Under the new rules, owners must obtain permits and hold public hearings before putting up fencing around shuttered golf courses, in addition to other restrictions.
The Phoenix City Council has approved a new ordinance it hopes will prevent closed private golf courses from blighting neighborhoods, the Phoenix-based Republic reported.
Under the new rules, golf course owners must obtain permits and hold public hearings before putting up fencing, and they face additional restrictions, the Republic reported.
“This unfortunately is an issue we’re having to deal with, and we’re not alone,” Councilman Bill Gates said. “This is going on nationwide as golf courses are closing. I think it’s good to get ahead of this issue.”
Under old rules, golf course owners had to obtain a permit to put up fencing, but they did not require public hearings. Councilman Sal DiCiccio, who proposed the ordinance, said he is “a strong supporter of property rights” but not when one party is allowed to blight an entire neighborhood, the Republic reported.
“This adds an extra layer, an extra component that gives the neighborhood a voice in that fencing,” DiCiccio said.
Opponents said the ordinance is an unnecessary government involvement for something that should be a private issue, and they doubted the city had the resources to enforce more regulations, the Republic reported.
Councilwoman Kate Gallego voted against the ordinance, asking the council to consider returning the revised proposal to all 15 village-planning committees so they could tweak the plan into something that worked better for all Phoenix neighborhoods, the Republic reported.
Homeowners adjacent to the closed Ahwatukee Lakes Golf Club have long complained the course had lapsed into an eyesore after closing. What once was an attractive point of pride for the neighborhood had become a mess of browned fairways, dying trees and drying lakes with scum floating on the surface, the Republic reported.
Angry neighbors accused the golf course’s owner of putting up razor fencing and allowing it to become blighted in an attempt to devalue adjacent properties, thus bolstering support for repurposing the course into a residential or commercial development. DiCiccio said he hopes the new regulations will hold owners of closed golf courses to tighter accountability, the Republic reported.
“Just as importantly, it prevents a developer from getting concessions from neighbors they would not normally get,” DiCiccio said.
The ordinance, which goes into effect 30 days from passage, also includes the following restrictions:
• A 50-foot setback from homes for temporary fencing on closed golf courses, unless reduced by a zoning adjustment hearing officer.
• Limiting temporary fencing on a closed golf course to a one-year permit, with three renewals of up to 36 months.
• Razor-top or barbed-wire-top fencing would be prohibited if it could be seen from the right of way or a residential district.
• Temporary fencing around an imminent hazard, such as a building, structure, bridge, water feature or sand bunker, would be allowed without a use permit if placed within 5 feet of the hazard.
• A plan for maintaining landscaping within the setback area of the perimeter of the golf course would be required of the golf-property owner prior to approval for temporary fencing.
Tell Us What You Think!
You must be logged in to post a comment.