Supes Back $250K Upgrades at McInnis Park Golf Center

The Marin County Board of Supervisors agreed Tuesday to spend up to $250,000 to upgrade the as part of a deal with the of Healdsburg.

Tayman Park, which is owned by golf professionals Jimmy Stewart and Frank Johnson, took over operation of the 20-year-old golf center in May. The center includes a 9-hole golf course, driving range, clubhouse restaurant, mini golf course and batting cages.

As part of its 10-year lease agreement with Tayman Park, the county of Marin agreed to spend up to $985,000 for upgrades at the center. For the 2012-2013 fiscal year, that will include a number of small but noticeable upgrades like repairs at the mini golf course and batting cage, new driving range mats, a new driving range ball dispensing machine, new maintenance equipment like a greens mower, kitchen and patio repairs and a new point of sale system.

“My expectation is that this will be a win win win–a win for Tayman, a win for McInnis, a win for Marin County,” Steve Petterle, the project manager for the lease, said in April before the parties inked their agreement.

In seeking the supervisors’ approval, county parks officials noted that Tayman’s lease, which is based on a percentage of gross sales with an annual minimum of $350,000, has actually already exceeded that, averaging $43,000 in May and June, pushing the possible annual lease revenue from the facility over $500,000.

Tayman has not yet started the renovations. The company currently operates Healdsburg Golf Course in Healdsburg, Ukiah Golf Course in Ukiah, and Fairground Golf Course in Santa Rosa, all of which are owned by public agencies and operated under lease agreements. 

The county has been looking for new lease agreement since last November. The deal marks a new chapter in the Golf Center’s 20-year history. In 1992, the county contracted with McInnis Park Golf Center Partners for the partners to construct and operate a golf center on county-owned land including the 9-hole executive golf course, driving range, clubhouse restaurant, miniature golf course,and batting cages.

In the original agreement, the partners retained ownership of the improvements through the life of the contract. In December 2011, a buyout agreement terminated the agreement and transferred ownership of the entire facility to the county.