Gardner City golf course staff report pump‑house delay, staffing change and upcoming events

At a Gardner City meeting, staff reported that work on the municipal golf course pump house is on hold while the Worcester Department of Environmental Protection has requested additional work, and that the course will seek a replacement for its longtime mechanic, who will move to part‑time status in September.

The update, delivered by city staff members, also said staff are still awaiting pricing for an unspecified item — "it's gonna be 12 or 13 point at this point," according to staff — and that a supplier requested a 25% off‑cost concession. Staff said they will send the updated pricing and related materials to the group by email.

The golf course's outreach and event plans include an equipment donation arranged by high school students scheduled for Saturday from 11 to 3 (time of day not specified), and a planned rating and course measurement work that staff said would involve four or five people on Monday, Aug. 4, and additional work on Monday, Aug. 18. Staff described the preliminary work as using lasers and measuring yardages and depth for holes.

Staff described ongoing turf and mowing challenges because parts of the course remain saturated; they said the pump‑house project was placed on hold for about a month and a half while Worcester DEP requests additional work. "If it rains a little bit more, it's okay because we're still using city water to water," a staff member said, but added that wet areas are not drying and the crew is adjusting mowing techniques and equipment accordingly.

Regarding staffing, staff said the course's long‑time mechanic will remain on part time after September, and management is "aggressively" seeking a replacement to allow for overlap and knowledge transfer. No hiring timeline or candidate names were provided.

In correspondence items, staff said the city located and posted the December meeting video after a request from John Cernan and also noted a National Grid notice related to a project near Abbott Street; staff said some work there remains affected by water but did not provide further detail.

Staff listed membership or contact counts as "608 numbers as of right now," but did not specify what that figure represents. Staff said they will follow up with more information at the next meeting or via email.

Next steps identified by staff include circulating pricing details, continuing coordination with Worcester DEP on pump‑house work, proceeding with the planned course rating and measurement dates, and recruiting for the mechanic position. No formal votes or approvals on the pump‑house work or hiring were recorded in the transcript excerpt provided.