The time is now for the running community to step up and make themselves known. We need to let our city council know that we feel our city would be better served by replacing the Becky Pierce Municipal Golf Course at John Hunt Park.
The course has been closed since at least January, as the company that was managing it for the city backed out and went bankrupt, and no one has been interested in taking it over. We believe the cost of upkeep and limited positive impact on our city that a Municipal Golf Course can provide is greatly outweighed by our desire for a true Multi-Use City Park. We propose the conversion of the golf course to this Multi-Use City Park by expanding on the existing Tennis Center, Baseball Fields, and Soccer Fields to include Sand Volleyball courts, a championship Disc Golf course, Walking Trails, Mountain Bike Trails, updated Playgrounds, and especially a permanent World Class Cross Country Course that utilizes the existing fairways.
When you look at the impact a Multi-Use City Park can provide versus serving one, small segment of our population, the answer is clear. The inclusion of a World Class Cross Country course would provide significant impact on the local community in itself, including use by not only all the area high schools and colleges for training but also the average joggers and walkers. There are very few alternatives that impact such a diverse set of our city's residents. Add to that the economic impact of attracting Regional, State and National meets, it can only be considered an advantage to our city. The simple cost comparison of development and upkeep for a cross country course vs. a golf course and the resulting revenue each could bring to this town makes the decision very easy. This is a comparison of tens of thousands of dollars vs. millions. If we truly believe in our city's Healthy Huntsville and Big Picture initiatives, this is a step we should take.
By signing this petition I am showing my support for a true Multi-Use City Park as described above.
