Former club members had attempted to halt the transaction by threatening to file a lien on the property, but the township and the Montclair Golf Club immediately went to court. Once the claim was conceded, a judge entered a permanent restraining order, which permitted the transaction to move forward on an expedited basis.
Vision became reality as West Orange (N.J.) Township officially closed on the 138-acre Rock Spring property—formerly Rock Spring Country Club—last week and the Office of State Comptroller approved the acquisition, TAPinto West Orange reported. According to the township, the course is scheduled to open in early May with an exact date to be announced soon.
“West Orange is excited to now own the Rock Spring Golf Club at West Orange,” said Mayor Robert Parisi. “This is a premier golf course in the mid-Atlantic region, which will now serve the entire community, our neighbors and visitors. We look forward to its success and the opportunities it presents to preserve open space and improve the quality of life.”
The 6,600-yard, par 71 golf course, founded in 1925, sits on a rolling tree-lined site along the first mountain ridge in West Orange, TAPinto reported. It features complexes designed by architect Seth Raynor, whose other works include Fisher’s Island in New York, Shoreacres on Chicago’s North Shore and the Mid Ocean Club in Bermuda.
The Rock Spring Golf Club has played host to the New Jersey State Open four times in 1981, 1990, 2000 and 2009, the US Healthcare Classic and many state PGA and USGA qualifying events, according to the TAPinto report.
According to Joseph Fagan, Public Information Officer for West Orange Township, former club members had attempted to halt the transaction by threatening to file a lien on the property, but the township and the Montclair Golf Club, which merged with Rock Spring in 2016, immediately went to court, TAPinto reported. Earlier this month, a temporary restraining order was entered by the Superior Court Judge Hon. Jodi Lee Alper, which resulted in the former club members conceding the claim. Alper then entered a permanent restraining order, which permitted the transaction to move forward on an expedited basis, Fagan said.
Negotiations to purchase the Rock Spring property were complete within 90 days since beginning in January, according to the TAPinto report. Fagan noted that the township also received favorable consideration from the NJ Department of Environmental Protection Green Acres Program and was advised that whatever portion of the 138 acres that remains permanent open space for recreational uses would qualify for Green Acres funding.
Parisi initially outlined the township’s plans for the purchase during a February 19 council meeting, TAPinto reported. Two weeks later, the mayor held a special meeting at Rock Spring that invited residents to express their concerns and have all their questions answered.
In the weeks leading up to the final vote for approval of the purchase, West Orange Township Council President Jerry Guarino said that all council members were inundated with e-mails, according to the TAPinto report. He said that countless residents expressed their support in favor of the township purchasing the property and preserving open space with only a relatively small number opposed.
Each time the township collected public input, the vast majority of those who stepped forward expressed support in favor of moving ahead, TAPinto reported. This occurred again during the March 19 meeting, where the council voted on the final approval after hearing from dozens of residents and only two individuals expressed opposition.
The governing body approved the necessary sale of bonds by the required super majority of a 4-1 vote, clearing all hurdles for the purchase of the property, TAPinto reported. The Department of Community Affairs Local Finance Board unanimously approved a waiver of the standard 5-percent deposit due to the expedited process necessary to purchase the land. The bonds were sold in early April to the investment firm of Oppenheim & Co. with a net interest rate of 2.85 percent.
On April 9, the township approved a 20-month contract with Kemper Sports of Chicago, Ill., after a nationwide request to professionally manage the Rock Spring Golf Club at West Orange, according to the TAPinto report. Kemper Sports currently operates Galloping Hill Golf Course in Union, the Knoll in Parsippany and the Skyway Golf Course in Jersey City as well as 42 other public courses with a total of 102 courses throughout the United States.
“This property truly represents a piece of U.S. golf history and we are excited to be involved in the evolution of Rock Spring Golf Club at West Orange and in bringing a very special golf experience to the New Jersey and New York metropolitan region,” said Steve Skinner, CEO of Kemper Sports.
According to a press release issued by the township, “the acquisition of the Rock Spring property will impact the footprint of West Orange well into the next century as it preserves the ever-dwindling inventory of reaming open space in Essex County.”
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