Cost inching up for Mt. Prospect golf course renovation

Cost continues to be something of a moving target for the Mount Prospect Park District as it finalizes plans to renovate the district golf course.

The park board recently learned that the renovation phase of the two-phase project could cost more than expected - roughly $6.7 million instead of just under $5 million.

Given that, the district is re-examining the plan in an effort to bring costs down.

"We were a little surprised by the new estimate," park board President Timothy Doherty said. "But there should be ways to reduce it. Our staff and architects are working on that, trying to come up with alternates that have a lower price tag."

As proposed, the renovation portion would include a wide range of improvements, among them new irrigation and drainage, new landscaping and various enhancements to the individual holes on the course.

The other phase of the project includes the construction of a new maintenance building on the site and demolishing the existing one. That phase, which would likely be completed first, is estimated to cost about $1.5 million.

The park board's next meeting is scheduled for April 23. Even if the bids for both phases are ready by then, the park board will likely wait until a special meeting in May to vote on them, Doherty said.

To fund the project, the park board has discussed borrowing $8 million. Doherty said a vote on that could happen at the regular meeting in May.

Should everything be approved, the project could get under way in mid-June. The district plans to close the golf course while it is being renovated. Officials hope construction would last no longer than a year.

Park district officials have said that the two-phase plan would keep the highly-regarded Mount Prospect Golf Club, which dates back to the 1920s, in excellent condition for decades to come.

"We want to do this right, and at the best cost," Doherty said.