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267 Acres.
Here's How It Actually Divides Up.

The developer's plan encompasses all 267.5 acres of the former Lester Park Golf Course — the 230-acre main parcel plus the 37.5-acre Lake Nine parcel. A regulation 18-hole golf course requires 150–180 acres minimum. Here's what's left.

Context

How Big Is the Lester Parcel, Really?

Hartley Park
660 acres
Entire Lester Parcel
267.5 acres
Chester Bowl Park
120 acres
Housing + Everything Else
~100 acres

The "housing + everything else" bar reflects the acreage remaining after a minimum-standard 18-hole golf course (~165 acres) is carved out of the full 267.5-acre parcel. Sources: Duluth Parks and Recreation; developer presentations to City Council.

The Proposed Plan

How the 267.5 Acres Would Be Divided

GOLF COURSE ~165 acres (18-hole minimum)
EVERYTHING ELSE ~102 acres
Golf course (~165 ac, 18-hole minimum) 455 housing units + hotel + retail + trails + parking (~102 ac)
The developer's plan calls for 455 housing units on a parcel that — after the golf course takes its ~165 acres — leaves roughly 100 acres for housing, a hotel, retail space, trails, and parking. That's still less than Chester Bowl Park (120 acres), with far more packed into it.

Golf course acreage based on USGA and Golf Course Superintendents Association minimum standards for regulation 18-hole courses (150–220 acres); midpoint ~165 acres used here. Developer's 455-unit figure from Tim Meyer's December 3, 2025 DNT op-ed and working group presentations to City Council. Total parcel: 267.5 acres (230-acre main parcel + 37.5-acre Lake Nine parcel).

The Housing Math

455 Units on ~100 Acres — How Tight Is That?

Each square = 1 acre. 100 acres total for housing, hotel, retail, trails, and parking.

Housing
~40 acres
455 units + setbacks + internal roads
Hotel + Retail
~20 acres
Resort hotel, two restaurants, shops
Trails + Open Space
~22 acres
All remaining green space and trail connections
Roads + Parking
~20 acres
Access roads, surface lots, infrastructure
~22 acres of trails and open space — for a development the city is calling a park-connected resort. Chester Bowl Park is 120 acres. The Lester River trail corridor alone is miles long. Fitting meaningful trail connectivity and green space into 22 acres alongside a resort development is not realistic.
For comparison: Greater downtown Duluth — already served by existing roads, water, sewer, and transit — could support approximately 2,175 new housing units annually according to a 2023 city study, on land that's already developed. Greenfield infrastructure costs run 3–4× higher than infill.

Acreage estimates are illustrative based on standard development ratios. The developer has not released a detailed site plan. Housing footprint assumes ~2,400 sq ft average lot equivalent per unit including internal circulation. Hotel/retail estimate based on Sunnarborg's stated program. Roads/parking assumes standard suburban ratios (~25% of net developable area).

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