County OK’s fee hike at golf course

White Plains lost nearly $70,000 in fiscal 2008

Wednesday, June 25, 2008

Then the price of oil skyrocketed, and the course lost nearly $70,000 in fiscal 2008.

On Tuesday, Public Facilities Director Tom Roland asked the county commissioners to approve fee hikes for the golf course that he hopes will cover increases in the cost of fuel, fertilizer and other oil-based products used at the golf course.

‘‘Over the past eight months, there has been a tremendous increase in expenses,” Roland said.

Roland proposed increasing greens fees by $1 for nine-hole games and $2 for 18-hole games, resulting in fees of $15 to $28, depending on the number of holes played, the time of day and the day of the week.

The increases mark the end of what is called a ‘‘banana sale,” in which the course lowered greens fees in order to attract new players and then gradually raised the fees.

County Administrator Paul W. Comfort said he believed the fee hike would allow the course to break even this year. He noted that, of the county three largest self-supporting programs, the golf course is the closest to breaking even.

The other two programs, the Capital Clubhouse ice rink and the Elite Gymnastics Center, have lost hundreds of thousands of dollars in fiscal 2008. The county has also raised fees at those facilities to balance their budgets.

The commissioners also raised golf fees last year, when they added $25 to all membership fees and raised the greens and cart fees by $1.

Comfort said the question about balancing the golf course budget is ‘‘when do you get to the [price] point where you’re driving people away?”

Commissioners’ President F. Wayne Cooper (D) agreed and said, ‘‘I don’t want to drive customers away.”