CHARLESTON, W.Va. — Kanawha County’s Big Bend Golf Course is going to need a new irrigation system.
The Kanawha County Commission discussed the need during it’s Thursday evening meeting.
County Parks Director Jeff Hutchinson asked the USGA (United States Golf Association) to take a look a the course earlier this year. The group came back with several recommendations to improve the condition of the Tornado-based golf course including replacing the watering system which was installed in the early 1990s.
County Commissioner Lance Wheeler said the project needs to be done sooner than later.
“The irrigation system is 30-years-old, life expectancy is 25 years, it doesn’t take a rocket scientist to know that this is something that needs to be looked at,” Wheeler said.
Parks and Recreation Commission President Allen Tackett said unfortunately the irrigation system can’t be replaced until a FEMA financed project that includes repairing holes 8 and 17 gets started and is completed. A flooded Coal River carved out the bank and damaged the holes. Repair work could begin in the spring.
Tackett said the course has seen every storm possible. A 2019 storm knocked down 200 trees.
Meanwhile, the exact cost of replacing the irrigation system isn’t yet known. The range is from $750,000 to more than $1 million, Hutchinson said.
Commissioner Ben Salango suggested the commission begin to put away some money now.
“We get the comments and emails too about Big Bend. I know they are doing all they can out there. It seems like if we are going to commit to it let’s do it right but we need an actual number, that’s a pretty big range,” Salango said.
No final decisions were made Thursday.