SALT LAKE CITY – The number of golf courses could be cut in the near future.
After months of discussion, the Salt Lake City Council sent recommendations to the mayor to close up to three more golf courses, including Glendale.
“It’s heartbreaking to lose a golf course in my district. It’s a beautiful course, but unfortunately we just don’t have enough golfers to support our golf systems in Salt Lake City,” said Kyle LaMalfa, who is a Salt Lake City Council Member.
According to Salt Lake City, their city-wide golf program is at least one million dollars in the hole.
“Because golf is set up like an enterprise fund, it’s supposed to pay for itself and over the past few years in particular we have seen it be in the red and unfortunately that can’t sustain it so it’s time to make a change,” said David Everett, Chief of Staff for Salt Lake City Mayor Ralph Becker.
That change has been put into the hands of the Salt Lake City Council. On Tuesday night, they released their findings.
“We came to the conclusion it would be necessary to close three golf courses in order to keep the system solvent,” LaMalfa said.
Plans would transfer Wingpointe Golf course to the Salt Lake City International Airport, close the Glendale course and possibly the Nibley course as well. But that’s a solution those hitting the links aren’t in favor of.
“I think to lose the golf courses would be a real shame to have, and Glendale especially–Glendale is one of our favorite courses; we probably play here once or twice a week and to have it close doesn’t make a lot of sense,” said Sterling Larson of Salt Lake City.
But the city said, in the end, these cutbacks will result in hundreds of acres of land being converted to open space for other uses, instead of golf.
All of the golf courses will stay open and operating until funding is in place for other plans.
