The following are the minutes of the Brewster Golf Commission meeting held on June 2, 2009. The meeting was called to order at 1:00 PM.
Commissioners present: George Flemming, Chairman Joseph Shaw, Vice Chairman Cindy Bingham Stote Ellsworth Karney Ovian Bob Weiss
Staff present: Mark O’Brien, Director of Operations Steve Mann, Superintendent
Others present: Ed Mahan, Finance Committee Liaison Jim Foley, Board of Selectmen Liaison Ray Gomez, VP CCMGA Rob Harris Board Member CCMGA Steve Litwinowich John Mayo Pat Eggers, Secretary
The minutes from the May 5, 2009 meeting were reviewed. A motion made by J. Shaw, seconded by K. Ovian, to approve the minutes passed.
CORRESPONDENCE
- The following requests for donations of foursomes were denied: Bright Side for Families and Children (Springfield, MA), Old Colony Hospice (Randolph, MA) and Marian High School (Framingham, MA).
- Nauset Newcomers requested a donation of a foursome to support their monthly raffle to raise money for charity. A motion made by C. Bingham, seconded by J. Shaw to approve the request passed.
BREWSTER GOLF COMMISSION June 2, 2009
DIRECTOR’S REPORT
- Financial results through May were discussed, and a projection for results for the fiscal year was reviewed. Greens fee revenue this calendar year is on track, but will be about $100,000 short of projections for the fiscal year 2009 because of shortfalls last fall. Membership revenue is significantly below projections, with approximately 100 less resident AFP’s and 50 non-resident AFP’s than last year representing a shortfall of about $213.000. As a result, the projected return to the town for the fiscal year is expected to be $67,853 rather than the budgeted $305,573. Wages are below budget by $45,000, and Pro Shop revenue is $51,000 higher than projections.
- The impact of the reduction in AFP members impact on the 2010 budget is estimated to be a shortfall of $165,000. The greens fee revenue projections are expected to be attainable. If there is no significant change, the forecasted return to the town in 2010 would be about $120-$150K.
- B. Weiss presented information from the survey done of AFP’s that had not renewed this year. 240 emails were sent out with about 60 responses, some of which were those planning to still renew. Of the 42 non-renewals, about 45% were due to health issues/injury. Frequency of play not justifying the expense was the reason for 43% of the Resident AFP’s and 26% of the non-resident AFP’s (36% of the total universe). Expense alone was cited by 10% (4% residents/16% for non-residents).
- Discussion followed about ideas to increase membership revenues. J. Foley asked how do we attract younger AFP’s. Several ideas were suggested. A motion made by J. Shaw, seconded by K. Ovian was made to appoint a subcommittee with S. Ellsworth, B. Weiss and C. Bingham to do more research on some of the suggestions for consideration at the next meeting. The motion passed.
- M. O’Brien distributed a comparison of financials from the golf operations of the municipal golf courses on the Cape for fiscal year 2008. He reported that all the courses were experiencing similar financial problems this year.
- J. Foley commented that in addition to the golf department shortfall, the town was anticipating a shortfall of state funding of about $175K – $300K. They had expected about 10%, but it will probably be 15-20%. This will have a major impact on the town’s operations.
BREWSTER GOLF COMMISSION June 2, 2009
SUPERINTENDENT’S REPORT
- S. Mann reported that the golf course is in good condition and has recovered well from the aeration process, other than a few tee boxes that are a bit dry. The beetles that have been observed on the greens are called ground beetles. They are a good insect, not damaging to the turf. The maintenance department is fully staffed and are now able to hand mow the greens 4-5 days a week which really improves the quality of the greens for putting.
GREENS COMMITTEE REPORT
- K. Ovian reported that the rough has been cut down a bit. When there is less rainfall, the turf suffers when it is shorter. Steve will manage the depth of the rough based on the weather conditions.
VICE CHAIRMAN’S REPORT
- J. Shaw reported that in the history of charity tournaments at Captains, the total revenue raised for various charities at these events was $1,260,000.
SUGGESTION BOX
- Jayanne Sci wrote to suggest that a sign be placed at the bag drop area to advise customers as to the location of the driving range before they take their bags out of their car. Mark will take care of getting this done, as it is a good idea.
OLD BUSINESS
- Mark discussed the parking issue at the loading dock with Joe Spiatta. Bob’s truck is parked there during the day because it is loaded with garbage throughout the day which Bob takes away when he leaves. There is no one else parking there.
- The tee time reservation system has been updated to display available tee times at 6 AM two days in advance as requested.
BREWSTER GOLF COMMISSION June 2, 2009
ASSOCIATION BUSINESS
- C. Bingham reported that the WGAM State Spring Teams completed their matches in May, and is happy to report that the Captains’ 2nd team placed 3rd in their cup (after winning it the last 2 years), and our 1st team won first place in their cup —- they had not won it for about 10 years. WGAM is also initiating a Fall Player’s Cup and is looking for Captains to host on October 14. Discussion followed, and Mark will get more information from WGAM about how the format works before committing any dates and will review it at the next meeting.
- R. Gomez reported that the CCMGA two-week tournament was a success, with 72 participants.
- The upcoming Member-Guest has 26 teams playing so far —- there were 50 teams last year.
OTHER BUSINESS
- S. Litwinowich asked about the policy for refunds of AFP membership due to medical issues and was advised that the request must be made by June 30, and that the member could only have played three times since April to qualify.
- J. Mayo asked for consideration to allow Frequent Player Card purchasers to participate in Scrambles. Several commissioners responded that a major value or benefit of membership is the ability to play in the associations, Captains tournaments and scrambles, so were not in favor of making any change.
Since there was no other business, the next meeting was scheduled for July 7 at 1 PM. A motion made by J. Shaw, seconded by C. Bingham to adjourn the meeting passed, and the meeting adjourned at 2:35 PM.
Respectfully submitted,
Pat Eggers Secretary