Miamisburg City Council will meet at 7 p.m., at which time it is set to discuss allowing the city manager to enter into a five-year contract with Hampton, a Jacksonville, Fla.-based business which manages more than 20 public and private golf courses.
“The consensus between our selection committee is basically that Hampton could bring a fresh approach to Pipestone Golf Course and continue its success,” said Debbie McLaughlin, Miamisburg director of parks and recreation.
The selection committee – which also heard proposals from Kemper and Cypress Golf Management of Orlando, Fla. - consisted of McLaughlin, Mayor Dick Church Jr., city council, City Manager Keith Johnson and the assistant finance director.
“We had a lot of success with Kemper over the past 20 years, but looked more to Hampton bringing in a fresh approach,” she added. “They have a very good reputation in the areas that they operate courses and we were really looking to have that continued success that they’ve had at their courses.”
Hampton manages courses in in Arizona, Florida, Georgia, South Carolina and West Virginia whose architects include Jack Nicklaus, Greg Norman, Fred Couples and Davis Love III, according to its website.
Pipestone – along with Beavercreek Golf Club, Yankee Trace in Centerville and Heatherwoode Golf Club in Springboro – is generally thought of as one of the Dayton area’s top municipal courses.
If council approves the plan, the city would like to have a contract finalized next week, McLaughlin said.
City records show the agreement with Hampton calls for the company to receive 4 percent of Pipestone’s annual gross, which would be $42,500 based on a projected revenue this year of slightly more than $1,062,000, McLaughlin said.
There would be no incentive fees, according to city records. Kemper’s deal for 2014 is for $36,000 plus incentives, she said.
Since 2008, Pipestone has witnessed a drop in rounds played per year, a trend facing golf courses nationwide. The course hosted 34,858 rounds in 2007 and those figures for 2013 stood at 28,120, McLaughlin said.
Pipestone lost $68,908 in 2012, but in 2013 revenues topped expenses by more than $12,468, McLaughlin said.
The course is now getting a new irrigation system at a cost of nearly $1 million. Work on the system is expected to be completed early next year, Johnson said.
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