Candidates give views on proposed golf course

With the economy heading toward a full-blown recession, the stock markets in free fall and job losses mounting, the candidates for Lake County Board District 2 say they would be reluctant to sink millions of dollars into the construction of a new golf course.

But a legal agreement could force them to do just that.

At issue is the golf course at the Fort Sheridan Forest Preserve near Highland Park. When the Army turned over 258 acres to the Lake County Forest Preserve District a decade ago, the agreement called for a golf course to remain open there in perpetuity.

The original 18-hole layout was torn up in 2003 to make way for a much improved replacement. But officials postponed the project after the original $15 million estimate was replaced with a more accurate $20 million estimate.

The Army isn't pressing the district to move forward at this point, but the county board is expected to take it up again sometime after the Nov. 4 election.

Republican incumbent Randall Whitmore, 55, of Wadsworth, Democratic challenger Diane Hewitt, 54, of Waukegan and independent Tyler Crittenden, 56, of Wadsworth say they understand the need to abide by the legal contract but don't want to pump dollars into a potentially money-losing enterprise.

The downturn in the number of rounds of golf playing in the county is a fact that isn't lost on Whitmore.

"We've recently looked at the numbers at Thunderhawk, and things aren't good," he said. The number of players at the district-run course near Beach Park is down, along with those at the two other district courses, Countryside near Mundelein and Brae Loch near Grayslake.

"I don't want to throw money at something just because it was grandfathered in," Whitmore said.

Crittenden questioned the wisdom of plowing up the original layout.

"Couldn't the district have upgraded the course instead of tearing it up?" he said. "We could have done that for a lot less money and (given) the extra to Winchester House nursing home."

Golf is down nationwide. In 2006, more courses closed than opened for the first time in 60 years, according to the National Golf Foundation. That said, Hewitt noted an "agreement is an agreement" and the district will need to build at some point.

"We can't just say it's too expensive and just walk away," she said. "They have a duty to abide."

If the district is eventually forced to construct a new course, the candidates all agree the plan should be modest.

"We don't need a 20 million-dollar course," Crittenden said. "It's not fair to taxpayers.

Hewitt agreed. "I'm not a golfer so I don't have specific ideas on what it should look like," she said. "But let's be realistic and not excessive."

Whitmore said the county doesn't need a "Taj Mahal."

"Taxpayers don't need to take it on the chin," he added.

District 2 covers the northeast part of Lake County, including Wadsworth and Beach Park.