City to consider offers for purchase of golf courses
October 05, 2011 at 9:37 PM
The City of Winnipeg has put out an expression of interest for the sale of seven of its golf courses for commercial or residential development or take over their long-term lease.
This past May, City Council tabled two motions in response to the recommendations contained in the Operational Review of Winnipeg Golf Services Audit report. The first motion would see the City enter into a competitive bid process for the operation of the City-run golf courses, while the second motion was to stop operating golf courses altogether and sell off some of the property for commercial or residential development.
"We advised the City that before any final decisions are made, a full business plan should be provided to the citizens before rushing to conclude that contracting out and privatization will automatically correct the problems," said Local 500 President Mike Davidson.
The city-owned golf courses that are potentially affected include: Windsor Park, Kildonan Park, Harbour View, Crescent Drive, John Blumberg, Tuxedo and Canoe Club.
"We have a long and proud history of providing a full range of golf services that are easily accessible to the community and affordable for the average person to play," said Local 500 President Mike Davidson. "Any move to contract out/sell-off the city's golf courses would be opposed by the union," he said.
Local 500 is taking steps to actively respond to this issue. With the support of our National Union, we will continue to work hard on behalf of the membership to defend our work and these important services. We will update the membership on this issue once more information becomes available.
Click here to view a copy of the "expression of interest" issued by the City of Winnipeg.
