(Dec. 22, 2016) In separate votes last Friday, the Ocean Pines Association Board of Directors approved about $840,000 in spending to overhaul its country club, which many have said has suffered from a lack of upkeep for years.
The approved amount included $417,000 in “conceptual” funding to be budgeted for the next fiscal year for renovations of the second floor of the club. Two proposals are in play that would each expand the Tern Grill area upstairs and include an exposed deck, as well as create several new meeting spaces.
One of the meeting spaces would establish a board of directors room with permanent audio and visual systems used to broadcast meetings.
Interim General Manager Brett Hill guessed the board meeting space would be about 25 percent smaller than the Assateague Room in the community center generally used by the board now.
That won’t be a problem, he said, because the only time that space fills up is during the annual meeting in August, when golf bookings would likely consume all of the country club. Portable audio and video equipment would be retained to serve that and other large meetings.
“We didn’t feel that we would actually be able to have the annual meeting [at the club],” Hill said. “That’s where the size was kept smaller, because the assumption was either the Assateague Room as we’ve been doing it or the yacht club, both have space that would hold the capacity that we want … and we could use one of those facilities for that once a year.”
The remaining portion of funding approved, some of which was voted on during several previous meetings, included allocations for a new roof, new HVAC systems and renovations to the first floor that would total about $425,000, to be spent this fiscal year.
The improvements include expanding the Tern Grill and kitchen on the first floor, upgrading the men’s and women’s bathrooms and reducing the men’s and women’s locker room.
Because most of the renovations would be done in-house by public works staff, Hill said the final overall cost could be closer to about $750,000.
Two concepts for a second-floor renovation were discussed at length during the meeting, each estimated to cost the same. Option one had three meeting spaces, a board room, lounge, reception and multipurpose area, and a smaller dining area and kitchen. Option three included two meeting spaces, a larger board room and larger dining area and kitchen.
Option two, discussed during previous meetings and unique because it moved the golf pro shop upstairs, was ruled out. No formal decision was made on the other two concepts, although Hill said staff recommended option three.
Vice President Dave Stevens argued in favor of more meeting space, and wondered why the deck area – currently enclosed – was apparently being jettisoned in favor of a “restored outside deck.”
“We have continuing complaints that we don’t have enough inside meeting space,” he said. “The fact is you’re eliminating space that can be usable … and the reason you’re doing it is because when we do have a golf banquet, which are not that frequent, you’ll have a better view.”
Hill argued that additional partitions could be set up and more meeting spaces could be made of the larger rooms in option three, if necessary. He said the open decks would allow the club to make use of its most valuable asset – the scenery.
“At the end of the day we’re going to make the building inside nice, but it’s still not going to be new,” Hill said. “The greatest asset, much like the yacht club, are the vistas from outside of the building. And we want to make them accessible and as open to the clientele … to put out the best image. And the best image is not what the building looks like, but what’s outside of the building on the golf course.”
He said the “most important factor to get out of today” was whether an upstairs banquet kitchen would be retained and making a decision on any other “significant change to the proposed usage” of the building that would affect the budget.
Despite declines in play at the golf course, Hill said if the upstairs kitchen were taken out it might be difficult to get county approval to put it back in later, should the board change its mind.
“Partitions and rooms are really going to come down to final plans [that] are going to come into approval out of the budget funding in May,” Hill said. “We’ve got five months to get through that.”
A vote to approve “the concept” was unanimous.
In a separate motion, the directors also unanimously approved moving $135,000 from replacement reserves into the fiscal 2017 budget, for “repairs and upgrades to the first floor of the Ocean Pines golf club.”
“In previous meetings … the board has authorized the replacement of the roof, HVAC systems and upgrades to the Tern Grill of the golf club. With this motion, we’ll complete the updates to the first floor,” Hill said, adding that funds would specifically be used to renovate the bathrooms.
The approved amount included $417,000 in “conceptual” funding to be budgeted for the next fiscal year for renovations of the second floor of the club. Two proposals are in play that would each expand the Tern Grill area upstairs and include an exposed deck, as well as create several new meeting spaces.
One of the meeting spaces would establish a board of directors room with permanent audio and visual systems used to broadcast meetings.
Interim General Manager Brett Hill guessed the board meeting space would be about 25 percent smaller than the Assateague Room in the community center generally used by the board now.
That won’t be a problem, he said, because the only time that space fills up is during the annual meeting in August, when golf bookings would likely consume all of the country club. Portable audio and video equipment would be retained to serve that and other large meetings.
“We didn’t feel that we would actually be able to have the annual meeting [at the club],” Hill said. “That’s where the size was kept smaller, because the assumption was either the Assateague Room as we’ve been doing it or the yacht club, both have space that would hold the capacity that we want … and we could use one of those facilities for that once a year.”
The remaining portion of funding approved, some of which was voted on during several previous meetings, included allocations for a new roof, new HVAC systems and renovations to the first floor that would total about $425,000, to be spent this fiscal year.
The improvements include expanding the Tern Grill and kitchen on the first floor, upgrading the men’s and women’s bathrooms and reducing the men’s and women’s locker room.
Because most of the renovations would be done in-house by public works staff, Hill said the final overall cost could be closer to about $750,000.
Two concepts for a second-floor renovation were discussed at length during the meeting, each estimated to cost the same. Option one had three meeting spaces, a board room, lounge, reception and multipurpose area, and a smaller dining area and kitchen. Option three included two meeting spaces, a larger board room and larger dining area and kitchen.
Option two, discussed during previous meetings and unique because it moved the golf pro shop upstairs, was ruled out. No formal decision was made on the other two concepts, although Hill said staff recommended option three.
Vice President Dave Stevens argued in favor of more meeting space, and wondered why the deck area – currently enclosed – was apparently being jettisoned in favor of a “restored outside deck.”
“We have continuing complaints that we don’t have enough inside meeting space,” he said. “The fact is you’re eliminating space that can be usable … and the reason you’re doing it is because when we do have a golf banquet, which are not that frequent, you’ll have a better view.”
Hill argued that additional partitions could be set up and more meeting spaces could be made of the larger rooms in option three, if necessary. He said the open decks would allow the club to make use of its most valuable asset – the scenery.
“At the end of the day we’re going to make the building inside nice, but it’s still not going to be new,” Hill said. “The greatest asset, much like the yacht club, are the vistas from outside of the building. And we want to make them accessible and as open to the clientele … to put out the best image. And the best image is not what the building looks like, but what’s outside of the building on the golf course.”
He said the “most important factor to get out of today” was whether an upstairs banquet kitchen would be retained and making a decision on any other “significant change to the proposed usage” of the building that would affect the budget.
Despite declines in play at the golf course, Hill said if the upstairs kitchen were taken out it might be difficult to get county approval to put it back in later, should the board change its mind.
“Partitions and rooms are really going to come down to final plans [that] are going to come into approval out of the budget funding in May,” Hill said. “We’ve got five months to get through that.”
A vote to approve “the concept” was unanimous.
In a separate motion, the directors also unanimously approved moving $135,000 from replacement reserves into the fiscal 2017 budget, for “repairs and upgrades to the first floor of the Ocean Pines golf club.”
“In previous meetings … the board has authorized the replacement of the roof, HVAC systems and upgrades to the Tern Grill of the golf club. With this motion, we’ll complete the updates to the first floor,” Hill said, adding that funds would specifically be used to renovate the bathrooms.