Three childhood friends and their families purchased the historic ViQueen Lodge on Sinclair Island, after Western Washington University put the property up for sale this summer.
The ViQueen Lodge was a recreation spot for Western students, staff, faculty and alumni for nearly 100 years, before Western’s Board of Trustees approved the sale of the lodge due to low usage and liability issues. The university listed the property on Aug. 9 as two parcels for close to $1.1 million combined, one with the lodge on it and one adjacent.
At the news of the impending sale, island residents voiced concerns that the properties could be redeveloped and would no longer be open to student and public use. Students put together a petition against the sale.
Liam Doyle, Rick Pemmant and Ryan Moore, and their wives Juli Stoplmann, Nermin Wahdan and Alyssa Kocsis, formed the ViQueen LLC to purchase the property with the lodge as a recreation spot for their family and friends. The sale went through at the end of October for $752,800, after the final guests departed the property.
The three men grew up in Bellingham: Pemmant and Moore went to elementary school together and met Doyle in middle school. They’ve all spent time on Sinclair Island, and two of the three had visited the ViQueen Lodge before they purchased it.
“It’s always been sort of a dream to have a spot out there that we could share with our family and leave a legacy for our families and friends in the future and friends in the community,” Moore said.
Pemmant said they were aware of the “trepidation” from islanders on the sale.
“But I think, for us, that was one of the big reasons we wanted to try to throw our hat in the ring to purchase it, because we felt like being local, having families wanting to honor the lodge and the history, having deep connections to … that island in particular, as well as just the community at large, we would be the ideal candidate,” Pemmant said.
Doyle said the history of the ViQueen is “something that’s very sacred.” The property was purchased in 1928 by the Women’s Athletic Association of the Bellingham Normal School, now known as Western. Doyle said they have no plans to make major changes to the nature of the property.
Moore said the three families now have five young children between them, from 7 months to 3 years old. Doyle said they hope the property will be like “summer camp” for their kids.
“It’s a place for them to go and run around and learn about nature and enjoy the shoreline and the forest,” Doyle said. “I think people can rest assured that we are going to blend in quite smoothly and not cause any disturbances and honor the history of the place.”
The other Sinclair Island parcel that Western put up for sale was purchased for $432,000 in August by Leadbetter Sinclair Tract 1 LLC, governed by Pete Dawson and Helisa Omey of Dawson Construction, and Keith Omey, according to the Washington State Department of Revenue. Helisa Omey did not reply to an inquiry on what the plans are for the property.
Western intends to use the proceeds of the property sales to create an endowment for student clubs and activities. Director of Communications Jonathan Higgins said the university is planning to set up that endowment in the next fiscal year, 2025–26.
Charlotte Alden is CDN’s general assignment/enterprise reporter; reach her at charlottealden@cascadiadaily.com; 360-922-3090 ext. 123.
