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Biskupski Lays Out Vision For Rose Park Golf Course, Council Still Skeptical

Nicole Nixon

Salt Lake City leaders are grappling with each other over the future of the Rose Park Golf Course and the city’s golf program.

Two weeks ago, when Mayor Jackie Biskupski suggested moving the Rose Park Golf Course into the general fund at the cost of $400,000, some council members were skeptical.

The mayor appeared at the council’s afternoon work session on Tuesday, where she laid out her vision for the golf course and its surrounding recreational areas.

“With the proper support,” Biskupski said, “we can link Rose Park Golf Course, regional athletic complex, Jordan River trails, disc golf, and additional space into a northwest recreation area.”

Under Biskupski’s plan, the golf course would fall under control of the Parks Department, and the mayor asked the council to think of the course as a community asset similar to a park, rather than a business that needs to generate revenue.

But councilwoman Erin Mendenhall expressed concern that the Parks Department, which is already deferring maintenance of parks, would have to maintain more acreage without additional funding.

“We are not supporting Parks enough,” Mendenhall said, “and we should contemplate their capacity as a taxing entity” before moving the Rose Park Golf Course to the Parks Department.

The public service department’s accountant Bryce Lindeman told KUER that the city’s golf program is projected to run a deficit by the end of the next fiscal year.

Discussions about the Rose Park Golf Course will continue in the coming weeks. The council will vote on a final budget next month.

Nicole Nixon holds a Communication degree from the University of Utah. She has worked on and off in the KUER Newsroom since 2013, when she first joined KUER as an intern. Nicole is a Utah native. Besides public radio, she is also passionate about beautiful landscapes and breakfast burritos.
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