The glare, however, has turned harsh in the past year as a number of lawsuits threaten the stability of his company.

Columbia Credit Union in January won a $17.4 million judgment in Clark County Superior Court against Bowler’s Two Creeks condominium complex adjacent to Camas Meadows Golf Course.

It’s just one of three civil suits Bowler and Marilee Thompson, his wife and business partner, find themselves defending.

The development game is by nature volatile, particularly in today’s market where home sales are weak and the outlook for commercial projects is less certain.

It’s unclear if legal action Bowler faces is influenced by the economy or other factors. Bowler, on the advice of his attorney, declined to comment, but he did intimate that there has been a concerted effort by some to hurt his company, One Pacific Corp. Bowler’s lawyer, Dennis Paterson, also declined to comment.

Dual reputation

Bowler maintains a dual reputation in the community. One side is the philanthropist, giving hundreds of thousands of dollars to social service agencies, his church and people in need.

The other is a hard-charging and demanding businessman. The business side took a particular hit recently when an investor group that included Bowler and Thompson brokered a deal with the Port of Camas-Washougal to develop 60 acres of waterfront land into condominiums, offices, retail, a hotel and marina.

The proposal created a public backlash. Critics characterized the project as a backroom deal that promised to enrich private investors using public resources.

Bowler and Thompson ultimately left the investor group and a state auditor recently concluded that the port overspent almost $500,000 in public funds related to the proposal and failed to give the public enough access to the process.

People within Clark County’s tight-knit development community who were contacted by The Columbian declined to talk about Bowler on the record. Attorneys connected to the lawsuits either declined to comment or failed to return calls.

Security gate dispute

Court documents filed in Clark County Superior Court provide a glimpse into one of the area’s longtime developers who moved to the region in 1975 and got his business start in cell phones and tanning salons. He and Thompson have built an estimated 2,000 to 3,000 homes in Clark County and Portland, including the high-end gated community Westridge Place. Even that came with a fight though. The Westridge neighborhood association filed a class action lawsuit against Bowler for failing to install a security gate. The case has since been resolved.

The Two Creeks condominium complex adjacent to Camas Meadows Golf Course is another story.

A canopy of trees, walking trails and casting pond are just a few of the amenities Bowler is using to lure buyers to the 122-unit Two Creeks development, where prices started at $400,000. In 2004, Bowler called the surroundings “pristine … a genteel environment, and the views of the golf course and surrounding vegetation are second to none.”

R&H Residential Construction, an Oregon company building many of those condos, filed suit June 12, 2007, alleging Pacific Links LLC, the company Bowler formed to handle the Two Creeks project, breached its contract by not paying a $1.7 million bill. The construction company slapped a lien on Bowler.

Columbia Credit Union, which helped finance the development, was also sued by R&H. The credit union countersued Bowler and Thompson. Along with the $17.4 million judgment Columbia won on Jan. 11, it also has the right to auction off some of the unsold units, something that could happen after Thursday.

Better Foods Land Investment, a California company, is seeking at least $800,000 from Bowler in a suit filed March 5. Better Foods paid $7.9 million in 2005 for the Centerpointe retail center located at Padden Parkway and Northeast 88th Street and anchored by Home Depot. Better Foods claims in the suit that as part of the sales agreement, Bowler promised to improve access into the center.

Better Foods alleges Bowler never did that work and dissolved Centerpointe LLC, gutting the entity and making off with at least $1 million. Eight months later Bowler allegedly reinstated the company as Original Centerpointe LLC.

L&N First of Nevada, another business partner, sued Bowler last year for breaching a contract after the two sides agreed to split the $1.2 million cost of 5.2 acres of land along Southeast 192nd Avenue. Bowler proposed development of a $50 million complex that included a hotel, retail, restaurants, offices and condominiums.

L&N alleges that Bowler violated the contract when he secured a loan from Riverview Community Bank that exceeded the agreed upon amount of $600,000. L&N is seeking damages of at least $980,000.

All three of the development cases remain unresolved. Bowler and Paterson said they expect in the coming weeks to make an announcement related to the lawsuits.

“We are very hopeful that in a short period of time everybody is going to be happy,” Paterson said.

Jonathan Nelson is a Columbian business writer. He can be reached at 360-735-4543 or via e-mail at jonathan.nelson@columbian.com.