Confidence in golf club’s future
An inner city golf club that faced losing half its course to housing is close to securing a rosier future.
New Plymouth’s Fitzroy Golf Club is poised to sign a memorandum of understanding (MOU) with the New Plymouth District Council that will pave the way to extending its lease past 2023.
The MOU also outlines a possible process to develop the club’s future plans, which include an extension of the south boundary to move two holes and a plan to develop a multi-sport facility.
Club president Nick Northam said they had been in talks with the council since June last year.
‘‘We feel comfortable that our longterm future is going to be secure but until something is signed I think we’ve got to be a little bit cautious,’’ he said.
‘‘We’re very keen to work in partnership with the council and residents, local iwi, other vested interests, to develop a community-based facility with the golf course being a central part of that. It would be an 18-hole course because that is the mandate that we received from our members.’’
He said the MOU did not necessarily mean anything was set in concrete, but it was a step in the right direction.
‘‘We’re just setting forth that both parties are aware of what the other party’s wanting to do.’’
Eight months ago, Fitzroy Golf Club feared for its future after New Plymouth mayor Neil Holdom raised the idea of selling half of its land, which is owned by the council and leased by the club, for urban development.
Backlash was swift and New Plymouth District Council dropped the proposal. In June councillors requested an extension of the lease as an act of good faith, but it was explained such a thing was not legally possible.
So councillors asked officers to prepare a report outlining the process and options for the renewal of the lease.
The club’s lease runs until 2023 and the council needs to seek public consultation before granting a new lease.
Members were more comfortable about the club’s long-term existence now, Northam said.
‘‘It’s not the dominant topic of conversation in the clubhouse now that it was 12 months ago.’’
The council report stated that the club had long-term goals to keep themselves viable.
‘‘This long-term thinking could inform future plans for this area and therefore any future lease arrangements,’’ the report said.
‘‘Due to the likely high level of community interest in this matter, the council needs to consider a robust process, with appropriate engagement, when considering the future use of the land.’’