Due to a variety of factors, the 98-year-old Pittsfield, Mass. property may close its doors at the end of the 2018 golf season. Owners of the club continue to look at options to keep the property open, including subdividing it and shrinking the golf course from 18 to 9 holes.
The legacy of 98-year-old Pontoosuc Lake Country Club in Pittsfield, Mass. could be in jeopardy, reported The Berkshire Eagle, due to a variety of factors that have made operating the course costlier and more difficult, according to Jeff Moxon, President of the corporation that owns the club.
In early June, Moxon posted a message on Pontoosuc’s Facebook page that stated 2018 will be the last year the par 70, 6,207-yard layout will operate as a public 18-hole golf course, reported The Eagle.
“We will still be open for daily play until the end of the season,” the post stated. “We will continue to make improvements to the property, equipment, irrigation, turf and overall quality of play throughout.”
Moxon is still hoping to hold on to at least part of the property, but in a recent interview, he said that a “variety of things” could happen at Pontoosuc next year, and it’s possible the course will be shut down for good when golf season ends, reported The Eagle.
“One, we could not open at all, and close, which is the most obvious thing that everybody seems to cling to,” Moxon said. “There’s also the possibility that somebody new could purchase it.”
Selling part of the property and operating a nine-hole course on what’s left is the third option, reported The Eagle.
“That’s the plan right now,” Moxon said. “We’re trying to subdivide the property,” which consists of three parcels, reported The Eagle.
“We’re trying to subdivide it into a certain configuration where the golf course proper with the clubhouse and maintenance facility sits on nine holes, and that the external property that we own, including the practice field and certain sections, would be available to sell or lease,” Moxon added. “If the subdivision doesn’t go through because the city denies it, or the people who are interested back out, I won’t be open at all. This has just been too much work.”
If the nine-hole format does take shape, it would “most likely” include the current area between holes four and 12, Moxon said, although more property could be included, depending on “the way we’re doing this.”
“I’m looking at other surrounding properties to see what might be available to just do some restructuring,” he said.
Moxon won’t say who is interested in the property, reported The Eagle. “I’ve had multiple offers and every one of them, has a confidentiality agreement,” he said.
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