From: Bolla, Rhonda
To: City Council Public Comments
Subject: FW: [EXTERNAL] Increasing fees at Bennett Valley Golf Course Date: Tuesday, April 29, 2025 8:59:20 AM
From: Andrew Smith < t>
Sent: Monday, April 28, 2025 4:57 PM
To: Santos, Jen <[email protected]>
Subject: [EXTERNAL] Increasing fees at Bennett Valley Golf Course
Jen,
I saw the public notice in the Press Democrat over the weekend and to send comments and questions to your attention.
I just started playing golf again the past few weeks and play at the major Muni golf courses in Sonoma County plus Valley of the Moon. All courses now charge a few dollars more on Fridays as Windsor Golf has been doing that for a while.
Increasing the cost of playing golf at Bennett Valley Golf Course a few dollars a round the next two fiscal years not going to impact golfers wanting to play at Bennett Valley Golf Course.
But both Windsor Golf and Foxtail North golf courses get more green fees because each golf course has a good irrigation system so the fairways are lusher than Bennett Valley Golf Course. That helps justify the greater green fees.
Ironically, the two Foxtail Golf Courses in Rohnert Park I have been told get their recycled water from the city of Santa Rosa while Bennett Valley does not. Hard to understand why this has happened in the first place going back quite a few years.
I know a holding pond is going to be built soon at Bennett Valley Golf Course but until the city comes up with the money to pay for the upgrade in the outdated irrigation system, Bennett Valley Golf Course will always lag behind Windsor and Foxtail North in quality. Has Santa Rosa looked at any grant programs from the state of California to help pay for upgrading the irrigation system even if only 50% gets upgraded
initially? The closer a golf course looks more like those that the PGA and LPGA play on, the more Santa Rosa can charge on green fees.
The current company running Bennett Valley Golf Course has also done a very good job with the restaurant to help bring in more revenue for the city. But competition is what drives golf courses to compete for golfers both during the week and on weekends. Many golfers come up from Marin County due to lower green fees in Sonoma County. Help make their destination Bennett Valley Golf Course as their first choice to play.
Same for golfers in San Francisco who may want to get out of the city and enjoy the sunshine of Santa Rosa!
I am senior golfer and only play golf during the week usually on Fridays plus take an electric golf cart.
Andrew Smith
Santa Rosa