Todd Jester, who is also a course architect, told an open meeting in Franklin, Tenn. that Phase I of the expansion plan would form a nine-hole, par-3 course with blanket greens inspired by historic holes in the U.S. A lighted driving range and clubhouse modeled after Mississippi’s Old Waverly GC are also planned. Cheekwood is already used as a practice site by 22 junior high schools and youth player development would get added emphasis through the expansion.
At a meeting at the Franklin, Tenn. city hall on January 31st, the Brentwood (Tenn.) Home Page reported, city officials and developers gathered to discuss any potential concerns of residents in the area surrounding the proposed expansion of Cheekwood Golf Club, which C&RB reported on last October (http://clubandresortbusiness.com/2017/10/cheekwood-gc-expand-operations/).
The nearly 54-acre lot, which the city originally purchased as a sewer plant expansion, is being leased to Cheekwood Golf Club for its expansion of its current course, the Home Page reported. The current course is separated from the new land by Mack Hatcher Parkway.
Todd Jester, the co-owner of Cheekwood, is also a golf course architect who has worked with golf professionals like Jack Nicklaus and Jerry Pate during his career, the Home Page reported.
Phase 1 of the expansion plan, the Home Page reported. would form a nine-hole course that would primarily be devoted to youth development.
The ultimate goal, Jester said, is to expand the current course underneath the Parkway, via an already-existing tunnel, to create a regulation course so local tournaments can be held in an official capacity.
Twenty-two junior high schools, including Battle Ground Academy, the Ensworth School, and Montgomery Bell Academy already practice at Cheekwood, the Home Page reported, and Jester wants to continue the trend.
“We’re super youth-oriented,” he said. “We’re shooting to have one of the nicest practice facilities in the state.”
Phase 1 of the expansion project will be focused on driving ranges and practice holes, the Home Page reported, and the 22-acre plot would include LED lighting, which uses less electricity and less light pollution, to illuminate the course during evening hours.
“As far as a lighted facility, there’s nothing in the county,” Jester said.
Modern turf grasses will blanket greens inspired by historic golf holes around the United States, the Home Page reported. Jester noted that the first phase, intended for children, would enable them to play a nine-hole, par-three game while learning about the historic courses.
A clubhouse, modeled after Old Waverly Golf Club in West Point, Miss., will be part of the second phase, the Home Page reported.
Residents who live near the project, which has yet to be approved by the city’s planning commission and Board of Mayor and Aldermen, gathered at the city hall to ask questions, the Home Page reported.
One neighbor was concerned houses would be built in the area in the future.
“This just keeps coming up for us, and I’d just like to get an answer as to whether there’s going to be any in the future,” he said.
Greg Gamble, of Gamble Design Collaborative, which is working with Jester on the expansion project, replied that “Today, we need that space for golf. There are too many unknowns to say, yes, we have a plan for housing,”
The planned expansion is not to meant to deter residents, but to enhance the natural aspects of the area, Jester added.
“It’s not our intention to create a negative situation for anyone,” he said. “We want to give Franklin another jewel in her crown.”
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