{"body": "GolfCommission", "date": "2007-09-19", "page": 1, "text": "ALAMEDA GOLF COMMISSION\nMINUTES OF REGULAR MEETING\nWednesday, September 19, 2007\n1.\nCALL TO ORDER\nChair Bob Wood called the regular meeting to order at 6:30 p.m. at Harrison\nCenter, Lincoln Park, 1425 High Street.\n1-A.\nRoll Call\nRoll call was taken and members present were: Commissioner Bill Delaney,\nCommissioner Betsy Gammell, Vice Chair Ray Gaul, Commissioner Bill Schmitz,\nSecretary Jane Sullwold and Chair Bob Wood. Absent: Commissioner Sandr\u00e9\nSwanson. Also present were Interim General Manager Dale Lillard, Golf\nServices Manager Matt Plumlee and Golf Superintendent Doug Poole.\n1-B\nApproval of Minutes - Regular Meeting of August 15, 2007.\nCommissioner Gammell asked why the three items requested to be on the\nagenda at the last meeting were not included. The Interim General Manager\nstated that the meeting was going to focus on the Operational Review, which\ndoes reference the Mif Albright Course and the Clubhouse Project.\nCommissioner Gammell asked that the third item requested, the Saturday\nMorning Free Junior Clinics be discussed if time allows.\nThe Commission made the following corrections to the minutes:\nItem 1-B-page 1-line 2: \"absence\" should be \"absent\".\nItem 3-page 1-line 3: \"be\" needs to be added between would and at.\nItem 3-page 1-line 5: \"change\" should be \"chance\".\nItem 4-A-page 3-line 1: \"2007\" should be \"2007/2008\".\nItem 4-A-page 3-line 8: \"to\" needs to be removed between made and by.\nItem 4-B-page 3-line 3: \"will\" needs to be added between Commission and\nreview.\nItem 5-A-page 3-line 2: \"to help\" needs to be changed to \"who helped\".\nItem 5-B-page 4-line 3: \"he has\" needs to be added between Recently and\nreplaced.\nItem 5-B-page 4-line 7: \"part\" should be \"path\".\nSecretary Sullwold suggested that the minutes be sent to her for review prior to\nbeing sent out to avoid the time spent on small corrections at the meeting.\nThe Commission approved the minutes unanimously with the aforementioned\ncorrections.\n1-C\nAdoption of Agenda\nChuck Corica Golf Complex\nPage 1\n10/11/07\nGolf Commission Minutes", "path": "GolfCommission/2007-09-19.pdf"}
{"body": "GolfCommission", "date": "2007-09-19", "page": 2, "text": "The following changes were made to the agenda:\n6-H-Golf Complex Restaurant Report, Jim's on the Course will be moved to Item\n4-B for this meeting. The Saturday Morning Free Junior Clinics item will be\nadded to the agenda provided time allows.\nThe Commission adopted the agenda unanimously with the aforementioned\nchanges.\n2.\nORAL COMMUNICATIONS\n3.\nCOMMISSION COMMUNICATIONS\nChair Wood read the following communication to the Golf Commission regarding\nhis meeting on September 12, 2007 with the Chief Financial Officer, Juelle Ann\nBoyer:\nAt the August 15, 2007 Golf Commission Regular Meeting, Commission\nmembers directed me, as Chairman, to contact the City Chief Financial Officer,\nJuelle Ann Boyer, to find out why the Commission has not yet received, Monthly\nReport financial data of the Alameda Golf Complex operations for the months of\nJune and July, 2007. Such data, representing the preceding month's golf\noperations, had been consistently presented for decades, so that Commissioners\nand the public could review, discuss and possibly recommend subsequent action\nto the staff and/or City Council. But the Monthly Report had always been\nprepared by the senior management of the Golf Complex, based on cash register\nreceipts and expenditures under their control. Typically, the golf staff Monthly\nReport for June did not ultimately coincide with subsequent Finance Department\nreconciliation that take place annually during the months of July and August,\nbefore the fiscal year-end books are closed by the Finance Department. The\nresulting mismatch of financial reporting annually caused confusion on the part of\nthe Golf Commission and the public. I met briefly with Juelle Ann at the City\nFinance Department on 12 September 2007. The Finance Department now\nappreciates that the Commission, since the May 2007 Report, had not even\nreceived (1) attendance figures in each of the fee categories, (2) numbers of\nmonthly and annual tickets sold in each category, (3) a breakdown of daily &\npass ticket players, (4) numbers of surcharge rounds in each category, and (5)\nnumbers of rain days. Because June and July are always two of the most active\nmonths of the Golf Complex operations, it is important for the Commission to be\naware of the record of activity during those months and be able to compare it to\nthe previous year's data. Juelle Ann will work with the Interim General Manager\nof the Golf Complex to assure that the quantitative data, as outlined above, will\nbe provided in future June Reports. But my understanding is that, also in the\nfuture, the actual dollar-amounts attributable to both revenues and expenditures\nfor the month of June will not be provided to the Commission and public until the\nSeptember Regular Meeting of the Golf Commission. July Reports, including\nquantitative and revenue/expenditure dollar-amount information will be provided\non a timely basis. Commissioner Gammell reported that she received a written\nrequest from a member of the Alameda Women's Golf Club regarding the use of\nChuck Corica Golf Complex\nPage 2\n10/11/07\nGolf Commission Minutes", "path": "GolfCommission/2007-09-19.pdf"}
