Story and photos by Jason Grotelueschen
Reporting for West Seattle Blog
Almost 100 people packed the clubhouse Wednesday night for the third community meeting about the West Seattle Golf Course’s future driving range, as the project team unveiled a refined design they say was developed in response to numerous “environmental concerns, golf concerns, and neighborhood concerns” raised in the previous two meetings.
According to project architect Todd Schroeder, the new design (pictured above, full PDF version here) boasts a 300-yard full-size “double-loaded” driving range with 50 stalls, and a short-game practice facility and learning center. To accommodate it, some changes would be necessary to the surrounding holes — #1 would get a new green (otherwise largely unchanged), #8 would be converted to a “mammoth par 5” (570+ yards in length at the white tees, playable up to 655 yards for special events), and an entirely new #9 would be constructed adjacent to Camp Long.
Schroeder noted that the new #9 hole would be a downhill par 3 with an “amazing view of downtown Seattle from the teebox,” and that the tops of the driving range’s tall net poles (previously considered to be a major community concern) would still be “below the grade” of 35th Ave SW even at their highest point (120 feet).
Reaction to the new proposal was mixed, with some audience members lauding the project team for a “fantastic job” and a “world-class design,” but many others saying the project “isn’t worth it” and “should just go away” primarily because it does include changes to the 70-year-old golf course. One attendee called the proposal a “bait-and-switch” because such changes to the holes themselves weren’t considered to be part of the original plan as envisioned in the city’s Golf Master Plan (which indicated that the #1 golf priority city-wide was a “high-quality driving range in West Seattle,” according to the project team.)
The first public proposal (WSB August report) was scrapped by the time the second proposal was announced (WSB September report), and the latter proposal received strong criticism from area golfers because of the impact to the existing course.
According to the design team (bios here), the latest proposal meets the objective of bringing a top-tier driving range to West Seattle while minimizing environmental impacts, being a “good neighbor” in the community, and allowing for course improvements.
Garrett Farrell from the Parks Department made it clear that the design team continues to take feedback from all concerned parties, but that the current proposal is “the best approach we think is possible at this time.” However, when asked by an audience member if this meant that “there will definitely be a driving range in West Seattle,” Farrell responded that “no, that wouldn’t be a true statement at this time.” Schroeder noted that the current design “is a concept, not a plan” and that the community’s feedback is crucial to the team’s ongoing work.
UPDATE 11:58pm: At the meeting, West Seattle Golf Club president Bob Chamberlain read the text of a letter (posted on the club’s website) sent to Farrell after he had given a preview of the latest design to Chamberlain and the WSGC Board of Directors earlier this month. In the letter, the board thanked Farrell and the team for their efforts, but ultimately were unable to support the new idea:
…it was unanimously agreed by a vote of the Board that, while of course we are generally in favor of a practice facility at West Seattle, we do not support any option which changes the character of the course so drastically, nor can we support any option not fully funded at its inception.
On behalf of the 704 members of the West Seattle Golf Club we thank you for your efforts and look forward to continuing to work with you throughout the process.
In response to these and other budget-related concerns, Farrell and Schroeder acknowledged that the current design is “slightly over” the $2.5 million project budget, but is “extremely close” and that they’ll continue to work to bridge the gap. They also emphasized that the new driving range would be a “revenue-driver” for the golf course.
Attendees asked the design team several questions wondering if particular options had been considered for implementing the driving range without majorly impacting the surrounding holes. In almost all cases, the answer from the team was “yes,” and many of the designs that explored those iterative options were on display for attendees to view:
Consultant Bob Thorpe talked about many of the high-level goals of the project, and referred to two posterboards that listed those objectives and details:
UPDATE Thursday 10:40 am: Additional meeting notes added to the story, below.
From a big-picture perspective, all three design team members talked about the importance of the project. Thorpe said that because this is the first project addressed by the Golf Master Plan, it needs to be “a successful model we can carry forward.” Schroeder said the course has always been something for “West Seattle to be proud of” and that any changes to the course needed to “maintain the character” of the course. Farrell described his role as “delivering the best possible solution that makes the most of your tax dollars, with a cost-benefit that makes sense.”
One attendee said it was “nice to hear passion about golf in the community, especially at a municipal course.” He complemented the design team on their work, and said that it’s good to see the driving range idea being considered as a revenue generator because “if we don’t increase revenues, the $35-40 greens fees we love will eventually become $60.”
Several attendees with ties to Camp Long were in attendance, and talked about the relationship between the camp and the golf course. The new #9 hole would sit in the “buffer zone” with Camp Long, but with “lower impacts and smarter design” than in previous proposals, according to the design team. Farrell noted that he hopes that the collaboration between local golfers and camp users continues, and gets stronger.
