You may have noticed a new sign at the Sechelt Golf and Country Club this week, signalling some big changes for the 18-hole golf course.
Those changes include upgrades to the course, a new menu and staff at the Augusta Grill, the resurrection of the outdoor lawn bowling green as well as an indoor lawn bowling area and the addition of a bowling alley.
The new sign proudly displays the new name for the golf course, now dubbed Porpoise Bay Golf Club.
"The new owners wanted the golf club to have a new image so they are re-branding it," said operations manager Cal Schacter.
An ownership group from Vancouver bought the golf course in May, and Schacter was brought in to oversee its operations in June.
He said the owners want to stay behind the scenes and do not wish to have their names published at this time, but he was able to tell Coast Reporter some of the owners' plans for the site.
"They hope to make this part of the recreation hub of Sechelt," Schacter said, noting the addition of outdoor and indoor lawn bowling and a bowling alley would add to the area that already houses baseball fields, walking and biking trails, a dog park, arena, playground and indoor tennis courts.
Schacter said the owners plan to extend the golfing season on their course by getting crews in for scheduled maintenance of the greens and fixing drainage and irrigation problems on site.
"Basically they'll improve the golf facilities and make it more playable for a longer period of time," Schacter said.
The on-site restaurant, the Augusta Grill, is open for business under new management and serving an entirely new menu to entice visitors to the golf course.
So far Schacter said the restaurant is getting lots of use with large groups booking the facility for special functions.
"We're doing a lot of catering now for special events at the restaurant because we have the largest [liquor] licence in Sechelt. We can serve up to 250 people," he said.
Owners are working to reopen the lawn bowling green outside, and they plan to open a new indoor facility in the future. An indoor bowling alley is also in the future development plans for the site.
"I can't say when these things will happen, but they're in the works," Schacter noted.
To keep up to date with what is going on at the golf course, you can visit their website at www.secheltgolf.com/porpoisebay.html.
