Springfield golf course renovations offer players a ‘complete package’
SPRINGFIELD — Golfers have long praised the condition of the city’s two golf courses. But inside their clubhouses, a roof leaked, restrooms gave off an odor and one air conditioning system routinely conked out on the hottest days.
But a fast-paced, $6 million renovation project means this season the clubhouses at Veterans and Franconia golf courses are as appealing as the fairways and the greens.
“The courses are in tremendous shape and we wanted to make it a complete package,” said Thomas Ashe, director of parks, recreation and building maintenance for the city.
The two clubhouses were constructed in the 1960s, and neither had seen major upgrades beyond routine maintenance and repairs since.
For years staff made do. The city lost out on revenue, however, since golfers would often go elsewhere for a sandwich or beer or would not linger in the pro shop and purchase a shirt or golf balls, Ashe said.
While the city could have renovated just one of the buildings and waited to do the other, officials have long tried to provide equal services at the courses. Both desperately needed clubhouse improvements, Ashe said.
So Mayor Domenic J. Sarno and the City Council agreed to borrow $6 million last year to do the work. About $2.5 million went into the smaller clubhouse at Franconia and $3.5 was used for the larger building at Veterans golf course, which was also a more involved project, Ashe said.
All proceeds from the golf course are returned to the general fund and those will help pay off the bond, Ashe said.
While many municipal golf courses struggle to break even, Veterans and Franconia do not lose money. So far, the total earnings are $233,000 up from last year, he said.
“Veterans has a flat roof, and it was leaking, so it was more complicated,” said Anthony Kowal, the superintendent of both courses. “The bathrooms were terrible. We would have backups all the time …They were just old.”
Ashe said the complete gut and renovations of the restrooms at Veterans were the biggest benefit since water problems combined with an old floor left behind a stench staff couldn’t remove no matter how often they cleaned them. The city also expanded them so they had room to meet the Americans with Disabilities Act.
One of the other highlights was a new heating and air conditioning system and full electrical upgrades at Franconia. The previous air conditioning system would get overloaded on hot days and stop working when the course needed it the most, Kowal said.
The improvements also left Franconia with a new commercial kitchen instead of the jerry-rigged one that included some household appliances.
At Veterans, a storage area was repurposed to expand the dining room area, creating an area off the main room that can be used by leagues or other groups, Kowal said.
Both clubhouses saw new windows, doors and flooring. The work included cosmetic improvements such as new finishes and paint. Outdoor seating has also been upgraded and added, he said.
Getting the renovations finished on time wasn’t easy because the city wanted to have all the work completed in the four-month off-season so the clubhouses could reopen in April, Ashe said.
The clubhouses are currently open during the golf season, which usually runs from April through November, but with the new buildings officials are discussing the possibility of expanding their availability for small events, Ashe said.
There are some challenges to doing so, since the clubhouses operate with seasonal liquor licenses. Changing them is especially complicated at Franconia, which is partially located in East Longmeadow and Longmeadow. Both are also located at the top of steep walkways, so they would have to be carefully plowed and treated in the winter, Ashe said.
Jim Sullivan, of East Longmeadow, gathered with a group of friends at a table in the Franconia course Thursday morning.
“It is nice, very nice. I think it is drawing people in,” Sullivan said of the renovations.
But Sullivan, who has been golfing for 60 years at the course, said the biggest attraction continues to be the course itself, which he called “country club” quality.
“It is in impeccable shape and it keeps improving and improving,” he said.
A few years earlier, the city also spent $1 million to rebuild all the bunkers at both courses.
This year, at least three bridges were rebuilt at the cost of $50,000. They are now wider and stronger, allowing an ambulance to drive over them, Kowal said.
The clubhouse at Veterans Golf Course was complete gutted and renovated this winter. (Jeanette DeForge/Republican staff)republican
The courses are also continuing to expand its leagues and tournaments. For example, Franconia and Ludlow Country Club this spring hosted a Four-Ball competition that attracted some of the best senior golfers in the state, he said.
Staff is also seeing some changes in players, some of which started during the COVID-19 pandemic when families started coming out more because it was a safe, outdoor activity, Kowal said.
“In the last three years, we have seen more women out here, and there are more men and women in their 20s,” he said.
Along with having some high school golf teams playing at the two courses, the city runs a program with Van Sickle Academy that has some students learning to golf after school twice a week in May and June
“I would love to have them get jobs here in the summer in the future,” Kowal said.
While some question why the city even runs golf courses, Ashe argues it is another service Springfield offers to its residents, no different than playgrounds, baseball diamonds, tennis courts and the new pickleball courts that have been added this year.
Because of that, the city does its best to keep the price of a round of golf low, charging $47 on weekends with a cart or $29 without. Weekday play is $1 less, and rates drop for seniors, teens under 16, veterans and others, Kowal said.
The courses also instituted a new online system to make it easier for people to reserve tee times, Kowal said.
“I don’t golf and the mayor doesn’t golf, but we understand it is a great amenity to Springfield,” Ashe said.
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