City Commission to discuss Bobby Jones plans

Since the organization’s inception a year and a half ago, the Friends of Bobby Jones Golf Club has pushed for improvements to the course and the creation of a more ambitious vision for its future.

Today, they’ll have an opportunity to further their mission, as the Sarasota City Commission will discuss both of those goals.

The commission will consider long-term planning for the city-owned, 45-hole Bobby Jones Golf Club. A study by the National Golf Foundation, undertaken earlier this year, states that the city is in need of a comprehensive master plan for managing the future of the course.

The Friends of Bobby Jones Golf Club, led by founder Shawn Pierson, has developed a series of four initiatives that it believes could help guide the future of the facility and attract more attention to the course. The group is pushing for the creation of a master plan, for the preservation of historic elements at the park, for the development of a more challenging 18-hole course and for more effort devoted towards growing the game locally.

In an earlier interview with the Sarasota Observer, Pierson said that funding was a question, but that he was confident the city would commit itself to improving the facilities. Today, he may find out if that’s the case.

Also on the agenda for today’s meeting:

+ Commissioners will vote on finalizing the budget and millage rate for the 2014-15 fiscal year.

+ The city will discuss a potential fee waiver for an appeal seeking to preserve a historic property at 624 S. Palm Ave. Three individuals are contesting the Historical Preservation Board’s issuance of a certificate of appropriateness for the demolition of the building, and are asking the city to waive the $1,597 fee required in the code to file an appeal.

+ Commissioners will vote on authorizing the execution of a redevelopment agreement with the developers of Rosemary Square, a mixed-use “catalyst project” proposed for city-owned land on Boulevard of the Arts.

The full agenda for today’s meeting can be found on the city’s website.

Contact David Conway at [email protected].