Representatives of seven management firms attended a pre-proposal meeting held at the Prescott, Ariz., municipal golf course, attendance of which was mandatory under the terms of the request for proposals released by the city. The companies have until November 21 to submit a proposal and the city expects to make a decision on a private operator by January 2014.
Seven firms are interested in taking on operation of the Antelope Hills Golf Course, with each sending representatives to a pre-proposal meeting on October 17, the Prescott (Ariz.) Daily Courier reported.
Attendance at the meeting was mandatory under the terms of the request for proposals (RFP) that the city released earlier this month, soliciting a private operator for the Prescott, Ariz., municipal golf course, the Courier reported.
The pre-proposal meeting at the course’s clubhouse attracted company representatives from as far away as Illinois, Texas, Idaho and Nevada. Among the firms listed on a sign-in sheet were: BGM, Billy Casper Golf, Sirius Golf, KemperSports, Course Co., Touchstone Golf, and OB Sports, the Courier reported.
The meeting included a tour of the course and a question-and-answer period during which city officials answered questions about the course’s operation, the Courier reported.
Recreation Services Director Joe Baynes and Deputy City Manager Alison Zelms fielded questions from company representatives on issues such as the number of golf course employees, the market value of golf course vehicles, and the solvency of the course’s existing enterprise fund, the Courier reported.
The companies now have until October 28 to ask more questions, and then have until November 21 to submit a proposal. The city expects to make a decision on the matter by January 14, 2014, and have a new operator on board by February 1, the Courier reported.
The RFP was the result of Prescott City Council direction during budget deliberations this past summer. At that time, council members appeared to support a “hybrid” arrangement that would combine city maintenance of the course with private operation of the business components, the Courier reported.
The resulting RFP leaves many of the details of the arrangement up to the proposers, Baynes said.
The RFP states: “Proposals must include a compensation proposal that lays out a requested monthly management fee (if any) and requested percentage of gross revenues as well as any other activity-specific compensation expectations (e.g., driving range, cart rental, lessons, and restaurant sales).”
The city is looking to break even on the golf course after covering its $1.4 million annual cost of maintenance. For much of the past decade, the golf course has been losing money, and has repeatedly borrowed from the city’s general fund. As of this past spring, the debt to the general fund had exceeded $4 million, the Courier reported.
The City Council has grappled for years with what to do with the course, and finally directed city staff this past summer to pursue the hybrid arrangement, the Courier reported.
The debt issue likely would be the topic of further consideration by the City Council, Zelms said. The question of whether the city would put any future revenues from the golf course toward the debt repayment “would need to come back for future council discussion,” she said.
A final decision on the contract for operation of the golf course also would be up to the council. The city is expected to start reviewing the proposals soon after the submission deadline. The process likely would include interviews with the top contenders, as well as a recommendation to the council, the Courier reported.
Meanwhile, the city has put the maintenance of the course under the parks and recreation department (now called recreation services). The department took on maintenance on October 1, the Courier reported.
While the city would continue to maintain the course, the RFP states that the private operator would be responsible for: collecting green fees; scheduling tee times; providing marshaling and starting services; providing diverse golf programs and lessons; purchasing inventory and selling pro shop merchandise; providing range balls; maintaining range facilities and equipment (but not including turf maintenance); providing and maintaining rental golf power carts and hand carts; providing restaurant services; and conducting marketing, the Courier reported.
The proposal suggests a 10-year contract “in exchange for a percentage of annual gross revenues, with the operator having the opportunity to receive higher percentages as the gross revenues increase,” the Courier reported.
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