Eight Changes Coming to Fox Den Golf Course

Assistant Service Director Nick Wren said he is hoping to bring in about $900,000 this season at — with the help of some planned improvements.

In 2011 the golf course lost about $85,000, even though expenses have been reduced by 16 percent since 2009, said Director of Budget and Management John Earle . 

"Additional measures to increase revenue and reduce expenses are being taken in 2012," Earle said. "The overall goal is to stabilize the golf course operation financially."

"Revenue generation is our downfall ... just like every golf course in the country, we're fighting to reposition ourselves," said Wren.

Which is why the city is proposing an eight-point action plan.

"A lot of these may seem minor, but from a retail and public relations standpoint, a lot of them are actually going to have a major impact," he added.

1. Extended Hours: The course will be open until 10 p.m. There was never a set closing time before. "We want our players to enjoy the social aspect of the game as well and spend dollars after their round at our golf course," said Wren. "Non-golf related revenue was up 4.3 percent last year ... we want to attract that 4.3 percent."
2. Structural Change: The clubhouse will be set up to better separate the pro shop from the lounge. "It's a very inexpensive change and it will be a more welcoming atmosphere for customers," said Wren.
3. Picnic Shelter Improvements: "It's currently at eyesore and it's the first thing you see when you drive up," said Wren. The city will look to refurbish the picnic shelter.
4. Amusement Opportunities: The club house will get Megatouch gaming systems and Golden Tee through a revenue sharing agreement with an outside company.
5. Online Tee Time Bookings: "One of our downfalls is that we haven't kept up with the times in certain areas," said Wren. "Online tee time bookings will be a major drive for sales." An outside company would offer the online bookings, which is not an upfront expense for the city, he said.
6. Drainage Issues: The water problems on the course resulted in course conditions going downhill in 2010, said Wren. "We've identified some areas and we'll be performing a lot of work in-house to add drainage and get water out of areas of play quicker," he said. 
7. Better Tee Placement: "We'll make sure the blue (pro) tees are placed in proper areas for scratch golfers. They can play the blue tees and the white tees at different times and it's like two different golf courses," said Wren.
8. Green Speed/Consistency: "The plan is to ensure that the greens roll at a 9.6 slope rating on the Stimpmeter every time you play the course."

The city-owned golf course is .