The Country Club of Meadville proposed plan for Allegheny College to assume ownership—and its debt. But talks are now on “indefinite hold.”

Officials from The Country Club of Meadville in northwest Pennsylvania approached Allegheny College over the summer about gifting the club to the college, The Meadville Tribune has reported, after getting confirmation of the discussions from Larry Lee, the college’s Vice President of Finance.

Under the plan, Allegheny College would have assumed the club’s debt of $600,000 to $700,000 if it had accepted the private, membership-only facility as a gift, Lee said.
 But he added that the 
talks now are on indefinite hold because “The Country Club is exploring other options.” Officials from The Country Club advised Allegheny at the end of August that other options were being studied, Lee explained.

Allegheny College’s recent establishment of a new, non-profit corporation, 

North Main Community Alliance Corp., was not related to the proposal from The Country Club, Lee said.  The new entity was created for any programs and initiatives that may be developed out of Allegheny’s strategic plan. Asked if it could be used for property acquisition, Lee said, “It wasn’t formed for that purpose, but it could be used for it.”

Robert Smith, a member of the Allegheny College Board of Trustees who is also a member of The Country Club, told the Tribune that at the end of the summer, members of The Country Club were given a variety of options to consider, including gifting the club over to the college. But no vote was ever taken by the membership.

“There’s nothing on the table,” Smith said. “We know this is going on, but until there is an official request, there’s nothing for us to do.

“We would do this only for the good the community, if approved by the club,” Smith added. “However, the college is not pursuing this. We [the college] have a tight budget. Allegheny College has no problem with the club staying the club.”

Matt Coppola, President of The Country Club, declined comment when contacted by the Tribune.

The Country Club of Meadville was formed in 1905. It has an 18-hole golf course, tennis courts, a swimming pool, dining room and banquet facility. According to its website, the club is currently offering an introductory active membership for $2,500 with full use of facilities at no additional charge and unlimited golf, and an introductory social membership for $925 with full use of the facilities and golf privileges once per month, paying greens fees.
 Initiation fees would be waived for 2011, with no monthly assessments or additional costs for the year.