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Established in 1934, the Lester Park Golf Course is well known around Minnesota for its spectacular beauty and rich history. Twenty of the twenty-seven golf holes offer a unique view of Lake Superior.  And the best part?  Lester Park is a public course, which can be enjoyed by anyone, not just members.   
Now is not the time to consider the closing of the Lester Public Golf Course!  The United States, Minnesota, and the Duluth Community are just coming out of the deepest recession since the Great Depression and to use financial data from the past 5 to 7 years to justify the closing of a public green space would be short-sighted, at best.  It is only natural that golfing would be one of the first things that people cut back on during such a dramatic economic downturn.  Duluthians should not let those in financial power take advantage of this situation to the detriment of the people of Duluth.

Don’t Give in to Short-Sightedness

Also, as Mayor Ness detailed, the past two years have been among the worst two years for golfing weather conditions, in the history of Duluth. As Mayor Ness put it: “Despite the worst two years of weather in our city’s history, Duluthians stood up and showed their pride in this city. We proudly highlighted world-class outdoor recreation and natural beauty that compared favorably to much larger and much more popular cities across the nation.”
In fact, sometimes, an organization has to invest money to make money.  Necessary maintenance should be made; necessary upgrades in buildings should be made to help keep the City of Duluth golf courses highly respected.  I challenge anyone to stand on any golf tees…anywhere….anywhere….. and suggest that they have better views than many of the tees at the Lester Park public golf course. It would be short sighted to skimp on upkeep and lose the character that is part of the Lester Park Golf Course.
The course, and buildings, must be well maintained to retain the amazing golf experience that everyone in Duluth may share.
Duluth, having just earned the honor of being the best outdoor city in the United States, would be remiss if it were to turn away from its commitment to tourism.  One of the reasons for that distinction is the wealth of beautiful golfing that is available to all visitors.  An investment in the courses, and clubhouses, would be a wise investment.  Outdoors recreation will become more and more of a summer industry in Northern Minnesota, especially with an older population as more and more baby boomers retire.  “Heading North” is already part of the vocabulary of Twin Cities residents. The last thing Duluth needs to do is cut off that line of thinking by taking away green space and adding condominiums and town houses for private use only.  We don’t need more cement, more tar, more garages, or more parking lots, covering prime green space. 

An Opportunity to Work Together

The Duluth School Board and the City of Duluth should seize this opportunity to strengthen the boys and girls golf programs at the each of two Duluth High Schools, Denfeld and East.  They could work, in cooperation, to boost the life sports, including golf, into Lincoln Park and Ordean Middle Schools.  It would be a wise investment to do much the same in the surrounding schools of Hermantown and Proctor.  This feeder program would be a wise investment in a sport that will last a lifetime and ensure a ready adult population of golfers.  Golfing could be better encouraged, more financially supported, through our youth programs, than it is today.   A small investment of sets of golf clubs, golf lessons, and time set aside for our youth on area golf courses, could easily play a bigger role than it does today and it would pay dividends of good health for the participants, and financial stability for the golf courses, well into the future.
Do we really want to see the results of losing PGA Golf Pro, Paul Schintz, and his staff?  Do Duluth City Council members, and Duluth School Board members, even know about all of the successful programs that Paul has started and developed?  How would that loss impact the kids who are in those programs?  Each participant, each member of Paul’s staff, are now and will become ambassadors for Duluth golf and for the City of Duluth.

Big Money Should Not Dominate This Discussion

The Duluth Community should not cave in to the moneyed interests of our community to take away any land from public green space to be added to the coffers of the very, very wealthy developers who would like nothing better than to put that park property into their own hands.  If it is determined that having two public golf courses in Duluth is financially unfeasible, it does not, necessarily, require us to jump to the conclusion that that space must be taken away from the public, our children, and grandchildren.  This land, along the shores of Lake Superior, along with the rest of the City of Duluth, is some of the best public space anywhere! It is the home to deer, bear, fox, ducks geese, and even moose. All have been seen on that land in recent years.  What a beautiful public park could be left if it were determined that the golf course was to be eliminated from that public space.  That park would require little in maintenance and is beautiful just as it is.  As it is, Lester Park is also used for cross-country skiing, walking, and running when it is not being used as a golf course.  Should the City of Duluth be willing to forfeit the money, that could be raised by selling this property off to “for profit” corporate interests?  After careful consideration, I think most Duluthians would answer that question resoundingly!
The Lester Park Public Golf Course is a special place to many.  What would our children, and grandchildren think of our decision to remove this special place?  It would not be such a special place if it were sold off to the highest bidder.
There is something to be said for the value of something, such as a golf course, a hiking trail, or any green space beyond the actual dollars and cents.  Duluthians should do everything in their power to keep what they have.  Not one trail, not one park, should be taken from generations to come.  None of us should have to say to our children:  “You should have seen the beautiful park that used to be called the Lester Park Golf Club!”