Title
Discussion and Possible Action on Temporary Fee Reductions for Season Passes at the Golf Course Due to Construction in 2024
Recommended Action
I move that Council approve temporary fee reductions, as per Attachment A, for season passes at the Los Alamos County Golf Course for calendar year 2024, due to planned construction throughout the season.
County Manager's Recommendation
The County Manager recommends that Council approve the temporary reduction in fees as requested.
Body
On Oct. 10, 2023, Los Alamos County Council approved the bid award for the Golf Course Improvement Project. With the contracts in place, construction is anticipated to begin in late winter/early Spring of 2024. While it is anticipated that the golf course will remain open during construction, it is expected that the facility will be limited to only 9 holes of play for the majority of the 2024 season; including several weeks with temporary tee areas and holes, and some anticipated days of full closures during the course of the golf course improvement project. The practice range will also incur some closures when the new netting is installed.
Season pass sales for the golf course typically commencing in January. Staff proposes a season pass structure that reduces the cost of each type of pass by one-half of the current 18-hole pass price. Attachment A shows the proposed pass fees that were approved for recommendation by the Parks and Recreation Board on Nov. 9, 2023. Daily fees can be assessed based on a 9-hole fee structure that is already established.
This temporary reduction in golf course season passes due to the course partial closure and other potential disruption is an effort to create an opportunity to:
• increase sales of season passes due to decreased price;
• attract new players with an increased likelihood of repeating golf course visits due to the more affordable cost of the passes; and
• entice casual golfers to purchase season passes when they might not have done so in the past.
Furthermore, staff believes patrons may be likely to buy season passes again in the 2025 season, when the full course is reopened, and the reduced season pass fees have expired.
Fiscal and Staff Impact
For the 2020 golf season, County Council approved the Los Alamos County Golf Course to reduce fees by half due to the irrigation project, and it resulted in a revenue loss of $32,450 from the previous 2019 season. However, the reduced fees also resulted in a 35.9% increase in the number golf pass sold. In 2021, when fees were returned to regular price the Golf Course saw an additional increase of 98% in the number golf pass sold, and a revenue gain of $23,430 from the 2019 season. It is anticipated that the impact of the proposed reduction of golf pass fees will be similar to the revenue loss form 2020 at approximately $30,000. There will also be an impact to staff, and the golf course will see a reduction is in casual labor expenses since operations will have much less open course area to cover during the construction project.
Alternatives
Los Alamos County Council could decide not to temporarily reduce fees, due to the construction and reduced service at the golf course.
Attachments
A - Proposed Golf Course 2024 Season Pass Fees