Nearly two years after a fire destroyed the historic building, the Bellbrook, Ohio club began excavating on May 25, with foundation work scheduled to begin next week. The clubhouse, which is estimated to cost up to $1.2 million, will be 15,000 sq. ft., with a restaurant, bar, and meeting rooms.
Sugar Valley Golf Club in Bellbrook, Ohio broke ground on a new clubhouse on May 25, nearly two years after a fire destroyed the historic building, the Dayton, Ohio WHIO News reported.
The foundation work is scheduled to begin next week on the project, which is estimated to cost $1 million to $1.2 million, according to Jim Powell, a partner with the club.
The new clubhouse will be 15,000 sq. ft., and feature a restaurant, bar and meeting rooms. The former clubhouse was 9,500 sq. ft. The new clubhouse is expected to open in time for next golf season, WHIO reported.
“The membership has been really strong throughout the process,” Powell said. “They’ve stuck with us through a number of architectural drawings and renderings. We think we now have one that’s doable and we’re in the process of building that. We have really devoted all of our resources to the golf course itself. The golf course is very playable and in great condition.”
Two fires in 2014 destroyed the historic clubhouse as well as a barn on club property. The wooden clubhouse, which was built in 1900, was home to the golf store, a kitchen, bar and locker facilities. The building was valued at $423,290 and its contents at $285,000, WHIO reported.
In the May 2014 fire, a historic barn also built in 1900, was destroyed, along with the club’s fleet of 49 gasoline-powered golf carts and golf clubs belonging to some members, WHIO reported.
Powell believes electrical issues are what started the fires. “I was shocked…how all-consuming the fire was,” he said of the clubhouse blaze. “It was just unbelievable the way the fire was consuming the whole building. I was kind of heartbroken; a lot of memories there and a beautiful structure. It really demoralized the partners and the members.”
Sugar Valley Golf Club’s restaurant and bar business has suffered since the fires, but the club has made the 1840 House and new pavilion “very usable by our members to use it for weddings, that sort of thing,” Powell said.
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