Improvements are coming to the driving range at the municipally-owned Indian Spring Golf Course.
Renderings for a new building coming early next year show the range will have the capacity to offer concessions and serve as a mini-pro shop. With those improvements, the township hopes to make the range even more of a destination for golfers while continuing its financial success.
The announced improvements are being made possible even with no transfer of Open Space funds to the golf course in the township’s 2022 municipal budget, the first time that has happened since 2013. The course and range are supporting themselves solely with strong revenues, officials say.
The improvements will be paid for at no expense to taxpayers; instead, the funding will come through fees generated from the golf course itself and the capital surplus previously earmarked specifically for upgrades.
The golf course had a strong financial year in 2021, records show. The fund balance increased from $763,559 in 2020 to $1,179,984 in 2021, a 54-percent increase. A total of 45,042 rounds of golf were played this year compared with 29,951 just three years ago.
Officials anticipate a one-time amount of $654,578 in golf capital surplus in order to fund three ordinances from 1995, 1998 and 1999, for which improvements were completed even though the measures were never funded.
During the township’s 2022 municipal budget meeting, Evesham CFO Alexander Davidson noted that in addition to the new driving range building, the township is exploring other areas of club improvement.
“(Additional improvements include) new golf ball machines, and we’re also investigating the potential for self-service golf ball machines,” he said. “(The improvements will also include) tee reconstruction, green’s fans and a water fountain for the pond … to prevent algae growth and other bacteria in the pond.”
2021 was a record year for the course in terms of golf rounds played and buckets of golf balls hit. This June’s numbers were ahead of June 2021, and the rest of July was projected to be ahead of last year at the same time.
Mayor Jaclyn Veasy said she expects the range improvements to interest all residents and draw even more business in the future. She also cited the Indian Springs staff for its quality service.
“Whether you’re a regular golfer or not, I think all residents can look forward to our plans for continuing to improve Indian Spring and continuing to attract more business,” Veasy said. “It’s always been a priority for myself and council that Indian Spring become self-sustaining, and now both the course and range have reached their most financially stable point in many years.
“The better Indian Spring can perform, the more Open Space monies the township has to put toward other parks and recreation projects,” she added. “I also have to give credit to Curtis Kirkpatrick (PGA head golf pro at Indian Spring) and his staff for all their hard work and excellent service to our customers.”
For further updates and a timeline for the project’s completion, visit the township website at www.evesham-nj.org.
