Village Greens Future: Park District Presents Strategic Plan to Village Board

Woodridge Park District officials gave a detailed presentation to the village board Thursday night on the district’s  five-year strategic plan, which assesses the future viability of Village Greens of Woodridge  golf course.

The 115 acre, 18-hole golf course at 1575 W. 75th St. was purchased through referendum in 1972 to provide outdoor recreation, open space and flood control facilities for the Village of Woodridge. The golf course is managed by the Woodridge Park District through an intergovernmental agreement that has been in place since 1997.

With an eye toward drafting a long-term agreement between the village and park district, in August, village staff recommended the evaluation of land-use options and potential financial investment needed to improve and maintain the golf course, which is currently in need of, among other things, a new irrigation system and maintenance facility.

The five-year strategic plan presented by the park district to the village board Thursday is the result of efforts by park district staff to “facilitate a clear vision for the highest and best use of our municipal golf course and to structure the optimum management model to ensure that a valuable recreation amenity can be provided to the citizens on a basis that is fiscally self-sustaining.”

To view the park district’s five-year strategic plan in its entirety, click here.

Village Greens Golf Manager Brandon Evans, who is directly responsible for the day-to-day operations of the course, described Village Greens as the first public golf course in the area, and one of two or three open to the public that has consistently drawn visitors from all over the Chicagoland area – even in the early days when the course was located at the end of a dirt road, adjacent to a forest and farm fields.

A short history lesson

Originally owned by John S. Henry and designed by Robert Bruce Harris, who later became the first president of the American Society of Golf Course Architects, Village Greens opened for play in the summer of 1959. The course was renamed Village Greens of Woodridge in September of 1972, after voters in the Village of Woodridge approved its purchase. The park district assumed management of the course in 1995 and entered into an intergovernmental agreement with the village in 1997.

According to the park district's strategic planning document, since 1995, “facilities have been upgraded, the courses’ playability and safety has been enhanced, customer service has been improved, and rounds and revenues have been maintained, all while maintaining fiscal responsibility.”

By the numbers: What are the costs?

In answer to a question often asked by taxpayers, “What does this cost me?” Evans answered with one word: Nothing.

“We have never accepted a dime of taxpayer money,” Evans said. “We have found ways to maximize profit and get more out of less.”

According to the strategic plan presented Thursday, because Village Greens of Woodridge operates as an enterprise fund, no tax revenues are used to support operations, debt service, capital replacement or capital improvements.

Here’s a breakdown of some of the numbers:

• The Village of Woodridge issued about $2 million in bonds in 1995 to finance a new clubhouse and improvements to the 14th fairway.
• Annual debt payments on the bonds, which will expire in 2014, are approximately $150,000. The bonds have been paid by revenues generated by golf operations.
• Since 1997, Village Greens has generated net proceeds of $1,407,885, of which $655,135 was reinvested in new development projects such as tee boxes, mounding, bunker drainage and renovation and more.
• In 2000, the village and park district adopted a master improvement plan, which outlined $1,760,000 in capital improvements.
• Together, the village and park district have approximately $300,000 in reserve operating funds, more than $400,000 in reserve capital funds and $60,000 in reserve for capital development projects.
• Once existing debt is retired in 2014, annual debt payments will be reduced from $160,000 to about $100,000.

The park district projects an investment of about $60,000 worth of new capital development projects over the next five years – with the flexibility to issue debt service for large capital replacement projects such as replacement of the course’s 20-year-old irrigation system (estimated to cost about $1,500,000) and eventually, replacement of the course’s 52-year-old maintenance building (at an estimated cost of about $1,000,000). Evans said that with moderate repairs costing about $15,000, replacement of the maintenance building can be deferred for some time.

Fiscally, the park district has shown a net profit for each of the 16 years it has managed the course, Evans said.

And, according to the strategic plan, if the “status quo” is maintained, “Even with a new irrigation system, maintenance building, and other enhancements, the enterprise fund would be able to sustain debt service, operating expenses, and capital reinvestment without requiring taxpayer support.”

Benefits to the community

Woodridge residents who may not know a wedge from a putter can still enjoy Village Greens’ open space, with more than 3,500 trees and naturalized areas featuring native wildflowers, bird, bat and reptile houses; as well as hold baby and bridal showers in the clubhouse or bring the kids and grandkids out to the driving range.

And for those who enjoy a day on the links, Evans said Village Greens’ fee structure remains competitive with other area golf courses.

“It’s the best value for golf in Chicago,” Evans said. “It’s not the cheapest – but it’s the best.”

The course, he said, offers opportunities for all ages and abilities – whether seniors, kids, those with disabilities – or those who just want to play a quick round of golf.

Evans said that although the scorecards at Village Greens may say “Owned by the Village of Woodridge and managed by Woodridge Park District,” it’s what’s on the inside of those scorecards that is most important.

“It’s the people in this room who have put their names on the scorecards for more than 50 years,” Evans told those assembled at Thursday night’s village board meeting. “They are the heart and soul of Village Greens Golf Course. It belongs to the people of this community.”

“The Woodridge Park District wants to give residents what they want. We can’t wait to take the course to a higher level – and we enthusiastically await your proposal for a long-term agreement,” Evans told village board members.

Village Attorney Thomas Good said staff hopes to soon have a draft of the intergovernmental agreement between the village and park district ready for signing.