(WWJ) It was meant to be Michigan's first upscale "Glamping" resort... but it never came to be.
A company that advertised a luxurious camping experience, and then defrauded would-be campers has taken a plea in a criminal case, according to Michigan Attorney General Dana Nessel.
Bella Solviva Inc. pleaded no contest in Antrim County Circuit Court Monday morning to one felony count of larceny by conversion between $1,000 and $20,000, and one misdemeanor count of larceny by conversion between $200 and $1,000.
This comes after the company's owners, Bradley and Sandra Carlson, were sentenced last month to two years of probation and ordered to pay more than $29,000 in restitution.
“The victims in the case were lied to and taken advantage of, and my office will not stand for businesses that defraud their customers and steal their money,” Nessel said, in a statement. “Consumers must be able to trust their hard-earned money will be used as intended.”
This story began several years ago, when company began advertised what it said would be the state's first "Glampground" — situated on a 229-acre property near Torch Lake, northeast of Traverse City.
When Bella Solviva began taking reservations in 2015, Brad Carlson said there was “tremendous interest” in the project — with more than 1.3 million hits to the website advertising a glamorous, posh or boutique camping experience they called “the new Up North.”
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When the resort failed to open as planned the following year, Brad Carlson said the target was moved to 2017. However, despite taking reservations and money from 2015 to 2017, plans fizzled, and the resort never materialized.
“Engineering and permitting has just slowed things down beyond when we had hoped,” he said in a 2016 interview with WWJ Newsradio 950.
Billed as first-of-its-kind “comfy camping eco resort” the plan was for Bella Solviva to feature up to a dozen different types of unique accommodations... including tree houses, safari tents, hobbit huts, vintage RVs, B&B suites and cabins, and even a themed area in the style of the 1970s TV show M*A*S*H.
In 2016, Brad Carlson said: "At this time there’s stakes all over the ground and sites are laid out, but there hasn’t been any actual construction done."
He said with such a lofty vison, money was tight, leading him to consider starting a crowd-funding campaign or bringing in an investor.
As time passed, however, and Belle Solvia failed to appear, Nessel said the website and confirmation emails promised customers a refund if a reserved site was not built, or not built in time for a reservation.
Despite never building the resort, and repeated requests for refunds, the AG said more than 30 customers did not get their money back.
"Consumers must be able to trust their hard-earned money will be used as intended," Nessel said. "My office remains committed to holding accountable those who don't deliver on their obligations to their customers."
While the company's website and Facebook page have been taken down, a YouTube video "tour" of the resort remains online...offering a glimpse at a dream that never became a reality.
As Bella Solviva is a corporation, it does not face the possibility of jail time, but may be sentenced to pay fines, costs, and restitution, the AG said. Sentencing is scheduled for Dec. 13.
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