Golf courses can become public spaces
Last weekend, when the Ontario government lifted its golf ban, an army of foursomes descended onto grassy greens across the province.
Like many of the provincial government’s restrictions on public space activity announced well into the third wave, the golf ban was a ridiculous overstep — just like the playground closures — with Doug Ford “worried” golfers would go for “a few pops” afterwards.
All of it was a performative spectacle, pandemic theatre to distract from doing as little as possible to stop the spread in workplaces and crowded living conditions. Golfers were, like so many others, used as pandemic scapegoats, and they really made their displeasure known. I don’t think I’ve ever heard as much about golf.
This is good. Golfers have been radicalized as activists in the fight for access to public outdoor space, even if the cargo and Bermuda shorts they wear today aren’t as radical as the vintage plaid knickers and argyle sock getups of the past.
We’ve learned throughout the pandemic that access to outdoor spaces can be tenuous and picked on by lazy governments that don’t want to do harder or more inconvenient work.
In general, but especially in urbanist circles, golf has a bad rap. It’s hard to argue that vast manicured lawns, especially the intense treatment putting greens receive, are good for the environment, but that aside it’s often seen as the decadent pursuit of rich white men. While Donald Trump certainly hasn’t helped golf’s public image, taking a look at who actually golfs deflates the stereotype quickly.
This is especially true of the five municipal courses owned by the City of Toronto. While golf courses are not true public spaces since there are green fees, the municipal courses provide a relatively cheap alternative to the higher prices of private courses, some with annual fees and food and beverage minimums, opening the game up to more people. My dad used to play the cheap municipal course in Windsor and when he and his working class buddies had “a few pops” afterwards, it was Old Vienna.
Two city of Toronto courses, Dentonia Park and Don Valley, are located on subway lines, and Scarlett Woods will be on the extension of the Eglinton Crosstown, if it gets built. I’m sympathetic to calls to convert them into more park space, and it wouldn’t be the first time: Earl Bales Park is a former course, as is the lower Humber River trail area near the Oculus pavilion.
Others suggest building housing on the city courses, but as many are located in floodplains, it likely precludes that possibility.
Though golf isn’t my bag (pun intended), I don’t play organized soccer, baseball or cricket either and don’t think we should convert pitches and diamonds into regular parkland. There is, ideally, room for all.
However, there are things that can be done to make golf courses more public, and mitigate the fact that so much land is set aside for a single use.
Many of Toronto’s golf courses, both public and private, are located in river valleys and block continuous ravine trail network connections. Of the public ones, Dentonia blocks the Taylor Creek trail, while the Don Valley course disconnects the west arm of the Don River trail, with help from the private Rosedale golf club in Hoggs Hollow, and Tam O’Shanter blocks passage along West Highland Creek in Scarborough.
Of the private courses, Weston Golf and Country Club forces the Humber River trail to divert up steep hills onto Weston Road, Oakdale blocks Black Creek connections, Islington does the same along Mimico Creek, Markland Wood along Etobicoke Creek, and the Donalda Club prevents a continuous trail along the east branch of the Don River.
Since the public courses are city owned, establishing ravine connections through them should be easy, with changes in landscaping and some strategic fencing in places where errant golf balls might go a little too into the rough.
Permitting other uses during the off-season could also help. The recent WinterTO program that opened the courses to skiing, snow shoeing, walking and even disc golf was a success, and the day I skied from Earl Bales into the Don Valley course the links looked like the joyous winter scenes in the Krieghoff paintings in the AGO. This should continue post-pandemic.
The private courses are more of a challenge, though. A decade ago, city council attempted to renegotiate the property tax agreements with them as nine rather exclusive and expensive private courses in Toronto had generous deferments, deals made during the booming 1950s and 1960s to encourage owners not to sell the green space to developers. Though the renegotiation terms were confidential, public right-of-ways would have been a great bargaining chip.
Perhaps they still could be, as golf courses want to be seen as good corporate citizens. Now that they’re public space activists, golfers themselves will be great advocates for this, surely. Heck, the view from the trails might even create new golfers.