Plan for Pelican Lake development falls through, sources say

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This article was published 14/11/2023 (665 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

A plan to transform 104 acres off Pelican Lake into a wedding, camping and wellness destination has fallen through, sources say.

Last January, entrepreneurs touted their vision to make Pelican Lake Manitoba’s next major hub. They began advertising the Castle View Castle — an already built castle-like home with seven bedrooms — as available for event bookings.

Funding for the development did not come as expected, sources told the Free Press.

As a result, Castle View Developments co-founders Benjamin Nasberg and Brett Sheffield did not obtain the swath of land about 100 kilometres south of Brandon.

Sheffield died, unexpectedly, in August after being assaulted during a random act of violence in Toronto. He was on a team-building trip.

Sheffield founded the Pilot Mound-based NextGen Drainage Solutions. His colleague Justin LeBlanc, who also worked on the Pelican Lake development, described Sheffield as hard-working and compassionate.

Nasberg, the CEO and owner of Carbone Restaurant Group, is the subject of a recent CBC investigation.

The investigation, released in November, highlights Fast Fired owners and employees who call the franchise a failure; some stated they’re on the brink of bankruptcy.

Finances never came through for the Pelican Lake property, a source close to the development, who asked to be kept anonymous, told the Free Press.

Nasberg did not respond to interview requests by print deadline.

Iris Construction Management, the company slated to work with Castle View, “was not engaged to provide services to be rendered” and did not begin on the project, Scott Kurz, the company’s associate partner, wrote in an email.

He expressed condolences over Sheffield’s death, calling it tragic.

The Pelican Lake property’s owners expected to hand their keys to Castle View Developments in April. In January, the fledgling developers described building cottages, yurts and a tennis court on the land.

Developers planned to spend $100,000 upgrading the castle-like home, Nasberg said at the time. He had ballparked overall development to cost $30 million.

The Rural Municipality of Prairie Lakes conducted an infrastructure study on wastewater capacity with the Pelican Lake development in mind, Reeve Darren Seymour said.

“That isn’t a loss,” he said of the study. “That certainly still needed to happen anyways.”

The lack of development in the promised area, however, is unfortunate, he noted.

“(When) it fell through, it was a disappointment. It looked like it was going to be exciting for the community,” Seymour said.

The latest Facebook post by Castle View Pelican Lake was published April 7; it stated three lake lots were pending sale.

A website for booking Castle View Castle showcases the 2023 Wonderful Wedding Show — which happened in February — and a contest to win a free night’s stay at Castle View with a submission deadline of Feb. 28, 2023.

The Free Press did not learn whether anyone paid money to Castle View Developments.

“Fortunately there wasn’t any money or infrastructure on our side that was being put forward that we’re not getting back,” Seymour said. “A lot of it was still in the talking stages until it fell apart.”

He got a concrete answer from the property’s owners that the development deal fell through several months ago and that there were financial issues, he said. The owners did not respond to interview requests by print deadline.

The municipality’s council is still open to development near Pelican Lake, Seymour stated.

“We want to support it as best we can,” he continued.

The municipality of Prairie Lakes’ population exceeds 1,400 people and covers much of Pelican Lake.

gabrielle.piche@winnipegfreepress.com