The Oswego Village Board has approved plans for a proposed 66- to 69-foot-high air-supported golf dome on vacant land just west of Orchard Road.
Whitetail Ridge Golf Club, an 18-hole public golf course in Yorkville, recently was granted approval of a special use permit and final planned unit development to build and operate an indoor golf dome and restaurant at the southwest corner of Lewis Street and Station Drive.
The facility will offer rounds of golf played on virtual courses, practice sessions with digital ball flight analysis, a practice putting green, equipment sales, golf lessons and training, food and beverage service and more, according to information provided to the village by developers.
Voting in favor were Oswego Trustees Tom Guist, James Marter, Jennifer Jones Sinnot, Kit Kuhrt and Brian Thomas. Trustee Terry Olson abstained from voting on the project.
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The development is in keeping with the commercial land use designation for the site in the village’s comprehensive plan, village officials said.
Yorkville attorney Dan Kramer and future facility manager Ron Walker explained details of the proposed golf dome to the trustees.
Kramer said the land west of Orchard Road was primed for development years ago. However, the economic downturn in 2007 stalled projects.
“We thought the land was going to blossom out there years ago,” Kramer said. “You’ve had a lot of weeds and vacant land … we think this would be a productive use for the village.”
The fabric building will be 200 feet by 350 feet with the height ranging from 66 to 69 feet, Walker said.
“It’s basically 70,000 square feet of dome space,” Walker told trustees.
Guist inquired how the dome will handle bad weather.
“Years back I remember a dome collapsed in a significant ice storm,” Guist said.
“Ice is definitely the biggest hazard,” Walker said. “The new domes have inflation warning systems that activate inflation fans to make the dome more stable.”
The newer domes have heating capabilities to melt snow and a backup generator in times of power loss as well, he said.
“The technology has gone a long way with alarms. Someone just has to be there to actively handle it,” Walker said.
The base of the dome will be raised and there will be an asphalt road around the facility for maintenance purposes, he said.
The dome fabric typically has a life expectancy of about 20 to 25 years, he added.
Inside, the dome will have two levels each with 15 golf bays.
The site could one day feature miniature golf, but there are no official plans as yet for that, Kramer said.
Construction is planned to begin in the spring, he said.
The plan is for the facility to operate from October through April with its full winter program, and in the spring and summer continue with a more limited operation.
The golf dome plans to be open during its primary winter season from 8 a.m. to 9 p.m. Sunday through Thursday and 8 a.m. to midnight Friday and Saturday. The owner expects to hire 10 full-time employees and 20 to 30 part-time workers.
The golf dome could host up to 120 golfers every hour, village officials said.
Linda Girardi is a freelance reporter for The Beacon-News.