Rounds at Santa Rosa’s Bennett Valley Golf Course to get more expensive

Green fees at the Santa Rosa-owned Bennett Valley Golf Course are once again going up as the new operator and city work to turn a profit amid rising costs of doing business and deferred maintenance needs.

Fees for most weekday tee times will increase $4 for adult golfers though operators plan a slight upcharge to play on Friday to capture additional revenue from weekend visitors. Weekend fees will increase $6.

Senior golfers ages 60 and older will see smaller increases and junior golfers will continue paying the same prices.

Touchstone Golf, the Berkeley-based company which took over operations of the city-owned course nearly two years ago, also plans to add a new rate for nonresident players. About 42% of golfers live outside the city and those players will see prices as much as 15% higher than regular rates.

The new fees will help pay for operations and maintenance, needed capital improvements and debt service from a 2005 clubhouse renovation at the 150-acre, 18-hole course.

The City Council unanimously approved the new fees Tuesday and they go into effect July 1.

Operator says new fees are comparable

James Birchall, Touchstone’s manager of operations for Northern California, said the new fees are closer to what’s charged at other golf courses in the region but still accessible as the city seeks to attract a greater share of the market.

The increases were supported by the course’s advisory committee and members of the men’s and women’s golf league.

A breakdown of some of the fees show:

— Annual fees for unlimited play for a single adult resident golfer will increase from $2,220 to $2,553, or $333. Nonresident golfers will pay $2,886.

— An annual pass for resident seniors 60 and older for limited weekday rounds will increase from $1,284 to $1,477, or $193, while nonresident seniors will pay $1,669.

— Passes for rounds played Monday through Thursday for adult resident golfers will increase from $37 to $41 while a weekend pass will increase from $52 to $58. Nonresident adult golfers will pay $47 for a weekday round and $66 to play on weekends.

— Resident senior golfers will see a $3 increase to $33 to play Monday through Thursday and nonresident seniors will pay $38.

— A new Friday rate is $44 for resident adult players and $50 for nonresident adults. Resident seniors will pay $36 while nonresident seniors will pay $41.

— Juniors playing the full 18-hole course will continue paying $14 on weekdays and $17 on weekends.

The new prices, which represent about a 10% to 12% increase for Santa Rosa golfers, follow similar increases that went into effect in January 2023.

Birchall said that was the first significant increase in at least five years and prices had not kept up with inflation and were well below market value.

What will the new revenue support?

Higher prices are expected to help the city enterprise become self-sustaining after being propped up by reserves and general fund dollars and allow the city to invest in capital needs at the more than 55-year-old course.

Touchstone took over operations of the beleaguered course on July 1, 2022, after city officials floated redeveloping the east Santa Rosa property for other uses. The city ultimately held off on those plans after opposition from golfers and residents who championed the course as a community jewel.

The company reopened the restaurant and banquet hall that was shuttered in the pandemic and has sought to boost memberships and rounds played through new tournaments and events and expanded junior golf offerings.

There were 55,731 rounds played in Touchstone’s first year of operations and the company projects 53,830 rounds will be played by the end of the second year.

Early budget projections showed the golf course was expected to be profitable in the coming fiscal year that starts July 1 but expenditures continue to exceed revenues requiring additional investment from the general fund.

Birchall said a rainy winter limited play time on the course and the course like other city operations has seen an increase in the cost to do business, with minimum wages rising, costs of goods going up and increases in utility costs, particularly for electricity.

The city plans to prop up the course with $500,000 from the general fund in fiscal year 2024-2025 but the new fees should help begin addressing budget gaps.

The additional revenue also will help chip away at needed improvements at the course.

The City Council last August approved allocating $2 million to replace the irrigation and water storage system and construction is expected to start in spring 2025 but additional work is needed to update equipment, remove dead trees, make bridge repairs and level golf tees.

More rate hikes on the horizon

Operators indicated additional fee increases over the coming years will be needed.

Birchall said while rate increases aren’t popular they’re necessary to cover ongoing operations and maintenance. Touchstone will work with parks officials to craft a rate model with gradual increases that will be brought back to the council for approval at a future meeting.

You can reach Staff Writer Paulina Pineda at 707-521-5268 or paulina.pineda@pressdemocrat.com. On X (Twitter) @paulinapineda22.