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untanglingwebs
El Supremo
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New Flint City Golf group to operate 3 courses
Published: Tuesday, April 10, 2012, 3:46 PM Updated: Tuesday, April 10, 2012, 4:45 PM
By Kristin Longley | klongley1@mlive.com
FLINT, MI -- Two of the city's four golf courses are expected to be operational this season after being outsourced under new lease agreements signed by emergency manager Michael Brown.
Flint City Golf, LLC will operate the Swartz Creek Golf Course and the Kearsley Lake Golf Course for two years starting this season, the agreements say, with the option to renegotiate at a later date.
Flint City Golf will pay Flint $9,000 a year to run Swartz Creek and $8,000 a year for Kearsley Lake, including use of the city's equipment and tools.
The entity will also pay the city $4,500 a year for 10 years to run Pierce Park Golf Course, which will open next year after undergoing renovations, according to the website.
The last of the city's four golf courses, Mott Park Golf Course, will be run by the nonprofit group Mott Park Public Golf Course Association.
Flint City Golf was founded by Flint attorney Tom Warda and accountant Frank Preketes, who were unable to be reached for comment on Tuesday.
The self-described golf enthusiasts say on their website that they wanted to prevent the city from shutting the courses down and "ensure the continuity of a golf tradition dating back to the turn of the 20th Century."
"If the City's courses can be made to flourish again... then anything is possible including the revitalization of this City to its former luster," it says.
The lease agreement with the city says Flint City Golf will hire employees of their choice for the golf courses.
Meanwhile, an agreement between the city of Flint and the union that represents golf employees, AFSCME Local 1600, says the city will require the vendor to give preference to city golf employees "in the spirit of fostering good labor relations."
Flint City Golf site says it "has sought to save jobs and create new ones in its operation. Many former golf employees have been retained and many excited new faces."
The president of the city's supervisors union, AFSCME Local 1799, said last month that they're hopeful the courses will remain operational, even if they have to be privatized. Last year, the union put in a proposal to the city to operate one of the courses, but that never happened.
The city and unions reached an agreement for the outsourcing of the courses on MArch 28, according to city documents.
"Our overall goal is to ensure that all the courses remain open," Local 1799 President Dougherty Johnson. "Unfortunately, the city shut down Mott and Pierce which really devalued the assets. We want to make sure that doesn’t happen with Kearsley and Swartz Creek."
City Council President Scott Kincaid has been eager to get the golf courses back in business under the new leases.
"If somebody wants to lease the golf courses and open them up and provide recreational opportunities for the residents, I don't see where that's a bad thing," he said.
For more information on golf, visit www.flintcitygolf.com. |
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Thu Apr 12, 2012 5:59 pm |
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untanglingwebs
El Supremo
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Flint City Golf bringing driving ranges to Flint courses
Published: Wednesday, April 11, 2012, 3:41 PM Updated: Wednesday, April 11, 2012, 3:41 PM
By Kristin Longley | klongley1@mlive.com
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FLINT, MI -- The city of Flint will get its first public driving ranges in years if Flint City Golf has its way.
The business recently took over operation of three of the city's four public courses from the city of Flint, and owner Tom Warda said he hopes to get a driving range at Kearsley Lake Golf Course within a week or so.
(Related: New Flint City Golf group to operate 3 courses)
Plans are also in the works to put a public driving range at Swartz Creek Golf Course.
"We're going to try everything to get people in and get people involved in the city again," said Warda, a Flint attorney. "We're really fired up."
Flint City Golf is also leasing Pierce Park Golf Course, which won't open until next year after undergoing some renovations.
The course suffered a setback this week when thieves stole the heating and air conditioning units, he said, but they're moving forward with upgrades and plans to install lights for night activities and bring life skills programs for young people.
Warda said his original intention was to lease only Pierce from the city, but agreed to take on three courses because of the city's financial problems.
"I couldn't say no because I grew up here and learned to play here," he said.
Kearsley Lake and Swartz Creek are already up and running, and rates have been reduced from last year, Warda said.
The last of the city's four golf courses, Mott Park Golf Course, will be run by the nonprofit group Mott Park Public Golf Course Association.
