The University of North Florida Golf Complex in Jacksonville, Fla., is growing in popularity, but Topgolf, a sports entertainment company, is planning to build a driving range and complex just a few hundred yards from the campus.
Topgolf, a fast-growing “sports entertainment community” company, is planning to build a driving range and complex on 5 acres in Jacksonville, just a few hundred yards from the University of North Florida campus, which already has a golf practice and driving range facility that’s been growing in popularity for 13 years, the Jacksonville-based Florida Times-Union reported.
The Topgolf zoning plans sailed through a public hearing Tuesday night and were referred back to the City Council’s Land Use and Zoning Committee for further review and public hearing slated for July 21 before it goes to the full council for a vote, the Times-Union reported.
Meanwhile, UNF officials say they’re figuring out a plan to coexist with the new complex that has plans for video screens, temperature controls and computer tracking of golf balls, the Times-Union reported.
“I was a little surprised when I found out it was coming to Jacksonville because we aren’t that big of a city,” said Scott Schroeder, UNF men’s golf head coach who manages the complex. “It will be interesting to see how it affects our business. It probably will have a slight effect at the start.”
UNF Director of Business Services Tully Burnett said his office was flooded with calls shortly after media reports surfaced early this month of the proposed Topgolf facility. Burnett’s initial response was to quell the concerns but then he realized the upscale entertainment facility will likely have limited long-term impact on UNF’s Golf Complex, the Times-Union reported.
“I don’t think we see it as a threat at all,” Burnett said. “We see it as that type of facility may bring people to play golf that don’t play golf now. That’s only going to help us. If they get interested in golf and they want a real-life golf experience, they’re going to come to our facility.”
Beyond the driving range, the 30-acre UNF facility offers a four-hole practice golf course with most of the holes par 3 and one hole that provides the option of a par 4 tee length or a par 5 tee length. Chipping and putting practice areas are also available, the Times-Union reported.
Contrasted to the UNF Golf Complex, Topgolf is more of an entertainment experience. Attempts by the Times-Union to reach Topgolf officials for comment Thursday were unsuccessful.
The application to the city’s zoning officials was technical in nature, but it did spell out Topgolf expects heavy use of the facility and they are planing for a maximum of 450 parking spaces. The application also said Topgolf plans two 35-feet-high signs that will be lighted.
The Topgolf facility itself would have a building and structure area of about 64,200 sq. ft. with three floors of driving range bays that would house dozens of players at a time. The price for use of each bay is $25 to $45 per hour, depending on the time of day, for up to six players. Each of the 100 bays is climate controlled and has food and beverage service, the Times-Union reported.
At UNF, fees for using the practice areas outside the driving range run $10 on weekdays and $14 weekends. The main advantage to using the UNF practice course is that customers can stay on the course as long as they want and play the holes repeatedly, the Times-Union reported.
Topgolf complexes feature a high-tech driving range with targets that range from 25 yards to more than 200 yards. Each golf ball has a microchip in it that’s read by the targets, allowing various measurements of distance and accuracy. Computer screens keep track of each player’s score. Inside the building behind the driving ranges at Topgolf, according to its plans, there will be bars, food courts and other games, the Times-Union reported.
Burnett said UNF doesn’t offer those kind of amenities, although it has a modest clubhouse and pro shop. With a limited marketing budget of about $10,000 per year, the UNF Golf Complex is still a relatively hidden gem, though Burnett said that’s changing with every year of operations. In the past 12 months, the UNF facility has garnered about 48,000 visits and generated over $500,000 in revenue, Tully said.
About 65 percent of that revenue is from the driving range that costs $12 for a large bucket of 100 balls and $8 for 50. The money raised from fees for using the UNF complex go right back into maintenance and upkeep of the facility, officials say. It also serves as a practice facility for UNF varsity men’s and women’s golf teams, the Times-Union reported.
Even though the university doesn’t market it much, the Golf Complex is growing in popularity so much that the initial parking area outside the club house requires overflow parking options across the street in a sandy area tucked between Australian pine trees, the Times-Union reported.
Burnett said the Golf Complex has become an unexpected calling card for UNF as more and more people visit the facility. “Many of those people have no other reason to come to the campus other than to come here,” Burnett said. “So, that gives us exposure to an awful lot of people that otherwise would not come on campus. That’s good for recruiting for the university.”
While the Topgolf facility promises covered driving ranges with climate control, Burnett said UNF was already planning additions to its driving range that will provide more comfort for players, the Times-Union reported.
In March, UNF already started the planning process for the addition of a canopy to the driving range produced by Cover Shots Golf Inc. UNF already budgeted about $110,000 to purchase one that will be about 100 feet long and will also include lights and fans along with custom UNF logos and colors, the Times-Union reported.
For Schroeder, that means an even more impressive facility for visitors who include newcomers every day at the UNF Golf Complex. “Most people really enjoy this,” Schroeder said. “It’s a really laid back environment. You come and learn golf and practice golf.”
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