What is the future of city owned golf courses in Tucson?
Today the Mayor and City Council will receive a report on golf course operations for the year from the new company that was given management of the courses.
In January, OB Sports, a private company from Scottsdale was awarded the contract to take over the five City of Tucson golf courses, and so far they have made several improvements, but has it been enough.
Since OB Sports has taken over running the courses the goal has been to improve customer experience, including presentation and playability of the courses. This was done with new golf carts, new mowers for the greens and maintenance equipment, as well as upgrades to the kitchens at El Rio, Randolph and Fred Enke.
The City pays OB Sports a monthly management fee of $4,000 per golf course. According to City officials despite the upgrades and changes made the number of rounds being played is down almost four percent from 2013.
For one city council member, Steve Kozachik the question remains whether there is a future for golf in Tucson and how long the city can subsidize it.
City officials are saying there are a couple of reasons for the number of rounds being down, new golf courses have opened up and struggling courses have been offering below market prices to play.
