Bobby Jones issues remain unsettled

It’s been six years since Bobby Jones Golf Club last turned a profit.

Fiscal year 2012 is the lone blip in what has been a long downward trend for the municipal golf course, which had previously been a self-sustaining entity. Other than the $25,502 the golf course made that year, the city has lost money operating the course every year since 2009.

Typically, the losses have been substantial — at least $140,000 every year since 2010, and an average of $364,331 annually over the past five years. The course depleted its reserves, which necessitated a $425,000 subsidy from the city’s general fund in this year’s budget. Preliminary staff estimates say that subsidy could increase to $600,000 next year.

Still, at the latest in an ongoing series of meetings regarding the future of Bobby Jones, city officials expressed optimism the golf complex could once again become financially stable.

“We have seen Bobby Jones be sustainable,” Vice Mayor Jen Ahearn-Koch said at a May 31 meeting. “Bobby Jones had $2 million, almost, in reserves. When you take care of it and you invest in it, it’s going to be profitable. It’s not pretend.”

Even though the city continues to believe in the viability of Bobby Jones, it’s still unclear how, exactly, the City Commission wants to improve the course. At the May 31 meeting, held specifically to discuss Bobby Jones, the city declined to make any substantive decision regarding the complex itself. Instead, the commission directed staff to hold public workshops on potential improvements and to create a new advisory board for Bobby Jones-related topics.

Last year, the city received a recommended renovation plan from consultant Richard Mandell. In total, the report estimated the improvement needs of the facility at $21.6 million. Even a less intensive overhaul could cost more than $18 million, he said.

After discussing the report in October, the commission directed staff to research strategies for funding and implementing changes to Bobby Jones.

Staff, including Mandell, presented updated financing strategies for improving the course. Renovating all 45 holes, including a new player development center and clubhouse, would require an additional $16 million in funding, staff said. Staff has identified $3.5 million in potential grant opportunities to pay for that project.

The presentation also included smaller alternative scopes of work. Renovating just 36 holes, ignoring the clubhouse and development center, would require an additional $12 million. Renovating 27 holes would require $10 million, and 18 holes would require $6.4 million. Shrinking the number of holes at the golf course would require fewer rounds played to pay off the debt service from any renovations, staff said.

A majority of the commission expressed interest in maintaining 45 holes at Bobby Jones.

“There’s strong evidence, if we bring this course back up to its ability to be enjoyable and playable, we will see the returns,” Ahearn-Koch said. “I believe it’s an investment the community wants.”

City Commissioner Hagen Brody was the lone vote against the city’s actions May 31. Already a critic of the state of Bobby Jones, Brody said finding a less expensive plan was even more crucial in the wake of a recent lawsuit that has the city facing a payment of nearly $50 million in damages.

“I think pursuing the ‘best Christmas ever’ package is — to me, it’s crazy,” Brody said.

The city has scheduled meetings June 13 and June 14 to gather input on the facility’s future. Brody said he wanted the discussion to expand beyond just people who use the course, a sentiment the rest of the commission echoed.

“This is not only a golf issue, but it’s a taxpayer issue,” Brody said. “I want to hear what the people in all three districts think.”