Two men have been working for eight years to raise $14 million to restore the 100-year-old municipal golf course in West Philadelphia and showcase the area’s history. Most of the money has been raised, primarily through private donors, but construction could still take years to begin.
Cobbs Creek Golf Course in West Philadelphia is nearly 100 years old, but over time, the course has lost some of its shine, and Joseph Bausch, a professor at Villanova, and Mike Cirba, an IT guy, plan to do just that, CBS Local’s Philadelphia affiliate reported.
“We’ve heard that there have been previous efforts, you’ll never do it, you can’t get anything done with the city,” Cirba said.
“We saw this as an opportunity to really make municipal golf better in Philadelphia,” said Bausch.
The two men have been working to raise the $14 million needed to restore the golf course for eight years. Most of the money has been raised, primarily by private donors, and will be going toward a public course, CBS reported.
When asked why they are taking on such a daunting task, Cirba and Bausch said they were passionate about showing off the history in the area. “They had no barriers based on race, on gender, or any other religious affiliation,” said Cirba.
When asked if they believed the course truly had potential, Bausch said, “No question about it. We had Gil Hanse is the architect of record.”
Still, there are obstacles, most notably the major flooding mitigation needed for Cobbs Creek, but Cirba and Bausch promise to keep at it until ground is broken, though it may be years away, CBS reported.
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