Planning Commission approves Battle Run golf course special permit amid neighbor concern over water and site layout

The Lincoln Lancaster County Planning Commission voted Feb. 5, 2025, to approve Special Permit 25001 to allow an 18‑hole golf course and associated accessory uses (clubhouse, lodging, beverage service including on‑site alcohol) on roughly 290 acres generally between O Street and A Street and near South 100th and Twelfth Street.

Planning staff presented the application and noted the special permit is limited to an outdoor recreational facility in the AG district; the proposal does not include annexation, rezoning or a final plat. George Wesselhoff of the Planning Department said the special permit boundary encompasses approximately 290 acres and that parking information and lighting design would be verified prior to opening to membership. He also noted that outdoor lighting is subject to the City of Lincoln three‑mile design standards.

The applicant said the project will begin as a private “personal use golf course” with an anticipated two‑year establishment period for grading, irrigation and seeding. “The first and foremost phase is, the personal use golf course,” applicant representative Aaron Bright Olsen said. Ownership also described a possible later phase of limited membership through the Dormie network, with 15‑minute tee times and limited daily rounds; lodging for members was described as accessory and not intended as a public hotel or restaurant open to the general public.

Neighbors testified in opposition and asked for more outreach, an aquifer or well‑impact test and relocation of the clubhouse away from a narrow residential lane. David Kirby, a neighbor who said he has lived adjacent to the site since 1998, said residents received little notice and asked the commission to delay final action so the Lower Platte South Natural Resources District (NRD) recommendations could be incorporated. Sarah Wingrove, another resident, said she was concerned about tree removal, the proximity of tees/greens to private yards and additional traffic and lighting near their homes.

Planning staff said the Lancaster County Health Department did not identify a specific water‑supply concern but relayed the NRD’s general recommendation that an aquifer test (test well pumped and nearby well monitoring) is the best way to determine impacts to surrounding wells; staff said the health department did not require an aquifer study as part of the special permit. The applicant said it had prepared a preliminary water study, had recently met with the NRD and planned to drill test holes and pursue the NRD irrigation well permitting process, including a 20‑year feasibility component required by the NRD for an irrigation well permit.

Commissioners discussed neighborhood outreach, water testing and the revised site plan that moved tees and greens away from the 60‑foot side yard and pulled the parking lot out of that setback. Staff noted certain accessory buildings and lodging are allowed as shown on the plan and that any substantially different future proposal would require a new application or amendment. Several commissioners urged the applicant to meet with neighbors after the hearing; the applicant said he was willing to speak with neighbors outside the hearing.

The commission approved Special Permit 25001 (motion carried 7–0). Conditions include verifying parking prior to opening to membership, adherence to lighting standards, coordination for right‑of‑way notes (no dedication required under this permit), and compliance with Nebraska Department of Environmental Quality/NRD permitting for irrigation wells. Commissioners reminded neighbors of the 14‑day appeal period following a final action.