The new golf course clubhouse project illustrates the misplaced priorities of the current city council.

By Scott Miller

The city council rammed through their new $9 million golf course clubhouse project while ignoring the will of the people. The alternative? A reasonable remodel of the existing clubhouse. Priorities have been seriously misplaced.

And why the rush to dig? Because once the clubhouse project was "vested," the City had the right to construct the clubhouse regardless of the outcome of the Measure "I" election in November. Measure "I" would have forced the City to ask Pacific Grove voters for their permission before building the clubhouse. After almost 3,000 registered voter signatures were collected over the course of two separate but similar initiative processes (the first having been thrown out on a technicality) the City effectively gave the voters who signed the initiatives the "Bronx cheer."

What's wrong with a new golf course clubhouse, you say? I personally have nothing against golfers, in fact, I'm a duffer myself. Pacific Grove Municipal Golf Links is my favorite course in the world. As an honorably retired City employee, they even let me play for free. And golfers are some of my favorite people in the world.

But the new clubhouse was a bad idea for many reasons, including:

• 1. The will of almost 3,000 registered voters, who signed petitions against the new clubhouse project, was completely ignored.
• 2. Golf course funds, now encumbered for the next thirty years, could have been used for more urgent City needs, if necessary.
• 3. A sufficient "reasonable remodel" of the existing clubhouse could have been done for millions of dollars less than the current project.

There were many more pressing priorities for the golf course revenue. Our sea walls are crashing into the surf; our street lights in some areas have rotted through their bases, and are wrapped with caution tape; members of the community had to seek donations to repair our tennis courts and recreation trails; our public restroom facilities are in disgraceful shape.

The City has no other "cash cow" from which to draw revenue for capital improvement projects. Unless we receive grants from the State, or hold bake sales, our City infrastructure will continue to crumble, while our golf course prepares for the clubhouse grand opening in a year or so.

I kind of liked the old clubhouse building. I think the initially proposed $1 to $1.5 million "reasonable remodel" project first envisioned would have modernized the facility appropriately. I mean, even in Pacific Grove you can still do a lot of remodeling for $1.5 million. And in Pacific Grove, a building that was only constructed in the early 1960s is still considered a baby.