After buying River Vale CC for $17.5M, the municipality has invested $200,000 in maintenance equipment to help the golf course’s greens get “in best shape in seven years.”
In November 2010, the township of River Vale, N.J., purchased the River Vale Country Club for $17.5 million in municipal bonds from a company called Chemitek LLC 2006, after the company’s principal developer Kwang Ho Keh, who paid $22 million for the course in 2006, saw his company fall into bankruptcy.
The former owner’s financial troubles had affected the way the course was maintained, and how it played, the club’s Course Superintendent for seven years, Oscar Bucaro, told the Bergen Country (N.J.) Record, as reported on NorthJersey.com
“Before, my hands were tied,” Bucaro said. “Everything had to go through [Keh] and he did not let me do the right things to maintain the golf course.
After six months under ownership by the township, however, Bucaro says things have been much different. After the township allocated about $200,000 toward new maintenance equipment, it’s made a clear difference in how the course plays, with Bucaro saying that the greens are now running the best he’s seen them in his seven years there. Conditions have also improved throughout the rest of the course, from the bunkers to the fairways.
“With the town, they just let me do [what I need to do],” Bucaro said. “And you can see the difference on the golf course.”
Before the town took over, Bucaro cut the greens with a riding mower. Now all greens are cut using hand mowers, which he says provides a closer cut and a truer roll.
Bucaro says he now also has the authority to take proper action to fight turf diseases that may crop up on the greens and around the course.
The course, which opened in 1931, was designed, in part, by legendary course architect Donald Ross. The layout cuts precisely through 99 acres of hilly, pine tree terrain. Representatives of the township say they recognize the value of both the club’s historic value, and its future promise.
“It’s an investment,” said Gennaro Rotella, River Vale’s administrator/chief financial officer. “The township committed funds, a lot of money, to keep [this land] open space. … In our estimation, this is a premium course. and we want to keep it a premium course. So you have to put money into it, it’s very simple.
“You’ve got to give people the tools that they need,” Rotella added. “Under the prior ownership, I think they were very limited in purchasing and leasing equipment.”
The township believes that by spending money now to take good care of the course and its maintenance equipment, River Vale will save money in the future.
“It’s no different than a township with a roads program and infrastructure,” Rotella said. “If you stop doing your roads program, the roads fall apart. You can’t catch up.”
The overall club experience has also been enhanced, from longer hours and an improved menu in the restaurant to a remodeled clubhouse and more activities.
John Curry, formerly of Apple Ridge Country Club, a private club in Mahway, N.J., was brought in to be River Vale’s new head professional. He now offers lessons and regular family days for residents and members (the course is semi-private and has about 100 dues-paying members).
“The townspeople are really excited about this,” Curry said. “There are benefits for them in this.”
The biggest perk for River Vale residents from the change in ownership is that they can now play the course for half the regular rate. Membership also has become more affordable for residents since the township took over.
“We’re seeing this thing being attacked from all ends,” said Eric Brooks, who lives in River Vale and has been a member for two years. “[The town] pledged that they would do this stuff, make these improvements and it’s happening. They’re starting to walk the talk.”
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