Clark County’s deal with Cowlitz tribe requires Tri-Mountain Golf Course to stay a public course after saleUpdated 6 hours ago

In addition to the course, the property includes a clubhouse, office, two maintenance buildings, a driving range, some other small buildings, and the inventory and equipment. Not included are the golf carts, which are leased to the facility.

One condition of the sale is that Tri-Mountain must continue to operate as a public course. Schuster said staff are working with the county’s attorneys to create a covenant requiring “the property be maintained in its current natural state, that the property be operated and maintained as a regulation 18-hole golf course, that the use of the golf course remains fully open to the public in order to help serve the recreational needs of all Clark County citizens, and that the property’s natural features and esthetics shall be preserved.”

The county would retain ownership of a 30-foot-wide right-of-way along Northwest 299th Street to allow for future road development.

Clark County purchased the Tri-Mountain Golf Course from the Port of Ridgefield in 1997 and leases it to an operator. The county receives revenue from course operations, an average of $350,000 a year over the past three years. However, Schuster said that is not enough to cover the long-term operations and maintenance costs.

“There’s $1.5 million worth of maintenance that is going to be needed to be done on the course,” Schuster said. “There are a lot of upcoming maintenance things over the next 20 years that we’re going to have to do if we do keep this course.”

Schuster said the covenant wouldn’t just apply to the current buyer but also any future owners.

“If there are any assignments or successors in interest and ownership should pass, this carries forward with it,” she said. “We will actually put the covenant onto the actual plat when we record it.”

Councilor Glen Yung said he was in favor of the covenant but had some questions about possible long-term impacts.

“What happens if, in 100 years from now, golf isn’t even a sport anymore? What happens with that? … Is there a mechanism that the covenant can be released?” Yung asked.

Schuster said it would be possible but would require a vote by the county council to change the allowed use.

Chair Gary Medvigy said he had received several calls and emails from residents worried the property will eventually be used for new housing development. Even with the covenant in place, he said residents were worried homes would be squeezed in along fairways.

“I checked whether or not there could be any development along the golf course, and I don’t think there could be. Around the perimeter there would be room, if the land became available, but the fairways are much too close together to allow for homes to be built,” Medvigy said. “I realize that was a stumbling block for a lot of developers.”

Medvigy said he would have liked to see more done to advertise the property. Unlike private sales, county-owned properties must go through a public auction process that includes repeated postings of legal notices in newspapers and on the county’s website. Schuster said staff also contacted golf course owners around the country directly and individuals who signed up for notification in advance.

County Manager Kathleen Otto said once the sale agreement is drafted, it will come back before the council for review. While there won’t be a public hearing on the matter, there will be opportunity for public comment during the meeting. The date of that meeting has not been determined.

One minor delay is that the county cannot transfer ownership of the property until 2025, due to restrictions related to federal pandemic relief funds the county received. Otto said the contract could be approved by the council before the end of the year, then executed after Jan. 1.