The sale of the Club West Golf Course has been finalized and the new owners are working on a collaborative plan to revitalize the property. The plans focus on a community effort with maximum park space and minimum development.
After initial attempts by The Edge to create a new golf experience at Club West, community members and Phoenix City Councilman Sal DiCiccio requested that The Edge consider alternative development plans that reduce the number of single-family detached residential homes required to finance any revitalization plan.
The new plan, tentatively called The Park at Club West, will redevelop the course into a community park with enhanced trails, open spaces, and recreational amenities.
The golf course has been closed since 2016 and reopening it is not a viable option.
A collaborative design process has commenced with eight (8) member Neighborhood Committee established by the Club West HOA and Community Land Solutions (CLS), as representatives of The Edge.
Community Land Solutions is in the process of retaining a landscape architect for the project. The goal is for a maximum amount of new park and open space along with responsible and minimal development.
“We are neighbors first. We want to bring new green and open spaces to the shuttered Club West Golf Course. Our plans are community-minded and will raise property values,” said Matt Shearer, a principal with CLS, which is leading efforts to build the new park and greenbelt.
CLS and the Neighborhood Committee are meeting on a weekly basis with the goal of distributing an initial Draft Park Plan to the Club West Community for additional input. Shearer said additional meetings and communications with community members are planned and welcomed as revitalization plans move forward.
The process includes significant time for community feedback, presentations to the HOA and homeowners, additional open houses and community events, a homeowners’ vote, and approvals from the city of Phoenix.
“We want open and transparent dialogues with all our neighbors and remain optimistic in uniting the community with sustainable solution that removes uncertainty and enhances property values. There is still a lot of misinformation surrounding the future redevelopment plans for the property. We are confident that the current planning process will allow us to proceed with constructive discussions based on facts”, Shearer added.
Shearer is a principal with CLS along with Bill McManus and Mike Hare.
The effort and the Neighborhood Committee are looking at how other communities and former golf courses in Arizona (including in Scottsdale, Phoenix and Oro Valley) and other states (including in Washington state and Ohio) created new parks and open space and executed responsible development solutions to revive their respective communities and property values.