{"body": "GolfCommission", "date": "2007-09-19", "page": 3, "text": "a privately owned golf cart at the Golf Complex. The item was brought to the\nprevious General Manager over a year ago and since then the customer has had\nthe golf cart licensed through the DMV and has had it insured. The Interim\nGeneral Manager has spoken to the Risk Manager regarding the issue and they\nare looking into the proposition. The item will be brought up at next month's Golf\nCommission Meeting. The request was made to have copies of the request\ndistributed to the Golf Commissioner's prior to the October meeting.\n4.\nAGENDA ITEMS:\n4-A\nElection for Golf Commission Board Positions. (Action Item)\nThe Nominations for Golf Commission Board positions for 2007/2008 were as follows:\nChair: Jane Sullwold\nNominated by Vice Chair Gaul and seconded by Commissioner Gammell.\nVice Chair: Ray Gaul\nNominated by Commissioner Gammell and seconded by Secretary Sullwold.\nSecretary: Bill Delaney\nNominated by Secretary Sullwold and seconded by Vice Chair Gaul.\nThe motion was made by Commissioner Gammell and seconded by Vice Chair Gaul to\naccept the nominees as stated. The Golf Commission elected the nominees\nunanimously.\n4-B\nGolf Complex Restaurant Report, Jim's on the Course.\nChair Wood introduced Dimitrios Dimopoulos, the new General Manager at Jim's\non the Course and encouraged him to attend the monthly Golf Commission\nMeetings to give a Restaurant Report.\n4-C\nPresentation and Acceptance of Golf Complex Operational Review with National Golf\nFoundation (NGF). (Action Item)\nThe Interim General Manager stated that earlier this year the City Council\ndirected the Golf Complex to go through an operational review. During that\nprocess, a Request for Proposals (RFP) was developed and The National Golf\nFoundation (NGF) was awarded the contract. Chair Wood introduced Ed\nGetherall and Richard Singer of NGF. NGF began its work in May 2007 and\ncompleted its report in early September. Representatives from NGF were\npresent to give an overview of how the report was compiled and how they based\ntheir recommendations. Mr. Singer, Director of Consulting Services, expressed\nhis appreciation to the City of Alameda for bringing NGF in to help with the golf\nsystem. Mr. Singer introduced Ed Getherall, Senior Project Manager for the\nChuck Corica Golf Complex project. Mr. Singer also mentioned a third member\nof the consulting team, Forrest Richardson, a Golf Course Architect, who was\nunable to attend although contributed to the study.\nChuck Corica Golf Complex\nPage 3\n10/11/07\nGolf Commission Minutes", "path": "GolfCommission/2007-09-19.pdf"}
{"body": "GolfCommission", "date": "2007-09-19", "page": 4, "text": "Mr. Singer gave an overview of NGF, stating that is a not-for-profit research\nassociation dedicated to helping golf businesses succeed. They have performed\nmany consulting projects similar to the one at the Chuck Corica Golf Complex.\nMr. Getherall and Mr. Richardson spent a considerable amount of time at the\nComplex and Mr. Getherall also visited a number of the competing courses in the\narea to compare and trends, to better understand the overall golf market in the\nregion and match it up with the national golf market. Mr. Singer stated that the\ngolf business is a tough one to be in currently, and what the City of Alameda is\nexperiencing is not unique. He added that there are many municipal golf facilities\nfaced with the same problems, and it is NGF's goal to help the City of Alameda\nfind ways to preserve its golf asset for the long-term future. The report is not\nbased on a quick fix and short-term solution but rather the long term.\nIn general, it seems that the golf operation has a lot of little problems that add up\nvery quickly to a major issue. Many of the problems concern the physical quality\nof the golf facility. The Complex is in need of upgrades and the problem is who is\ngoing to pay for them. The amount needed for improvements is approximately\nten million dollars, and either the City of Alameda will need to pay for them out of\nthe General Fund or privatize the operation and remove the responsibility for\nimprovements from the City. There are things that can be done to the facility to\nmake it more aesthetically pleasing, but there are also items such as drainage\nimprovements that would enhance the capacity to have more rounds played.