The Plain Dealer published a story in its Metro section today by Pat Galbincea about the potential sale of Fowlers Mill Golf Course to the Munson Township trustees, who would use $5 million in grant money from the Ohio EPA to close the course and turn it into a park in the name of water cleanup. [PD story here.]
With all due respect to my friend Pat, this story whitewashes the real issues behind the proposal and incorrectly states several facts.
“I picked up an NEOHgolf.com sticker when I made the turn at the Summit County Am and stuck it on my bag. I birdied the next hole. I will never take it off.” — Drew Thompson, 2010 Summit County Am Contestant
When Joey Hurtuk, Phil Bojc, Les Brock and Josh Mayle teed it up last Wednesday in the Kent State Blue & Gold Alumni Golf Outing at the KSU Golf Course, it seemed like just another day of scramble golf for these four friends.
But by day’s end, the foursome was scheduling an expenses-paid trip to Pinehurst (including two rounds at famed #2) and one of the guys had the keys to a brand new $56K car.
Put it on your golf bag. Put it on your car bumper. Put it your range finder. Help promote the website that promotes tournament golf in Northeast Ohio with a free logo sticker! Pick up your sticker on the tee box at this Thursday’s Cleveland Skins Game at Fowlers, or at the Summit County Am … READ MORE >
Last week, Northeast Ohio Golf wrote in three different stories that the Munson Township trustees, in conjunction with the Northeast Ohio Sewer District and the Geauga County Park District, have submitted an application to the Ohio EPA in an effort to obtain $5.1 million in “water clean-up funding” to purchase — and then close — the nationally-recognized Fowlers Mill Golf Course in Chesterland.
It was also reported (based on a story in the Lake County News Herald) that Todd Peterson’s investment group, FMGC LLC, paid $3.1 million for the property in December of 2009.
Those stories concluded that courtesy of taxpayer money, the investment group potentially could earn a $2 million windfall in just nine months.
But in reality, the windfall would be much greater than $2M, as the purchase price from last December was not correctly reported by the News Herald.
Mike Settles, the Media Relations Coordinator for the Ohio EPA’s Public Interest Center, replied to questions posed by Northeast Ohio Golf about the Munson Township trustee’s application to receive funding for the purchase of Fowlers Mill Golf Course, to then convert it to a park for water quality issues.
Settles’ reply disputes one very important fact presented in the story written by the Lake County News Herald: no decision has been made regarding the proposal, and no money has been given to anyone.