Kristin Longley can be reached at 810-429-5333. You can also follow her on Twitter @KristinLongley or subscribe on Facebook. |
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Thu Apr 12, 2012 6:02 pm |
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untanglingwebs
El Supremo
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Flint's Pierce Senior Center closing to make way for banquet facility
Published: Thursday, April 12, 2012, 4:30 PM Updated: Thursday, April 12, 2012, 5:27 PM
By Kristin Longley | klongley1@mlive.com
FLINT, MI -- The city of Flint's Pierce Senior Center will cease operations April 30 to become a banquet facility as part of a deal to privatize the city golf courses, officials said today.
The Pierce Park Golf Course, where the senior center is located, and two others have been leased out to Flint City Golf, LLC under an agreement signed by Flint emergency manager Michael Brown.
As part of the arrangement, the Pierce facility will still be open a minimum of 15 hours a week to give seniors and other members of the community free access for socializing or other activities. However, neither the center nor its activities will be funded by the countywide senior millage.
That leaves the city with only two senior centers, Hasselbring and Brennan.
The city's financial troubles led to the decision to outsource the golf courses and their facilities. Flint is facing a projected $25-million deficit for the next fiscal years, Brown has said.
City and county officials said Flint received a steep cut to its senior millage funding this year because the Pierce center wasn't meeting the county's criteria to be funded as a "Level 2" center.
Pierce was bumped down to a "Level 1" center after being put on probation and monitored by the county, said Lynn Radzilowski, the county's senior services administrator.
"For each center, there is a set of monthly requirements they must meet," Radzilowski said. "Pierce has historically for years been out of compliance... They got through their probationary period, but if they were to fall out of compliance they could have lost their money."
There was a question of whether the Pierce Center would be able to continue to meet the requirements for the most basic "Level 1" funding level, said Howard Croft, the city's director of infrastructure and development.
"We had every reason to believe we were going to lose the millage," Croft said. "As it was, it was just barely enough to cover costs."
Pat Gerace, Flint's parks and recreation director, said the city worked out an agreement with Tom Warda, Flint City Golf owner, to open the Pierce facility 15 hours a week to community members.
Gerace said he understands seniors will be disappointed that the senior center has to close, but the new arrangement will still provide access to the space and a newly renovated facility.
"We just really hope that it works out for all parties involved," he said. "It's unfortunate the times we're in right now, but there's a lot of changes that are coming."
Kristin Longley can be reached at 810-429-5333. You can also follow her on Twitter @KristinLongley or subscribe on Facebook.
jacobsmith April 12, 2012 at 5:05PM
The place was horribly mismanaged by friends of the union and administration. They heckled and harassed anyone who showed up into0 signing up for classes they did not take and pushed anyone not of their clique into cleaning duties. Two seniors in my family both ended up never going back due to the poor treatment there.
Of course, that applies to them all, they merely closed the one that was always viewed as the caucasian center. |
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Thu Apr 12, 2012 6:11 pm |
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untanglingwebs
El Supremo
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Warda said his original intention was to lease only Pierce from the city, but agreed to take on three courses because of the city's financial problems.
"I couldn't say no because I grew up here and learned to play here," he said.
THIS IS NO REFLECTION ON WARDA, BUT SHOULDN'T THE EMERGENCY MANAGER BROWN PUT OUT A REQUEST FOR PROPOSAL FOR THE GOLF COURSES?
HOW DID WARDA MAKE HIS ORIGINAL BID AND WHY WAS HE ASKED TO TAKE ON THREE GOLF COURSES?
BROWN MY BE ABLE TO CIRCUMVENT CIITY ORDINANCES, BUT CAN HE IGNORE STATE RULES ON CONTRACTS? |
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Thu Apr 12, 2012 6:16 pm |
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annie226
F L I N T O I D
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Banquet halls are not all the same and the perfect decoration and styling can make a big difference in the look and feel.
Last edited by annie226 on Wed Jul 08, 2015 4:21 am; edited 1 time in total |
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Thu Jun 21, 2012 10:38 pm |
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untanglingwebs
El Supremo
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Why would anyone spend a lot of money to design a banquet hall when they cannot own the property?
This is similar to what happened in Benton Harbor. The park land in Benton Harbor was donated to the residents of the city. The land was valuable so it was taken to benefit the wealthy community of St Joseph. The PGA golf course doesn't benefit Benton Harbor.
The community lost a community center that was donated to the citizens and has deed restrictions. I have seen some banquet halls closed and other facilities, such as bingo halls turned into rental halls. |
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Fri Jun 22, 2012 6:16 pm |
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