Should the City Maintain Golf Courses?
Director of Neighborhoods Charlie Beckham says many municipalities are seeing a decline in golf.
Detroit City Council rejected a proposal for a short-term contract to maintain city golf courses.
Some council members believed that the one-year management contract proposed didn’t allow enough time to properly maintain the courses.
Charlie Beckham is the Neighborhood liaison for the Mayor’s Office. He argued that longer contracts are not needed for recreation facilities that are rarely used.
“The question about whether municipalities should even be managing golf courses is something that every municipality in southeast Michigan is struggling with,” Beckham says. “Oakland county owns six and not sure what to do with them, trying to sell two of them. Wayne County owns four and they are trying to sell one.”
Beckham says in the meantime the one year contract is sufficient to maintain the courses.
Six city council members rejected the proposal, saying there should be a clear plan on the city manages golf courses in the long term.
