Reaction to proposed changes to Armstrong’s golf course has been positive.
So says developer Patrick Place, who is looking to reconfigure the Royal York Golf Course by adding a putting green, dog park, and walking trail, reconfiguring the golf course to a Par 3-style course with only a few of the current nine holes being more than 200 yards in length, and adding 200 single-family lots and strata homes over 10 years.
The York family is selling the course to Place and his partner and will stay on as shareholders.
Place held a three-day informational session with COVID-19 social distancing rules in effect Sept. 10-12 at the golf course.
“It was very good,” said Place. I’m guessing we had 250-to-300 people. We only allowed four-to-five people in the information tent. We handed out 185 information packages.
“For the most part, people were quite happy to get the facts and information. Everybody can relate to something in our plan.”
What people liked about the plan, he said, was keeping the existing clubhouse, adding green space and trails, along with a new putting green out front of the clubhouse, and the affordable housing aspect of the development plan.
Negative comments included taking away green space and seeing the golf course change.
The Armstrong Green Space Society has been a vocal opponent of the proposed sale of the golf course, first to an entity of Vernon-based Kal Tire, which fell through, and now to Place.
The No. 1 concern Place heard during the meetings was about traffic.
“We will try to mitigate that,” he said. “This development will be done over five-to-10 years, 20-to-30 houses a year. There won’t be a sudden impact of 200 homes tomorrow.”
The single-family and strata lots will each have separate entrances off Okanagan Street.
Another public information session is set for Thursday, Sept. 24, from 3-7 p.m. at the Royal York Golf Course.
After that meeting, the City of Armstrong will collect the comments, make them public, and then Place will apply to the city for a subdivision and Official Community Plan amendment application for the course.
The matter is likely to first come before Armstrong council in October.
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roger@vernonmorningstar.com
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