Two Carrollton Golf Courses Remain Closed Months After Major Flooding
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CARROLLTON (CBS11) - The Indian Creek Golf Club in Carrollton remains closed months after sustaining major damage during historic flooding.
Jack Stotz says he normally plays at the Indian Creek Golf Club four times a month. "It's a city course, neighborhood feel."
But not this fall. He's had to golf at other courses.
Stotz says, "I'm disappointed it's not open, but I'm really hoping we'll take this opportunity to bring the course back to an "A" level and maybe even make it better than it was."
With all the rain last spring, Lake Lewisville overflowed, and began draining in late May into the floodplain along the Trinity River including the two courses at the Indian Creek Golf Club.
Carrollton Assistant City Manager Erin Rinehart says, "It was under water 'til early August."
Rinehart says both the "lakes" and "creek" courses sustained about one and a half million dollars in damages.
"So it needs work on the fairways, work on the bunkers, some cart paths."
She says while revenues normally pay for improvements at the golf courses, the city will pay for these repairs from its reserve funds.
While the fairways and bunkers were under water, the greens were not. So crews used boats to go from green to green to make sure they were watered.
As a result, the greens are still in good shape. But with the needed repairs, lost revenues from the golf club being shut down, and other costs, Rinehart says the city is losing at least two million dollars. While the city will repair the "lakes" course, it's studying whether to fix the "creek" course or do something else with it.
The city council will decide what to do in January.
Jack Stotz signed a petition to keep the "creek" course open and can't wait to return to the "lakes" course, when it's scheduled to re-open in April. "I can come out here with my 18-year-old nephew, his 45-year-old father, me the 68year-old uncle and Matthew's grandfather and we can spend four hours together in the open air without cellphones just getting to play again."
While the city is making repairs to the "lakes" course, it's not doing any work designed to prevent flooding from happening again.
Rinehart says that would require approval from the Army Corps of Engineers, and keep the courses closed much longer.
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