DuPage forest preserve plans major transformation of Wood Dale golf course
Maple Meadows golf course in Wood Dale is poised for a major upgrade.
The DuPage County forest preserve board is set to vote next week on a contract with Wadsworth Golf Construction to move forward with a planned renovation of the district-owned course. The contract on Tuesday’s board agenda is expected to cost up to nearly $14.9 million.
Wadsworth also completed the overhaul of Oak Meadows, transforming a property with a history of flooding into a prime 18-hole course officially renamed The Preserve at Oak Meadows. In recognizing the project with one its 2017 “Force of Nature” awards, the Chicago Wilderness Alliance highlighted how previously manicured fairways and turf became acres of upland prairie and oak savanna.
“In past eras, the district's golf facilities were seen by some as outliers and simply viewed as golf courses that were inherently different from other district lands,” Forest Preserve President Daniel Hebreard said. “However, over the past decade, our approach to golf has evolved. District golf properties are now better understood as golf preserves.”
The Maple Meadows project calls for a complete renovation of the course layout, a new irrigation system, new cart paths and parking lot reconstruction.
After nearly 30 years of district operation, the “deterioration of major infrastructure” at Maple Meadows prompted development of a site improvement plan, Hebreard said. Forest preserve staff also worked closely with golf course architect Greg Martin as part of the planning process.
The improvements identified in the resulting 54-page document will “increase floristic quality and wetlands, expand potential for stormwater management and enhance the overall ecological value of the property,” Hebreard said at a board planning session.
The district also aims to address pace of play issues and modernize infrastructure. Maintenance of the property was becoming increasingly expensive, said Ed Stevenson, who heads the district’s golf operation.
“In addition to the infrastructure being more modern, we're going to be able to do things that make it easier to maintain, more cost effective to maintain, and that ultimately shows up in our ability to keep greens fees where they are affordable and desirable for the residents and the golfing public,” Stevenson said.
The plan also recommended reducing the size and number of bunkers. The proposed routing has golfers crossing the private Dominion Drive only once instead of three times during the span of 18 holes.
“We found that a lot of people have embraced golf as part of their formula for quality of life,” Stevenson said. “Certainly some will rent golf carts, but many like to walk, and the course has been made where it can be more walkable.”
The district also owns the 9-hole Green Meadows in Westmont, a “great entry-level property,” Stevenson said. The district refers to Maple Meadows and Oak Meadows as sisters courses.
“We’re finding that to be able to have some variety actually allows us to expand the audience. We’re not worried about the two courses competing with one another,” Stevenson told the board. “In fact, we think this will enhance and allow them to better complement one another.”
Work is planned to start after the end of this golf season.
“I am excited to support this step and position Maple Meadows for a sustainable future as a true golf preserve,” Hebreard said.