LYNNWOOD — The Lynnwood Municipal Golf Course is doing better financially, two and a half years after the city hired a private firm to run day-to-day operations.
The golf course still owes the city’s general fund $1.1 million. The City Council on Monday is expected to vote on a new financial plan that would extend the repayment timeline and also loan the course an additional $550,000 for new construction.
The construction plan calls for adding at least 50 parking spots by spring 2017. The course currently has 82 spots. That’s never been enough to meet demand since the course opened in the early 1990s, city parks Director Lynn Sordel said.
“It’s been the Achilles heel of the golf course,” he said.
With more parking, the vendor, Premier Golf Centers of Seattle, could amp up marketing efforts, Sordel said.
“The parking lot is a very, very important project for the business,” he said.
The golf course is located next to Edmonds Community College and is accessed through the college entrance.
The finances of the golf course drew scrutiny from state auditors in 2012. The auditors at the time said the course needed to pay back money it had been loaned from other parts of the city budget. After a series of public meetings, the city in 2013 hired Premier in hopes of improving the course’s revenues.
Municipal and private golf courses saw fewer rounds played during the recession. Snohomish County owns a golf course, as does the city of Marysville. The city of Everett’s two courses also are run through a partnership with Premier.
In February, the Everett City Council began talking about making changes to city-owned courses — Walter Hall and Legion Memorial — including the possibility of selling or closing them. A decision could take several more months, parks director Lori Cummings said.
Since Premier took over in Lynnwood, the rounds have been increasing, with nearly 46,000 last year. This year is on track to surpass that, Sordel said.
The uptick in 2015 happened despite an irrigation problem and summertime roundabout construction at the college entrance.
The proposed new financial plan would require the golf course to repay its debts, including the parking lot construction costs, in 15 years. The existing plan, for repayment in five years, was unrealistic, Sordel said.
“All of those audit issues were resolved,” he said. “This is a repayment to the general fund. We’ve always maintained that the golf course should repay.”
Through a contract, the city pays Premier about $97,700 a year to manage the course. The course this year is expected to turn a modest net profit of about $22,000. That’s after the vendor payment and the required $100,000 annual payment on the loan, documents show. Revenues also are predicted to keep rising over the next few years.
The city owns about half the land occupied by the 75-acre golf course. The state owns the other half, which is managed by the college. The city’s lease with the college expires in 2021. Negotiations to renew the lease could wrap up this fall, Sordel said.
“I think the golf course is moving in the right direction,” he said. “Everybody at the city feels good about that. Premier has shown their expertise. We have a good product out there. We have a really good course.”
Rikki King: 425-339-3449, rking@heraldnet.com.
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