Country Club breaks ground on modernizing renovations
The El Dorado Golf and Country Club broke ground Tuesday on renovations that board members say will revitalize the club.
“It’s finally started,” said Country Club Board of Directors President Toddy Pitard. “We’re changing it to a 21st century country club.”
The $2.5 million renovation project, which was conceived of over two years ago, are part of a broader drive by the club to increase membership and update their facilities and amenities. Aside from an add-on about 25 years ago, the last time the Country Club underwent renovations was in the 1960s, said general contractor Andy Garrison.
Pitard said the renovations will make the Club “more fit for purpose.” Some of the changes in phase one of their renovations will include a new façade, new roofing and a remodel of the interior dining and kitchen areas of the main clubhouse.
“It’ll be unlike anything in El Dorado,” said Country Club Chief of Operations Justin Awtrey, before Pitard cut in, adding: “It’ll be unlike
anything in South Arkansas.”
The Country Club will not close as the renovations are completed. Instead, the renovations will move around the club in steps, so as to not disturb members’ activities.
Outdoor amenities at the Country Club will also undergo updates. The pool will be resurfaced and an adjoining sundeck added, along with a playground next to it.
The Cove, a pool house and dining spot next to the Country Club pool, will undergo extensive changes. It will become an open air dining area that will lead straight into the pool. Food and bar service will continue at the Cove after its renovations.
“We’ll give a great space for shade and comfort,” Awtrey said.
The Country Club has also begun updating some of their programming. In June, the club began hosting the It’s Okay golf league, a group described by Awtrey in June as empowering women to learn the game of golf without pressure or expectations.
They have also added glowball night golfing, themed-dinner nights and DiveIn Movie Nights, and will soon add Pickleball. The Country Club’s tennis court and golf course are also expected to be updated.
Pitard and Awtrey said the changes wouldn’t have been possible were it not for the membership’s acceptance of what they considered to be necessary changes.
“Member support through this has been tremendous,” Awtrey said.
Twenty-year Country Club member Paul Choate said he thinks the renovations will bring positive changes for the club.
“This is a timely thing, quite possibly overdue,” Choate said. “This country club is so unlike anything you find in a community this size … I think people will be well-impressed when they come.”
Pitard said the renovations were approved by 96 percent of Country Club members who participated in the vote.
“When we started this radical change … we lost 5 percent [of our membership], but we gained 20 percent,” Pitard said. “They embraced it. They’re excited.”