\nThe report also recommends that the City have a Master Plan of the facility\nprepared for the long term. NGF does not believe that it is realistic to expect that\nthe Chuck Corica Golf Complex will earn sufficient revenue to cover all of its\noperational expenditures and capital improvements while at the same time\nmaking substantial payments to the City of Alameda's General Fund. In the best\ncase scenario the Complex would be able to cover all operating expenses and be\nable to put money aside for future improvements.\nMr. Singer stated that the study looked at three scenarios that might be\nconsidered for the future long-term operations of the golf facility and turned the\nfloor over to Mr. Getherall to elaborate on them. Mr. Getherall stated that the\nRFP was issued due to the fact that the rounds of golf played at the Chuck\nCorica Golf Complex had steadily declined over the past 10 years by\napproximately 100,000 since 1997 and with that sort of decline in rounds your\nrevenue will also decrease. Over the same period of time, the expenses have\nincreased, especially the cost of public labor. Mr. Getherall stated that some of\nthe payments from the Golf Complex to the General Fund are quite common for\nmunicipal golf courses, but it is unrealistic for the City to receive the surcharge\nand return on investment payments during a time when revenues are low. Also\npointed out was the fact that the golf market is down both regionally and\nnationally, and rounds have been affected by the large number of newer private\ndaily fee golf facilities in the area who have the ability to discount their fees when\nnecessary.\nThe first scenario studied by NGF is for the Complex to carry on \"As Is.\" NGF\npredicts that the operating reserve would be used up within five years and the\nChuck Corica Golf Complex\nPage 4\n10/11/07\nGolf Commission Minutes", "path": "GolfCommission/2007-09-19.pdf"}
{"body": "GolfCommission", "date": "2007-09-19", "page": 5, "text": "General Fund will be subsidizing the Golf Complex if nothing changes. The\nsecond scenario is continued self-operation with implementation of NGF's\noperational recommendations such as dealing with the pace of play problem,\nmarketing business plan, customer service issues and a stand-alone banquet\nfacility. Under this scenario, the bottom line will improve although the City will\nhave to continue depleting the operating reserve, and major facility\nimprovements will be deferred. The third scenario is to bring in an outside\nprivate management company, in which case the burden of risk is transferred\nfrom the City. Mr. Getherall stated that ending the transfers from the Golf\nComplex to the General Fund would help, although it is ultimately a short-term fix\nand the need for physical improvements is more than those funds could provide.\nMr. Getherall said that the golf market is not going back to what it was and it is\nunrealistic to expect rounds to ever return to the high levels reach in the early\n1990s; this is the market that golf facilities have to operate in. For a long- term\nsolution, NFG's suggestion is to shift the burden of risk to private management.\nMany cities in the Bay Area are experiencing the same problems with revenue\nloss and depleting golf funds. Mr. Getherall pointed out that there are factors in\nthe golf market that cannot be controlled, such as the number of courses in the\narea, the economy, and the overall state of the golf industry. Ultimately the key\nquestion for the City of Alameda is whether it is prepared to fund some of the\nimprovements.\nChair Wood stated that the Operational Review Report is available on line at the\nCity of Alameda web site and there is a copy at the Alameda Main Library. The\ndiscussion was opened to the floor and the comment was made that the City of\nAlameda has always been known for its wonderful junior Golf Program and it\nwould be wrong to raise the junior fees as the report suggested. Another\ncomment was that the over-abundance of full-time management in the Pro Shop\nis a large part of the problem. In reference to the NGF recommendation to close\nthe Mif Albright Course, several audience members commented that (1) it is the\nperfect place for parents to take their children to learn the game of golf, although\n(2) the course was ruined when the practice area took two of the holes away and\nreconfigured the layout, and (3) that the Mif Albright Course is ideal for older\ngolfers who can no longer play on the big courses. The question was asked if\nthe Mif Albright Course was renovated would it have potential to become a\nmoneymaker. Mr. Getherall stated that if the course was used as a learning\ncourse to cultivate new players it could possibly be more successful in the long\nterm.