Politics & Government

Spring Meadow needs new operator

DEP looking for management company to run Atlantic Ave course.

The state wants out of the day-to-day operations of its Spring Meadow Golf course and is looking for a management company to run the Atlantic Avenue course, according to a statement released Thursday.

The Department of Environmental Protection, which owns the 18-hole course, is seeking a management company to run the course and free up DEP personnel for other tasks, according to a release.

"The DEP should not be in the business of running golf courses, but should be dealing with forestry and fish and wildlife issues in our parks and natural areas,'' DEP Commissioner Bob Martin said in the release. "Putting Spring Meadow in the hands of golf professionals makes sense.''

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Spring Meadow is one of only four courses owned by the DEP that is also run by the department. In Monmouth County, the DEP also owns Cream Ridge Golf Course in Upper Freehold, the release said.

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A mandatory bidders meeting will be held at Spring Meadow Golf Course at the clubhouse/pro shop at 10 a.m. on Jan. 31, 2011.  The deadline for submitting proposals is Feb. 22, 2011.

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The Governor's Privatization Task Force in May specifically targeted Spring Meadow for privatization. It suggested that outsourcing government golf management in New Jersey, through long-term leases of these taxpayer owned properties, could generate needed revenues to help finance the State's park system, the release said.

Spring Meadow Golf Course and driving range was acquired by the DEP in the 1970s through the Green Acres Program and has been operated by the Department since then, the release said.

The winning bidder for the management position will enter into a five-year operating agreement with the DEP and will have the potential to renew the operating agreement for an additional five-year term. The successful bidder will pay the State a fixed annual fee, adjusted annually by the Consumer Price Index, plus a percentage of its annual gross revenue earned from course operations, the release said.


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