Commission Member in Attendance:
Brit Lawlor – Chairman
Ron Krawczyk – Deputy Chairman
Joe Dabrowski – Greens
Jeff Nagel – Membership/Course Assessment
Tara Ford – Women’s Locker Room & Beverage
Mike Cioffi – Men’s Locker Room & Beverage/Special Projects
Kevin Lauretti – Handicap/Course Assessment
Ryan Stanley – Tournament
Mike Mislin – Violations
Others in Attendance:
Jim Von Eschen – Director of Golf Julie Callahan – Member
Chris Johnson – Course Superintendent Pat Comiskey – Member
John Mackie – Assistant Golf Pro Arlene Trigg – Member
Ray Fell – Mayor/Member Mary Lou Keating – Member
John Daley – Member Mary Butler – Member
Vic Cisario – Member Lisa White – Member
Brett Geiger – Member Mike Auerbach – Member
Wendy Foster – Member Maureen Vietch – Resident
Mike Foster – Member Janet Foster – Resident
Motion to start meeting by Ron Krawczyk, Jeff Nagel 2nds it; accepted by Brit Lawlor. Meeting officially starts at 6:03PM.
Commissioner’s Correspondence, presented by Brit Lawlor
Brit begins reading a letter from Bill Durcan, looking for a leave due to medical reasons which he has proper documentation. Mr Lawlor says that it will be approved within the new medical leave policy.
Violations Report, presented by Mike Mislin
Nothing to report.
Women’s Locker Room & Beverage Report, presented by Tara Ford
Tara says that she has really only heard of 1 request – more rakes in the bunkers. Chris Johnson states that they just put out 25 new rakes a couple of weeks ago. Chris asks Tara to let him know where they need some and he will relocate from some other areas. Tara additionally says that the Women’s Member/Guest is scheduled for Tuesday, August 8th. She continues says that they just got the price and should have it out to membership shortly.
Handicap/Course Assessment Report, presented by Kevin Lauretti
Kevin states that he has nothing specific but would like to note that the Winter Project is coming in nicely; says that these new areas should be great and help playability on holes 4 and 5.
Tournaments Report, presented by Ryan Stanley
Ryan begins with the Match Play Tournament, stating that the brackets went out today and your first-round match has to be completed by Friday, June 23rd. Continuing, Ryan says that the President’s Cup, which was rained out earlier in the month, is re-scheduled for the Saturday. The Team 4 Ball results were as follows, which was decided by a match of cards:
1st Place – Gary Duff, George Wasielke, Gene Sandy, Jim Cullen Jr – 59
2nd Place – Paul Westbrook, Frank Loiacono, Doug Keller, Marty Westbrook – 59
3rd Place – Bob Quarte, Gerry Waters, Walter Fritz, [Ken Frankman] – 60
4th Place – Ben Mojallali, John Robilotta, Riley McDonough, Mike Einsidler – 60
5th Place – Tom Gambino, Joe Dabrowski, Kevin Lauretti, Jon Coleman – 60
Mr. Stanley states that the Match Play will run all the way through the Summer, with the US Open Tournament and Governor’s Cup in June. Ryan finishes saying that the course is looking and playing great.
Deputy Chairman Report, presented by Ron Krawczyk
Mr Krawczyk states that the course is in great shape; tells Chris and his crew to continue the great job.
Greens/Course Assessment Report, presented by Joe Dabrowski
Joe begins stating that Chris and crew have been busy. Joe says that they are top-dressing every other week, while getting pre & post emergent on the course in addition to verticutting done, which got done last week. Joe continues, thanking Ed Santalone for getting some irrigation heads up and running. Mr. Dabrowski continues, stating that membership just has to be patient when it comes to holes 4 and 5; it will be a long term success. Joe says that some rain would help considering we have roughly an inch for the month of May (3.5 inches less than where we normally are).
Membership Report, presented by Jeff Nagel
Mr. Nagel states that we were at 399 members at the last meeting, we are now at 402; we have had 3 residents join with one corporate member upgrading to silver. Jeff states that other than that, we have over 200 on the waiting list.
Superintendents Report, presented by Chris Johnson
Chris states that Joe covered most of the basics, but he says that the crew is back to mowing, hand watering and praying for some rain. Chris says that they are off and running with the heat of the Summer. Lastly, Chris says that they are fully staffed, with a lot of new crew members. Brit steps in and says thank you to Chris and his crew for their hard work all Spring.
