A year after it opened, the Sanctuary golf course is starting to pay for itself.
The Sanctuary, tucked away on Marley Road between U.S. Highway 30 and Francis Road, has seen more than 16,000 rounds of golf played this year, according to New Lenox Park District Director Bill McCollum.
If the weather remains good through November, the New Lenox Park District, which built and operates the 18-hole course, expects to reach or top the 22,600 rounds forecast in a feasibility study, McCollum said.
The Sanctuary officially opened Sept. 13, 1996, but 6,000 rounds had been played by the time the golf course completed its three-month mini-season that November.
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The course attracted controversy after archeologists unearthed an ancient Indian village and burial ground on the site. A marker was placed to note its history.
The Sanctuary includes a clubhouse that serves lunch and dinner during the season, and can be rented out for private parties. It also houses a pro shop, which stays open until the end of the year to pick up Christmas-shopping business.
“We need to be cost-effective,” McCollum said, noting that the $4.9 million project is beginning to pay for itself.
After maintenance and operating costs are covered, any additional revenue goes to pay off the bonds that financed the project.
“Monies are going right now into the debt-service fund,” he said. “We’ve been solvent for 45 days.”
A lot of local people signed up for the Sanctuary’s golf leagues and lessons over the summer, said Dave Burns, the assistant golf pro.
Golfers are coming from neighboring towns such as Joliet, Frankfort, Orland Park, Lockport and Lemont, he said.
Golfers Emery Pavol of Orland Park and Fred Stevenson of Tinley Park gave the course good reviews after a recent round.
“It’s really a fun golf course,” said Pavol, who started playing at the Sanctuary last year.
“The greens putted really nice,” said Stevenson, who had just played his first game at the New Lenox course. “There are some challenging holes.”
The design of the course follows the land.
“It’s a prairie links course,” McCollum said, with the greens separated by tall grass and wetlands. There are two spring-fed lakes on the property and wooded land along the perimeter.
Plans include reconstructing prairie land on some of the property and blacktopping all cart paths, McCollum said.