\nSecretary Sullwold stated that she believes there is a fourth scenario not\nanalyzed by NGF, where the Mif Albright Course is closed and the land leased\nout, the City of Alameda cuts back the paybacks to the General Fund\nsubstantially, and other recommendations in the report regarding staffing,\noperational improvements, a stand-alone banquet facility, and improvements to\nthe Driving Range were implemented. She asked if these were done what would\nthe potential revenue stream be over the next five years. Mr. Singer stated that\nthe unknown is what amount could be generated by a lease of the Mif Albright\nproperty. If it is a substantial amount then the answer is probably yes, you might\nbe able to make it work. The comment was made that a rumor is going around\nChuck Corica Golf Complex\nPage 5\n10/11/07\nGolf Commission Minutes", "path": "GolfCommission/2007-09-19.pdf"}
{"body": "GolfCommission", "date": "2007-09-19", "page": 6, "text": "town that the developer Ron Cowan was interested in moving the Harbor Bay\nClub\nto the Mif Albright Course site. The Superintendent stated that the Mif\nAlbright Course is now basically a practice facility the way it is set up now.\nCustomer just use the practice area for free and do not pay to play the par 3\ncourse. The suggestion was made to turn the Mif Albright Course into an 18-\nhole putting course with only greens. Chair Wood asked if NGF has seen this\nsort of operation succeed in other areas. Mr. Singer said that the cost to\nrenovate it into a putting course would be just as expensive as it would be to redo\nthe entire course. He said that the best way to attract customers to a par 3\ncourse is to have special events on it or turn it into a lighted facility.\nSecretary Sullwold asked if currently there are management companies\ninterested in taking over and leasing golf operations that need a large amount of\nmoney in improvements. Mr. Singer stated that I it would depend on what sort of\ndeal was put on the table. Commissioner Schmitz asked for a ballpark payment\nfigure the City of Alameda could expect to receive from a lessee. Mr. Singer said\nthat there is generally a guaranteed minimum lease payment and then\napproximately 8-10% of gross revenue. He did mention that the more constraints\nthat are placed on a lessee, the less the return is. The City of Alameda could\nexpect to earn approximately $500,000 per year. Also mentioned was that in the\ncurrent golf market it is becoming more common for contracts to have a\nrenegotiation clause. Secretary Sullwold stated that she believes that the way a\nlessee makes the deal work is by releasing all of the full time civil servant\nemployees and replace them with a part time nonunion work force, significantly\nlowering labor costs. Commissioner Schmitz asked what sort of commitment and\nfollow through has NGF seen on the part of the lessee to actually do the\nimprovements promised. Mr. Singer stated that it is important to have a\nreputable vendor to start with, also a contract with specific measurable goals and\nstrong oversight to ensure that the improvements are being done. The question\nwas raised about leasing out separate pieces of the operation. Mr. Singer stated\nthat leasing out separate parts of the operation is done although not as attractive\nto a vendor and with the maintenance side of the operation there is no revenue\nsource so the City of Alameda would be paying the contractor.\nChair Wood stated that he did not think that the Operational Review mentioned\nthe affect of the geese problem at the Complex. He stated that it is a huge\nproblem and is costing the Golf Complex customers. The suggestion was made\nto look into having the goose control dogs returned. The program was\ndiscontinued due to the annual expense of $18,000.\nCommissioner Delaney stated that he feel NGF did an outstanding job on the\nOperational Review Report and hit on all of the crucial points. He said that the\nComplex needs a Master Plan for the long term and additional marketing efforts.\nHe suggested that the Golf Commission accept the report and also form a task\nforce to develop a consensus to bring back to the Golf Commission and from that\nbuild a Master Plan. The Golf Commission complimented NGF on the\nthoroughness of the report. The motion was made by Commissioner Delaney to\naccept the Operational Review and seconded by Vice Chair Gaul. The\nCommission approved the motion unanimously.\nChuck Corica Golf Complex\nPage 6\n10/11/07\nGolf Commission Minutes", "path": "GolfCommission/2007-09-19.pdf"}
