Davis County budget panel hears golf-course finances, capital requests and calls for clearer allocations

Davis County budget committee members heard a detailed presentation on the county’s two municipal golf courses on Friday, where staff reported strong 2024 performance, projected higher 2025 revenue and made multiple capital requests while commissioners pressed for clearer allocations and more visibility into utility billing.

Golf course staff said 2024 produced roughly 99,182 rounds and reported revenue in 2024 of “$22,598,675.21 with expenses of $2,154,055.10 for a grand profit of $444,620,” according to Zach Johnson of Davis Park. Staff cited a recent $1-per-9-hole fee increase, improved tee-sheet utilization and a new driving range (year-to-date revenue reported at about $153,000) as contributors to the uptick. Director of golf Dustin Molt told the committee the enterprise fund held about $4,800,000 in cash, which staff described as a healthy reserve as they weigh capital spending.

Staff outlined specific capital requests: $109,000 for equipment (fairway mower, aerifier, utility mower, sprayer, range picker), a proposed $80,000 restroom renovation at a clubhouse, $157,000 for mowers at Valley View, an estimated $550,000 to replace 80 golf carts, and a $600,000 parking-lot and staging-area renovation. Pete Snow, speaking for Valley View, said the parking work will require careful phasing because paving must happen in warm weather to avoid revenue loss.

Committee members pressed staff on the county’s central allocation and billing processes. “We need to be able to see our full budgets,” the meeting chair (unidentified in the transcript) said, arguing departments should be able to view utility invoices and other allocations that are currently routed through central maintenance or facilities accounts. Cindy from the controller’s office replied that utilities were intended to be direct-billed to departments in the 2025 budget but that some invoices were still coded to maintenance because of AP-entry training issues, and she recommended staff training to ensure visibility.

A significant infrastructure concern centered on Davis Park’s irrigation system, which staff characterized as roughly 65 years old. Zach Johnson said spot repairs and nozzle changes have helped but that replacement costs are escalating: earlier re‑irrigation costs were about $2,200 per head and staff estimated up to $3,000 per head for recent work, leading to an illustrative replacement figure of about $6.5 million for large sections. Committee members discussed options including saving via a small surcharge on green fees, setting aside cash over several years, or bonding for part of the cost; staff cautioned any bonding plan must account for interest and lost revenue during construction.

Staff also described programming investments: junior golf programs drew strong demand (Davis’s junior league rose from 80 to 160 participants), which officials said supports long-term participation and community value. Several commissioners raised the longer-term value of county-owned courses as open space and recreation and flagged outside proposals that had previously surfaced in municipal master plans; speakers urged preservation and exploring partnerships with cities for frontage or parking improvements tied to state funds (referenced as Prop 3).

The committee did not take formal votes on the capital requests during the presentation. At the start of the meeting, the committee approved the minutes from Sept. 15, 2025, by voice vote (motion by Sharice Bills, second by Commissioner John Crops) as recorded. Committee members asked staff to provide clearer allocation breakdowns and billing visibility and signaled they would return to capital priorities and funding options—including potential fee-design changes or bonding—at a future meeting.