Council OKs Renewal Plan for Golf Course

As expected, the City Council has approved a master plan to refurbish the 36-year-old Los Robles Golf Course.

The $10.2-million upgrade to the only public course in the city calls for an improved irrigation system; a new, sleeker clubhouse and extensive work to renovate the greens and fairways.

The city intends to spend $1.5 million for irrigation and drainage, $4.7 million for playing surfaces, $3 million for the clubhouse project and $1 million for access and circulation matters, officials said.

Among the scheduled improvements to the 18-hole course are:

* A new clubhouse about 75 yards south of the existing center, which officials say is inefficient and requires constant maintenance. The new clubhouse would likely be about 17,000 square feet--smaller than the current facility, which will be demolished--with a pro shop, office space, storage, snack bar and lockers.

* A refurbished irrigation and drainage system to include two new catch-water basins to help keep the fairways from flooding. Local officials said that the existing pipes in the 35-year-old irrigation system require repairs almost on a weekly basis.

* Improved safety features, such as a remodeled 14th hole designed to eliminate golf balls that now soar into the nearby Los Robles Estates.

Bob Biery, the city’s finance director, said the renovation project will require Los Robles’ greens fees to be increased by a yet-undetermined amount. Proposed financing methods for the overall project include bond sales, tapping the city’s general fund and construction by a private party.

Local golfers have long urged the city to open a new public course, with the latest proposal slated as part of the Hill Canyon Recreational Project. That golf course is still being considered by the council and the Conejo Recreation and Park District.