Schroeder said the latest design puts the new #9 hole in a spot that had previously been considered for part of the driving range. The area was problematic for the range idea because of wetlands in the area, but “it’s actually fantastic for an interesting par 3 golf hole, with great views.” He noted that the new design does have “a disconnect” of considerable distance between the #8 green and the #9 teebox — he described it as a 250-yard trek, with 12% elevation. Several meeting attendees raised concerns about that distance, and there were some discussions about other courses that have holes with similar distance between them.
Other common concerns raised by many meeting attendees:
Change in par: The latest proposal would move the course to a par 71 (an improvement from the par 70 in the previous design, but still one shy of the “standard” par 72). Schroeder said that there might be an opportunity to “get that stroke back” with some changes on the back 9, but noted that among the top 100 courses in the country, there are a lot of them with sub-72 par. Several audience members agreed that it wasn’t crucial to maintain the 72, but was more important to end up with the best possible course. Others stated that it would be nice to maintain the 72, and Schroeder agreed. “The new proposal actually plays longer,” he said, “and presents some nice challenges for golfers. But we’re not looking to drastically change the difficulty.”
Finish what we start: Farrell and Schroeder said the latest design, while slightly over budget at the moment (they’re working on that), now involves phases of construction that would allow for the course to remain playable even while the project is underway. In this respect, the course continues to generate revenue while still serving golfers in the area. Some attendees spoke in favor of this, while others were concerned that having “phases” in a project that’s not fully-funded from the start might leave the course with an unfinished project, which prompted several comments about “The Hole” on Fauntleroy (WSB coverage here). Without hesitation, Farrell said “we have no intention of stopping this project halfway through,” saying that the team is working hard to get solid estimates and meet the budget –- “This process is happening right now. We’ve had numbers flowing to our team via Blackberries tonight while we were here setting up for the meeting.” Other attendees noted that in 1969, adjacent property was supposed to go toward additional course real estate, but that never happened – Farrell said he’s well aware of the history of “promises not delivered” and intends to be sure that doesn’t happen. If the project moves forward, construction would likely start in summer 2011, with the project completed in 2012. “Exactly when we finish would depend on a lot of factors related to the various phases,” Farrell said.
Why not put the $2.5 million into improvements?: Some audience members wondered aloud if the allocated money would be better spent toward improvements to the existing course, such as better drainage (marshy and muddy areas being a common concern for the course) or enhancements to the clubhouse. The team reiterated that the larger goal is to put a driving range on the course, and the budget needs to be used for that –- but Schroeder added that “we can make a lot of drainage improvements and other positive changes along the way.” One attendee did praise the design team for the overall improvement added by the new #9 hole, saying “that hole might instantly become the best, coolest hole on the course!”
Better parking: One attendee asked about the team’s plans to add/improve parking at the course, “since we’re talking about adding a Riverbend/Interbay-style golf learning center, which will bring a lot of new golfers.” Thorpe said that the team has a dedicated traffic engineer, Dave Markley, who has worked on major sports venues and has West Seattle roots. Thorpe said “there will be a transportation plan,” and Farrell noted that the parking area’s longstanding dual-function as a park-and-ride would also come into play. “If everyone parking there was actually golfing or at the stadium watching football, it wouldn’t be an issue, but that’s not the case,” Farrel said.
Does a range belong here?: Variations of this question were asked many times by attendees, drawing applause in response to some of the more passionate pleas. One man said that he could see that Farrell was “stuck in the middle on this, and just trying to do your job,” but noted that “very few people here tonight, or who I’ve talked to, are in favor of this. Why change our golf course, which gets lots of awards and recognition, just to make this happen?” Schroeder, the course architect, noted that the latest proposal makes several improvements to the course infrastructure (including drainage) while still maintaining the character. Farrell emphasized that the Golf Master Plan, completed in 2009, was based largely on input from surrounding communities and golfers –- and that the #1 city-wide goal was to put a driving range in West Seattle. Several people in attendance questioned that (“well, they didn’t talk to us”), and Farrell acknowledged that those concerns are prevalent and the team is listening. Other attendees questioned the need for a “full-size” 300-yard range, saying that a 200-yard range with tall nets (or an “irons-only” range) would suffice, and would allow for minimal changes to the course layout. Others reiterated comments from past meetings that the range at Jefferson golf course is not far away, and people who really want to use a range would drive there. A few people spoke out in support of the team’s direction, though, with one man saying that “nobody likes change, but this is good change – these people know what they’re doing, and they’re improving our golf course.”
Farrell got a good laugh from the crowd when asked if the driving range project truly had to move forward, and whether “doing nothing” was an option. “I work for the city,” Farrell said with a smile. “Doing nothing is always an option.” He was quick to point out, however, that his job is to move the project forward, and the goal clearly stated in the Golf Master Plan is to build a driving range in West Seattle. “We don’t plan to fold up our tent and leave,” he said, “and we need to move forward with the best possible solution.”
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