The Peoria Park Board last night voted six to one to close Donovan Golf Course starting next season. The move is expected to save $310,000 as the Park District struggles with a $1.3 million spending gap next year. Park District Board President Tim Cassidy says the decision was tough, but necessary:
“In hindsight, I would have wanted to close a course three years ago. That’s my regret. We should have tackled it earlier. There’s nothing we could have done that would have stopped the closure of a course. I’m convinced of that.”
Cassidy says the Park District was suffering from trends of declining golf membership seen nationwide. Cassidy says Donovan could re-open temporarily if large repairs need to be made to Newman Golf Course in future seasons. Members of the public spoke out against closing Donovan, saying the board didn’t have enough financial information to make a decision. Cassidy says he wants staff to report back with cost estimates for Newman by early next year. In other business, the Board voted to only fund Central Park Pool through next spring to further help cut costs.