Director of Golf Report, presented by Jim Von Eschen
Jimmy says that a new member, Cheryl Russell has been having a hard times with the greens and the speed of them. After talking to her, Jimmy asked Chris to stimp the greens one morning just to see; he states that prior to cutting, the greens were a 10. After a roll (and no cut), they got to an 11 on the stimp-meter. Jimmy states that the greens are extremely good.
Jimmy continues, asking the Commission if we plan on treating July 3rd as a holiday, even though the actual holiday is Tuesday, the 4th. The Commission says that it will be regular play, opposed to a weekend. Jimmy says that it will be like a Friday, opening up at 8am instead of the normal Monday 10am.
Men’s Locker Room & Beverage/Special Projects Report, presented by Mike Cioffi
Mike begins, saying that he has nothing in regards to Peter’s, but the erosion project is still a couple weeks out. He says that the new village administration and commission will need to work together in regards to finding funding. Ray Fell says that the grant is still in the process of being approved by the federal government with $1.1 million being used towards the golf course. Mike Cioffi says that yes, dredging is first and then we will go from there. Jim Von Eschen says that Suffolk County Congressmen, Andrew Garbarino, will be working with us on that grant.
In regards to the buildings, Mike says that an architect has been approved by the Village Board for design of a new layout, working with Jimmy Von Eschen to see what is needed. Jimmy states that the big wish list, besides the basic necessities, is new buildings for the locker rooms, a pro shop, bag storage for all members, cart storage, a simulator room with 6 simulators. Mr Cioffi says that they have been through engineering to find the actual buildable area but assures people that it will be presented to Commission and the Village Board.
Comments from the Crowd
Mike Foster – Mr. Foster begins asking about taking sod out of the practice putting green for the golf course. Joe Dabrowski explains that they will be taking out an area by Peter’s to repair the back right portion of the 5th green, which wasn’t taking how Chris wanted. Mr. Foster continues, asking what time of year does the Commission decide the Winter Project? Kevin Lauretti says that they discuss at the meetings mid-year with the final decision happening in the Fall. Kevin continues, saying that the plan last year was to focus on the tightly mown areas around the greens, with 4 and 5 being the first areas. Kevin says that the project was bigger than originally thought, which is why just 4 and 5 were done; working within the budget on a yearly basis. Mike Foster suggests keeping money for a bigger project the following year, not doing any Winter Project this year. Kevin says that he is not 100% on if the Capital Assessment has to be spent each year or if it can be rolled over. Brit Lawlor also says that they like the WOW factor for when membership gets back, doing a project each year. Another question from Mr Foster asks how does the board decide if the project comes from the Village or Membership when regards to paying, insisting that the bunkers would fall under Village jurisdiction. Ray Fell states that the USGA told us that the LAST thing you should do in bunkers. Jimmy says that Southward Ho just re-did their bunkers for about 4 million dollars and was closed for a portion of May. Brit says that Chris is doing work on bunkers each and every year but we can’t do them all; he chooses a couple to do each year.
Pat Comiskey – Mrs. Comiskey asks if there were plans for the area leaving the 4th green, heading to the 5th tee. Joe Dabrowski says that the area will eventually just be fescue and again asks for patience from the membership. He says that we had a lot of rain after the initial hydroseed and it got washed out, continuing saying that we will touch up when we have to. Joe ends, saying that the Spring is the tough season to plant grass on the South Shore opposed to the Fall. Lastly, Pat asks about moving the commission meeting to a day other than Wednesday at 6pm. Brit says that we’ve moved the meeting multiple times over the years and ultimately the last Wednesday of the month, at 6PM, was the day that worked best for everybody.
Mary Lou Keating – Mrs. Keating begins stating that she has been a resident here in the Village for 15 years and a member of the club for the past 2 years. With regards to cups, tee and ball markers, Mary Lou believes membership should get these items for free; she states that it is embarrassing to tell guests that they have to bring their own water bottle. Brit Lawlor reminds Mary Lou that the cups were taken away due to environmental concerns that come along with the styrofoam and plastic that we were using. Brit continues, stating that the member is responsible to let their guest know but if you forget, you can buy a bottle of water in Peter’s or a reusable cup in the Pro Shop. Brit finishes, saying that the cups will not be revisited. As far as tees and ball markers, Jimmy says that tees are available in the Pro Shop for free and that when a member previously donated 10,000 ball markers, they were gone in a month.