{"body": "GolfCommission", "date": "2007-09-19", "page": 7, "text": "5.\nORAL REPORTS\n5-A\nGolf Shop and Driving Range activities report by Golf Services Manager Matt Plumlee.\nThe Golf Services Manager reported that the Golf Complex made $68.00 for the Patriot\nDay promotion.\n5-B\nGolf Complex Maintenance activities report by Superintendent Doug Poole.\nThe Superintendent reported that the crew would be aerating the Jack Clark Golf\nCourse on Monday, September 24, 2007.\n5-C Beautification Program by Mrs. Norma Arnerich.\nNothing to Report.\n6.\nCOMMISSIONERS' REPORTS\n6-A\nMarketing and Promotions, Commissioner Gammell.\nNothing to Report.\n6-B\nGolf Complex Financial Report, Vice Chair Gaul.\nVice Chair Gaul reported that the Golf Commission had just received the month0-\nend July 2007 and August 2007 financial reports at the meeting and the Golf\nCommission is not prepared to discuss them. The request was made to include\nthe prior year's amounts to use as a comparison. The request was made to\nreceive a report showing the number of \"Complimentary Rounds\" and golf cart\nrentals for the month. Commissioner Schmitz expressed his disappointment with\nthe new reports being received from the City of Alameda finance Department and\nstated that the Golf Commission is now receiving less information than ever\nbefore. Another complaint was made concerning the end of the year reports,\nwhich have not yet been received.\n6-C\nNew Clubhouse Project, Commissioner Schmitz.\nChair Wood voiced his disappointment with the delay in receiving the cost\nestimates for the scheme he prepared using the existing clubhouse building. He\nalso stated that the Operational Review said that the building was 6,300 square\nfeet when actually it is 10,300 square feet when the restaurant building is\nincluded.\n6-D\nMaintenance, Buildings, Security, Albright Course and Driving Range, Secretary\nSullwold.\nNothing to Report.\nChuck Corica Golf Complex\nPage 7\n10/11/07\nGolf Commission Minutes", "path": "GolfCommission/2007-09-19.pdf"}
{"body": "GolfCommission", "date": "2007-09-19", "page": 8, "text": "6-E\nCity Council and Government Liaison, Commissioner Swanson.\nNo Report.\n6-F\nFront Entrance Beautification Project, Chair Wood.\nNothing to Report.\n6-G\nGolf Complex 80th Anniversary, Commissioner Delaney\nCommissioner Delaney reported that a proclamation was written for the 80th\nAnniversary and will be presented at the City Council Meeting on October 2,\n2007. The Golf Services Manager sent out a email blast promoting October 19,\n2007, as the date to celebrate the 80th Anniversary of the Chuck Corica Golf\nComplex, and offering special golf rates of $80 per foursome including carts after\n12:00 pm on Friday, October 19, and Friday, October 26. The request was made\nto the Golf Services Manager to have all of the email addresses in the Ladies\nClub Roster Book entered in to the database for the website so that they can\nreceive the email information.\n6-H\nGolf Complex Restaurant Report, Jim's on the Course.\nPreviously given.\n7.\nORAL COMMUNICATIONS, NON-AGENDA (Public Comment)\nMrs. Arnerich reported that Alameda High School has started a Girls Golf Team.\n8.\nOLD BUSINESS\nCommissioner Gammell asked how the Complex can reinstate the Saturday\nMorning Junior Golf Clinics. The Golf Services Manager said that he would\ndiscuss it with the Independent Contractors and see what the interest level is and\nhow to make it work.\n9.\nWRITTEN COMMUNICATIONS\nIncluded in the Commission packet was a memorandum to the Finance\nDepartment showing $15,145 as the surcharge payment for August 2007. The\nyear-to-date total to the General Fund is $31,530 for the fiscal year 2007/2008.\n10.\nITEMS FOR AGENDA OF NEXT MEETING\nReport on Saturday Morning Junior Golf Clinics\nMif Albright Golf Course\nClubhouse Project Cost Estimates\n11. ANNOUNCEMENTS/ADJOURNMENT\nChuck Corica Golf Complex\nPage 8\n10/11/07\nGolf Commission Minutes", "path": "GolfCommission/2007-09-19.pdf"}
{"body": "GolfCommission", "date": "2007-09-19", "page": 9, "text": "The Golf Commission will hold a Work Session on October 10, 2007 at 6:30 pm\nin the Ladies Lounge at the Golf Complex.\nThe Interim General Manager presented outgoing Chair Wood with his parking\nlot sign in commemoration of the completion of his second four-year term on the\nGolf Commission. Commissioner Delaney thanked Chair Wood for his service to\nthe Golf Commission. Chair Wood said it has been an honor, privilege and an\neducation to serve on the Golf Commission for the past eight years. He also\nstated it has been a pleasure to work with all of the members of the Golf\nCommission and get to know them personally, as volunteers, as dedicated\nAlamedans, and as fellow fanatic golfers. He also thanked the Golf Complex\nstaff.\nThe Meeting was adjourned at 9:27 PM.\nThe agenda for the meeting was posted 72 hours in advance in accordance with the Brown\nAct.\nChuck Corica Golf Complex\nPage 9\n10/11/07\nGolf Commission Minutes", "path": "GolfCommission/2007-09-19.pdf"}