(01-27-2023, 08:16 PM)ac3r Wrote: We don't need more restaurants and programming spaces IMO. Those things are all over the place. They come and go and always get replaced.
A public golf course in the city is waaaaayyyy more valuable to the public than that. As Joedelay Highhoe said anyone is free to access it anytime they want even if they are not golfing. The golfing is super cheap as well and since this isn't some elitist club in the suburbs or townships, it's super accessible to anyone who wants to spend a day out in the sun hitting balls with a stick. It's the perfect place for newbies. It is already a park too, in a way, just one with an 18 hole golf course. There are trails, a creek, a place to get basic food and drinks/alcohol, lots of trees and shade, gazebos, the beautiful and historic Rockway Gardens which indeed flows right into it and Flora Crescent makes for a nice calm street to stroll down, some small wetlands (very important as this is part of the Schneider Creek floodplain), lots of birds that love the area and so much more. In winter time, the Waterloo Region Nordic Sports Club also transforms the entire course into an entirely free cross country ski facility.
The entire area is already approved for intensive redevelopment as part of the Rockway PARTS plan so there is going to be no shortage of dense development going forward, so we ought to preserve this little jewel in the city because if it were to disappear, it would never come back. And considering we're redeveloping this part of the city with lots of new projects (this one, The Metz, numerous Vive projects and no doubt many, many, many more in the coming years) it makes more sense to preserve this recreational and green space for the new and existing residents who will be moving in.
Golf is a dying suburban idea of a 'sport' that the middle class worships to fulfill their American dream delusions. Since you love talking about your insider knowledge, I can tell you that the Rockway Golf Course is 100% planned to be sold for development and to create a big public park - which is a much more efficient and equitable use of land than a golf course. A handful of developers have submitted proposals to the city.
ps. the "beautiful and historic Rockway Gardens" really?! I almost choke laughing... that place looks like a tacky postcard from 1970s Wisconsin. So yeah I guess historic.