Bolin said she believes the appropriate amount of time and care is being put into the project to make the Ridges a useful space.

“It’s to all of our benefits that we have extended this and are looking at things very carefully,” she said.

There is also talk of a potential hotel at the Ridges when the project gets underway, but Bolin said that any possible hotel project would be in collaboration with the Ohio University Inn.

“We’re not looking to compete with ourselves or the OU Inn, but some of the buildings (at the Ridges) are suitable or adaptable for rooms and long-term suites,” she said.

http://www.thepostathens.com/news/private-partnerships-a-...

This would be great since there are no existing suites in town and could fetch a top dollar for the school. I can't imagine a hotel being structurally viable without some new building going up.

Apparently a number of locations at the Ridges already have long term occupants who may not wish to share space with guests.

This would be cool.

Hotel California.

Yep and so is OU and so is the Elm. There were quite a few very excited people who put money down on lots when they were going to build an 18 hole course at University Estates 15 years ago myself included.

There have been at least 3 attempts on land in and around University Estates. In one case, some holes were actually "developed." In the last case, the design was complete and then two things happened - a group fought against it because of the fear of damaging/destroying our water supply and the developer ran out of cash. Most places build the course first then the homes go up. Here they tried it in reverse.

Living in Cleveland you have the opportunity to play numerous high quality public courses for a very reasonable fee. If you parked at the city limits in Athens on Saturday and Sunday morning you would see quite a few cars headed out of town to play an 18 hole course. A well maintained course would fly here in Athens if it offered public and membership play, had a modest dining facility and sponsored a full range of tournaments throughout the year. The courses that are closing are in areas that overbuilt not in areas where there is no competition. Someone floated the idea of what you'd do if you won the lottery - I'd built a nice course here in Athens.

The idea that a golf course needs a metropolis to support it is off base. Belpre and Mason, WV have 18 hole courses that do just fine and numerous other places that are just as or more remote than Athens do too. I've said this before on this board....I bet Athens is the epicenter of the furthest distance to an 18 hole course in the state. I would definitely be more likely to return more often or for more time if there was a decent 18 hole course near town.

Golf has declined in popularity partly because of the time it takes to play (AKA golf courses are/were overcrowded). I've seen the decline of courses that were recently closed. They generally all have the same issue.... they begin to lose their quality and at the first sign of struggle the courses are sold to an inexperienced group who does not have the money to reinvest in the facility and they run it into the ground trying to do it on the cheap. Once the quality of the course dips significantly the crowds dry up and they usually close the following year.

I'm a self-confessed golf course snob and do enjoy the NE Ohio variety of quality courses on a regular basis. Not uncommon for me to drive an hour or more 1 way to meet a friend to play. A quality course will draw people from well outside the county. FWIW The Elm is my least favorite golf course of all time. I've been there a half dozen times and swore I would never go back many times. I like the OU course, but it has gone down hill in recent years. Have not been there this year but last year it looked like crab grass was taking over and bunkers were not well kept. I hope that changes or already has. I hope to get 9 in Friday before the Marshall game.

Some Critical items to golf course survival in rural areas:
Layout - must appeal to a variety of skills, AKA multiple tee sets, with reasonable penalties for poor shots. A Course with a slope of 150 and rating of 76 won't get the average Joe on the links.
Sustainability - Low maintenance costs. 5 huge deep bunkers per hole look nice but cost a fortune to maintain.
Memberships, Leagues, and Outings - This is like season tickets in other sports. You must have a baseline of recurring business. Management plays a huge role in this. Putting on a good outing or league is an art and takes a lot of effort, but they also bring in a lot of guaranteed money and keep customers coming back at other times for more money per person.

I genuinely believe a course could charge $40 plus on the weekends including cart fee in the Athens area and be just fine. Crossing that $50 threshold is a tipping point for a lot of people.

With all that said it's a HUGE investment to build a nice golf course. I don't see it happening anytime soon for Athens. I'm on board for taking my lottery winnings to Athens to build a course though.

Agreed. You both articulated some good points. I still don't think investing in building out a course in or near Athens would be financially prudent, but it was food for thought. Siberia threads like this make the offseason go a bit faster.

Thanks. I generally have 3 others that play when I'm there and they usually let me take their money, but if I don't I will PM you.

"I tell ya, country clubs and cemeteries - biggest wastes of prime real estate" - Rodney Dangerfield, Caddyshack

I'm with Alan on this one. I think Athens County can support an 18 hole course. And, if you make it nice enough for NCAA golf to be played on it, you could end up with a nice tie in to OU Athletics and the MAC for events.

I've heard it costs at least $1 million per hole to build a course. Wonder if that's true.

The cost to build a golf course is one thing,but don't forget about maintaince.
I've done design work for a few golf courses.
I was amazed at the amount of work that goes into their upkeep.
Staff,equipment etc. I found out that some areas get groomed every day.

Plus,you have to be able to irrigate them.

You'd really need to "run the numbers" to be sure this is practical.