Arlene Trigg – Mrs. Trigg says that when she was a member at The Hamlet, there was a hole where you were allowed to take a drop on the other side of the water if you couldn’t clear. She asks if we could put a drop zone on the green side of our 10th hole. Kevin Lauretti says that it is a yellow penalty area where the water has to stay in front of you. Kevin states that this is a USGA implemented rule, not one that Bellport has created over time.
Vic Cisario – Mr. Cisario makes a request for the scorecard/pencil holder to be replaced at the 1st tee along with a garbage can. Brit responds saying that when they previously had the scorecard/pencils out by the tee, they would constantly get wet after a rain storm, not to mention that Chris would end up finding them all over the course. Brit states that there are scorecard and pencils in the Locker Rooms, Starter’s Booth and the Pro Shop. Jimmy also says that they purchased 4 new garbage cans that would match the benches bought a couple years ago. Jimmy continues saying that they were about $1500 each and currently back-ordered. Vic also brings up a recent article in Golf Digest that talks about a system which matches our tee time system with the handicap system to make sure that scores are posted. John Daley says that the members in the group should tell you if your handicap is out of whack. Lastly, Vic asks about moving the road on the 9th hole to make the fairway bunker larger so that you are not constantly standing out of the bunker to hit the shot. Brit says that ultimately, it is a hazard and it is not made to be easy.
John Daley – Mr. Daley begins with the cart oath near the 6th tee box; he states that the area constantly floods, not to mention that somebody could get hurt. John spoke with an engineer recently who said that to be done properly, the area should be bulldozed completely and then put down reclaimed concrete before asphalting the area. Brit says that we have spoken with Jason Crane of the Highway Department to look at these areas as we know they are a concern. Changing topics, Mr. Daley turns his attention to the brick wall behind the 18th green. John states that the Commission agreed to take the plantings out but the Bellport Beautification Society asked for one more chance, saying that they could help clean up the area. John states that he has given up; he still believes that the bushes and plantings should be cut back to the line of the dirt so you can see the entire wall. Brit believes that some of those bushes were made to drape over the wall but says that Joe will take a look at it and come back with answers. Lastly, John Daley says that the idea of holding money for projects instead of spending doesn’t sit right with him. Brit reiterates that it is not a great precedent but if we have a huge project down the road, maybe we earmark a percentage.
Mike Auerbach – Mike states that he and Jimmy were approached, stating that the Long Island Golf Association would like to hold one of their majors (LI Mid-Am) at Bellport. Mike continues, stating that this would be a great honor for the course but wouldn’t be until 2025 so plenty of time to get the course ready. He continues, that it is normally held in September but can be moved to fit BGC’s schedule. Mike says that the competitive golf scene is always talking about how good of shape BGC is in and would be a feather in Bellport’s hat.
Julie Callahan – Ms. Callahan starts with a question about the Master Plan and where it is located. She continues asking if the plan gets updated as projects get completed and if there is ever any member consideration when it comes to the projects that get selected. Brit responds saying that the Master Plan is on the bellportgolfclub.com website, under the “Archived Reports” tab along with the USGA agronomy reports. Brit continues, saying that master plan does not get updated as that was done by architect Bill Love. When it comes to determining the Winter projects, they get talked about monthly at the meetings and it is a great place to suggest projects. If you are unable to attend the meetings for any reason, you may email the proper commission members (Joe Dabrowski, Kevin Lauretti, Jeff Nagel, Brit Lawlor). Julie asks about the new buildings, specifically if the building plan is posted anywhere yet. Mike Cioffi says that once the layout is done, it will be brought before the Golf Commission. Once approved by the Golf Commission, it will be brought to the Village Board for final approval. Brit wants to reiterate that this project is very preliminary and not even designed yet; there is no actual layout yet, it is a buildable area that says “Locker Room”. Brit says that it has taken roughly 2.5 years to get this far but the architect hasn’t drawn anything up yet. Tara mentions that before being voted on, the layout should be emailed to membership. Brit says that once they are further along, we will be very transparent.
Meeting ends at 6:53