Andy Palmer, Winter Haven City parks planning and strategic initiatives manager, told the City Commission the Willowbrook golf course renovation program is advancing and that the course’s renovated greens are expected to reopen mid-November.

“We executed an easement with Duke Energy, and they gave us a very generous $2,650,000 at that time,” Palmer said, describing the original funding source and the city’s effort to prioritize work across infrastructure, playability, amenities and aesthetics.

Katie White, a City staff member who has overseen the Willowbrook project for about a year, said Phase 1 began in August 2024 and finished in May, and Phase 2 started in June. “Phase 1 kicked off in August 2024, and we finished that up in May,” White said, summarizing the schedule and key accomplishments from the first two phases.

City staff said the program replaced or re-rooted all 18 greens plus a putting green and a nursery green, upgrading the root zone and sprigging new turf. White said staff upgraded the irrigation system, added isolation valves to reduce water overuse, completed an irrigation pond cleanout and installed elements of a reuse line (a final valve remains to be installed once the greens have finished growing in). She said the grow-in process for the new greens should wrap up in mid-November.

Staff described additional completed and in-progress work: five critical drainage areas (four complete, one in progress), demolition and replacement of the pump shed, roughly 2,600 linear feet of cart path replacement (about 20% of the course cart path), split-rail fence installations on Nos. 7 and 17, clubhouse exterior pressure washing and painting, front-of-clubhouse hardscape demolition and new sidewalk/irrigation/sod, and sign renovation to match city branding.

White said No. 14 green was rebuilt and “flipped” to move it off the property line adjacent to the Willowbrook South subdivision; she noted a new fence along that property line for added security. Several before-and-after photos were shown to the commission, and White said landscaping crews were installing new plantings in front of the clubhouse at the time of the presentation.

Commissioners and staff also discussed structural elements that remain under review. White described a prior bridge assessment and said the most recent report recommended repair rather than full replacement; she said city staff plan to secure a more complete bridge report in future fiscal years. A commissioner asked about bridge design and whether narrower or single bridges could be used; staff said current geometry and course routing make consolidation unlikely and that any major bridge work would be planned in future capital budgets.

Staff addressed operations and maintenance questions. Palmer and White said Ray Perez is the course superintendent and that course maintenance staff are assigned to Willowbrook rather than being routinely rotated among other facilities. Commissioners raised questions about course care and golfer behavior; staff said they will work with Troon, the course operator, on golfer-education and potentially ranger or monitoring programs to protect the investment.

On funding and next steps, White said project savings from credits, deployed purchase orders and contingency allowed the city to fund additional items beyond the original scope. Staff said they will pursue grant opportunities and add remaining needs — repaving the front parking lot, clubhouse interior renovations, additional tree work and bridge repairs — to the capital projects list for future planning and funding.

Staff reiterated an anticipated full opening on the new greens in mid-November and said the city is considering a celebratory ribbon-cutting or “first putt” event in January; a specific date was not set.