After floods, new Logan River Golf Course clubhouse has August tee time
July 13th, 2011 Posted in Arts and LifeBy Todd Hamann
LOGAN—A spring flooding recedes, the Logan River Golf Course is getting a facelift. The original clubhouse was demolished in September and a new one is being built. Officials say it should be finished and open to the public Aug. 25.
The new clubhouse will be larger, expanding the original foundation to the east and adding an outside deck on the south side of the building. It will include a tournament room that will seat 160 people, a full-service snack bar, a pro shop, and covered cart parking, Logan City officials say.
“It will be a gorgeous building,” said Russ Akina, director of Logan City’s Parks and Recreation Department. “It will be a great complement to the golf course.”
The primary goal was to address the needs of local golfers, including the men’s and women’s golf association. Logan River also hosts many annual tournaments and needs a place to hold meetings and fundraisers.
“We will be able to take care of that a lot better,” Akina explained. “The purpose of the renovation was that we could enclose a meeting area that wouldn’t be affected by weather conditions. The old deck was exposed to the elements.”
The last concern, especially for the women, was the restrooms in the old clubhouse, which weren’t set up for customers to try on apparel from the store. The new clubhouse was engineered to be much more accommodating.
The $1.5 million clubhouse is being funded through a loan from the electric fund. “This is really an Investment from the fund,” said Richard Anderson, finance director for Logan City. The loan will be repaid at $100,000 per year over 20 years.
During the renovation, operations at Logan River have been moved to a modular office in the parking lot. Jeff Johns, the River’s golf professional, said the public is handling the new digs pretty well, although he said business is down, although the summer golf camp is full.
Golfers’ reactions are relatively positive. One recreational golfer named Chris was out for the third time this season. “It will be nice when it’s finished,” he said. “The trailer works for now, but we’re ready for the clubhouse to be done.”
The clubhouse is being built by CK Construction of West Haven, which also built the Ogden City Center Building, the Escalante Heritage Center, and the UTA Rail Service Center.
Akina said the project is on budget. “We had details to work through, but progression has been on pace.” Akina went on to say the biggest construction problems were with groundwater and footings during the winter.
Johns said contracts were signed in early winter and the original completion date was slated for July 10, but he’s happy with the late-August target date for completion.
“All things considered,” he said, “that’s not too late at all.”
So once the clubhouse is done, what’s next for Logan River?
“We try to do something new every year,” Johns explained. “We will fix the tee boxes to make the course more aesthetically pleasing.”
There are also plans for an updated driving range and a new putting green behind the clubhouse. Johns explained that the putting green may be a hard sell, because they are free to for the public and don’t generate revenue.
The city also will use the new clubhouse for public meetings in the off-season, such as park planning and trail planning meetings. It will also be available for weddings, conferences, and events.
Logan River Golf Course has been recognized as one of the top 500 places to play by Golf Digest magazine, and was recognized by Golf magazine as one of the best places to play under $50.
TP
One Response to “After floods, new Logan River Golf Course clubhouse has August tee time”
By Dan Smith on Jul 18, 2011
I’m sure local golfers are rejoicing. I have yet to play this course; it sounds like I’ll have to give it a go. Russ Akina is a fun person to talk to, I’ve interviewed him in the past. I have one question: What is the electric fund?