Kingston City council votes to close municipal golf course

After more than 40 years, Kingston’s Belle Park Fairways has seen its final round of golf played.

Council voted 12-1 to shut down the municipal golf course, after years of failed efforts to boost membership and revenues.

“There were different efforts and marketing around the golf course,” Kingston Mayor, Bryan Paterson said. “I remember participating in a number of campaigns myself to try to increase usage of the golf course and it just didn’t take.”

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Extensive fairway damage caused by spring flooding may have been the last straw.

Now, the city is charting a new course for the 80-acre site — developing a master plan for a variety of new uses based on responses it received during a three-week survey involving more than 1,100 residents.

“We do know, thanks to the good work on this survey, what peoples’ preferences are,” Kingscourt-Rideau District Councillor Mary Rita Holland said. “But we don’t know much beyond that, and I think there’s a lot of research that could be really valuable.”

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The city has said it will work with the Pickleball Association in hopes of installing up to 16 courts, and with Panthers Rugby club for a permanent place to call home.

The master plan will involve more consultation, which could lead to other uses emerging, such as more walking trails or even a botanical garden.