Tuscaloosa Considering Master Plan For Ol' Colony Golf Course Expansion

TUSCALOOSA, AL — Conversations were had Tuesday that could see the City of Tuscaloosa eventually invest in a master plan for a nine-hole expansion of Ol' Colony Golf Complex.

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Brion Hardin, a board member for both Ol' Colony and Tuscaloosa County Park & Recreation Authority (PARA) who has been a mainstay for the course, presented the Tuscaloosa City Council's Finance Committee with an initial pitch for the idea on Tuesday, after the PARA Board formally approved a measure to request funding from the city.

"When you play golf you’ve got 18 holes ... if you’ve got nine more, you basically got a spare [course]," he said in response to a question from District 2 Councilor Raevan Howard. "You can use it and it's going to make money, but let's say we redo the greens. You have to do that in the middle of the summer time and you’re going to lose about half a million dollars worth of revenue. If you’ve got the other nine, you’re not going to use anything."

After its founding in 1999, the course has grown in use and popularity for the metro area as one of the only public golf courses available. As Hardin pointed out, when the course first opened, the University of Alabama had around 15,000 students — a number that a since grown to 40,000.

As the UA golf programs are planning a move to a new facility, Hardin said he has been in contact with the resurrected Shelton State Community College golf program, while the course is serving 13,000 kids each year through junior golf programs.

Separate from the steady growth, as Patch previously reported, Ol' Colony will host an official event for the Ladies Professional Golf Association (LPGA) EPSON Tour from Sept. 29 through Oct. 2.

The 54-hole tournament — dubbed The Tuscaloosa Toyota Classic — will feature 120 professional women’s golfers from nearly 30 countries and is widely considered the next non-football economic boon for the tourism sector.

Still, as budget season approaches with the end of the current fiscal year, the overwhelming sentiment from the Tuscaloosa City Council rested on the pitch itself, which came separate to the normal annual budget request from PARA.

"PARA is generally one of our big four or five funds," said District 4 Councilor Lee Busby. "It's a big number, so we put a lot of work into it … is that where we’re going to see it flow to us? In PARA’s annual ask for budget?"

Hardin said he was merely a representative of the PARA Board and explained that the request was not part of the official budget request from the quasi-governmental agency. However, Hardin and Busby agreed the approach could be conveyed to the PARA Board ahead of the agency making any formal requests going into the 2023 budget cycle.

Tuscaloosa Mayor Walt Maddox, who said he has been learning to play the game of golf himself, commented that the public course provides affordable opportunities for a wide range of the local population, before posing the city's ideas for the concept.

"I think the first natural step is to create a master plan and then develop funding streams that can go to the improvement of the golf course," he said. "With the [University of Alabama golf program] moving to another facility ... it opens up the golf course to do a lot of things."

Maddox also said he had met recently with Tuscaloosa County Probate Judge Rob Robertson regarding the potential expansion. What's more, Hardin praised the Tuscaloosa County Commission and the City of Northport for their contributions and involvement in recent improvements for the course ahead of the EPSON event.

In an interview with Patch, Robertson said the conversations provided a starting point to consider the future of the golf course.

To date, however, PARA has yet to approach the county for any contributions toward the effort.

"I think [PARA] has a longterm vision for what they would like to see, but nothing formalized, no formal ask and there are a lot of other priorities we are having to face as a county," he said. "But there was a discussion — Is this part of the long range plan or what is this a part of? — And in the long range planning for any property, how does this fit for the future?"

Robertson, like many, still expressed his excitement for the Tuscaloosa Classic coming up in September, which he and others have said will serve as an indicator of the true tourism draw of a major event at the course.

"I think that’s going to be a great event, I hope the weather holds," he said. "I think that's going to be a good day. The future will all be considered in due time."

The Tuscaloosa City Council's Finance Committee adjourned without taking any action on the matter.

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