by Julie Gatehouse The revitalisation of the Maroochydore town centre is tied to the future of the Horton Park course, but as Julie Gatehouse discovers, the golf club's outlook is still an uncertain one.

One of the Coast’s oldest golf courses, Horton Park, is earmarked for redevelopment as part of the Sunshine Coast Regional Council’s structure plan to turn Maroochydore into the region’s principal activity centre (or CBD) within the next 20 years.

Horton Park Golf Course covers 53 hectares in the centre of Maroochydore. The structure plan designates 40 per cent of the course for residential and commercial development – shops, offices, apartments – and the remaining land for public open space and infrastructure.

Horton Park Golf Club voted years ago to sell up and relocate its 1300 members to a Forest Glen site big enough to build a new course with 36 holes. However, two deals with private developers have since fallen through, leaving its future in doubt.

The council stepped in a couple of months ago with “innovative financial arrangements” to get things moving. But on November 25 a narrow vote by golf club members resulted in rejection of the council’s $39 million offer to buy the course. This was despite the club’s board recommending members accept the proposal and use $28 million of it to buy the Twin Waters Golf Course.

The next couple of months will be critical for both the golfers and the revitalisation of Maroochydore. Talks are continuing between the club and the council – the latest meeting occurred on December 3 – and the council says its offer is likely to remain on the table until late February. The council has also launched plan B, issuing a notice of intention to resume part of the golf course for infrastructure and open space.

MPP talks about the options with Tony Nicholson, the golf club’s relocation director who has the backing of its board, and Ron Piper, the council’s project director of urban development.

Tony Nicholson (golf club):

The vote was very close. For the board to get its motion approved, we needed the support of two-thirds of the members who attended the meeting. We got 551 votes but we needed 554. Our motion was to accept the council’s offer of $39 million for the land plus a share of future profits from its redevelopment. We could then spend $28 million on purchasing Twin Waters Golf Course and the balance on associated costs, such as consultants.

Now we have a few things to sort out. The club undertook to go back to the various parties to look at alternatives. A new set of motions will be put to a meeting on February 20. At this stage I can’t confirm whether those motions will differ significantly from the original. A fallback position will be to again offer the original proposal.

Hopefully, members will have had more time to consider their position and will better understand the consequences. The council needs access to our property by September 2011 so we must be out by then. If it resumes a significant portion, we will be left with the rest. We will have to redevelop it ourselves, fight in the courts for compensation and will no longer have a golf course to play on.

The price is lower than a previous developer’s optimistic offer, but the value of our course has dropped as a result of the global financial crisis and we now have a better understanding of infrastructure costs for the site. The latest potential developer could not make the economics stack up and has backed away.

Under an agreement with the owner of Twin Waters, we have until March 31 to exercise our option to purchase.

Ron Piper (council):

The council last Friday December 3 issued a notice of intention to resume land at Horton Park for infrastructure and open space. We’re giving the club until February 23 to state any objections to the resumption process. That’s a longer consideration period than what’s stipulated under the Acquisition of Land Act.

However, we’ve also advised the club’s board and relocation committee that the $39 million offer is likely to remain on the table while we work through the intention to resume period.

We made this offer because the council is committed to Maroochydore as the Coast’s principal activity centre. Our constant feedback is that people want the Sunshine Coast to have one clearly defined CBD for economic development. Horton Park is essential to this.

The council believes it is a good deal for the golf course, given the market failures post-GFC.

If the golf club doesn’t accept the offer, we will continue with resuming 20 hectares for roads, open space and waterways in order to develop the Maroochydore structure plan.

The price of that parcel will be worked out through the resumption process. It will alter the overall value of the golf course because 18 holes generally require more than 60 hectares. And that process will leave members without a course to play on.

Meanwhile, the council delivered the Maroochydore structure plan to State Infrastructure Minister Stirling Hinchliffe last week as scheduled. We anticipate it will be gazetted by Christmas.