county planning board referred comments to another source who was not available for comment.

But for one local, at least, it will be enough to see to the ranch go to anyone who will respect the land and its surrounding environment.

“My hope is for someone with scruples and a true conservation ethic to purchase the property,” Feigley said. “Time will tell.”

Kate Schwab is an intern for New West.

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