By NICK GOSNELL
Hutch Post
HUTCHINSON, Kan. — The latest improvements to Carey Park Golf Course were approved on a 4-1 vote of the Hutchinson City Council Tuesday morning, over the questions and subsequent negative vote of council member Sara Bagwell.
"We are on track through the end of November, to be at a 75% cost recovery rate," said Justin Combs, Director of Parks and Facilities. "That is up 10% from 2017. That has been a goal of ours every year, to try to increase our revenue."
This means that in 2020, the golf course is projected to lose between $200,000 and $250,000. Bagwell wanted to know how much more expensive doing the golf course project would make the city's bond obligations, but a clear answer on that wasn't immediately available, because Angela Richard, Director of Finance noted that it depends on what the projects are bonded with and what rates the city can get on the bonds.
"We can't subsidize everything," Bagwell said. "I mean, if we lose $250,000 a year on the golf course, $700,000 a year on the zoo and all of these other things, you know, these are future payments from future generations that have to pay for these things, these are future payments from future generations that have to pay for these things, so I just need to make sure that we're thinking about those return on investments, since it's future generations that are paying for it."
City Manager Jeff Cantrell noted that the recovery rate for the golf course actually isn't that bad.
"A business case can't really be made in this instance," Cantrell said. "I do recall from prior course work, and this is going to date me a little bit, it does go back about 15 years at least, that a 40 to 45% cost recovery on golf courses, public courses, is fairly typical in the region. That's not a great number. Nobody would enter into that kind of a business model with the interest of making money, but, much like a public swimming pool or other public amenity, it's entered into with the mindset that it would have to be subsidized."
The latest portion of the project includes filling in the pond at the 6th hole, adding several tee boxes and replacing the greens on holes 7 and 8 which have been problem areas for the course for several years. The type of grass in the fairways will also be changed on several of the holes to make it similar to the improvements already in place. One of the bigger improvements will be a new practice area next to the driving range. The new area will include practice for sand bunker shots and a pitching and putting green area. The low bid for the work is from Houska Inc. and totals $364,118.