Final decision looms on future of Bobby Jones

At a January City Commission workshop, after board members spent more than 90 minutes discussing three plans for redesigning the 293-acre Bobby Jones Golf Club property, Commissioner Shelli Freeland Eddie was eager to pick an option and move forward with a project on the city’s to-do list for years.

“I want to get this scheduled on an agenda item as soon as possible so we can make a decision,” Freeland Eddie said. “A final one.”

That final decision could come during the afternoon session of Tuesday’s commission meeting, where the board is scheduled to once again discuss the three redesign proposals for the city-owned golf facility.

All three options would reduce the footprint of golf amenities at the 45-hole course. Options one and two would create 27 regulation holes, a nine-hole short course, a driving range, practice facilities and more than 90 acres of public parkland. Option three would shrink the golf course further, reducing it to 18 regulation holes and a nine-hole short course while expanding the parkland to 130 acres.

Although the commission previously voted for a 36-hole renovation project, city administration is recommending moving forward with the 27-hole option three. That plan also earned the support of the city’s Parks, Recreation and Environmental Protection Advisory Board in a 4-3 vote Feb. 10.

On Feb. 14, City Manager Tom Barwin sent an email to commissioners with two letters from representatives for golf course professionals endorsing option three. The CEO of Palm Beach Gardens-based Nicklaus Design and partners at Alpharetta, Ga.-based Bobby Jones Links called the 27-hole plan a sensible option for the city to pursue.

“In our view, there is no need for 45 holes of golf from both a demand and financial perspective,” the letter from Bobby Jones Links states. “An 18-hole championship course, nine-hole short course and major driving range will be much more profitable than 27, 36 or 45 regulation holes.”

At the Jan. 27 commission workshop, commissioners Liz Alpert and Hagen Brody both signaled their support for option three, echoing staff’s argument that the plan was more financially prudent and would appeal to a larger number of city residents. Mayor Jen Ahearn-Koch was opposed to the 27-hole configuration, arguing the city should stick behind its previous decision regarding the appropriate size of the course.

According to estimates included with materials for Tuesday’s meeting, all three plans carry a cost between $21.4 million and $22.6 million to implement the golf renovations and the first phase of park construction. The city projects to pay between $1.2 million and $1.4 million annually toward the property in all three plans.

Also on the agenda for Tuesday’s meeting:

• The commission will consider a request to defer payments on a $150,000 loan the city issued to Tableseide Cares Inc. in 2018. The loan was issued to support the construction of Miss Susie’s restaurant at 1741 Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Way, a project that stalled in March 2019.

The full agenda for Tuesday’s meeting is available on the city’s website.