Bellingham parks committee approves about 5% greens-fee increase for Lake Padden Golf Course

The Bellingham Parks & Recreation Committee voted to approve a resolution raising greens fees at the Lake Padden Golf Course by about 5 percent for 2026, a change staff said will generate roughly $100,000 in additional annual revenue.

Council Member Williams, chair of the committee, opened the item and invited Parks and Recreation Director Nicole Oliver and park operations manager Steve Janashesky to present the proposal. Janashesky told the committee that the course operates with two budgets — a Premier-managed operating budget of about $1.6 million and a smaller city budget covering administrative support, utilities and reinvestment items — and that total 2025 course budget figures were roughly $2.4 million in expenditures with $2.45 million in projected revenue.

Janashesky and Michael Fosnik, a Premier representative, said the requested increase exceeds the council’s usual 3 percent guideline because operating costs have risen faster than expected. They cited state-mandated minimum-wage increases, rising utility charges and other inflationary pressures as drivers of payroll and operating-cost growth and said payroll as a share of revenue climbed in recent years.

Staff also described a $6 water-conservation surcharge added in July 2023 that has generated about $100,000 per year and said those funds are earmarked for capital reinvestment; staff identified replacing the course’s aging underground irrigation piping as the highest-priority capital need.

Fosnik presented local fee comparisons showing Lake Padden would remain the lowest-priced 18-hole municipal option in Whatcom County after the proposed change; staff said the proposed in-season 18-hole rate would be $48 including the $6 surcharge. He also highlighted non-fee revenue opportunities — including range ball tracking technology (Trackman), seating upgrades and expanded food-and-beverage service — that staff expect will grow visits and help cover rising costs.

Committee members asked about ancillary uses and data on visitor origin. Janashesky and Fosnik said the course recorded about 44,000 rounds in 2025, with most play local, and that license-plate observations and a Placer.ai report (cited by a council member during the meeting) indicated roughly 83 percent of visitors were from Whatcom or Skagit counties. Staff said they are exploring additional visitor tracking methods and expect Trackman and related events to extend the course’s market reach beyond the usual 7–10 mile area.

Council Member Hamill moved to approve the recommended fee increase. The committee approved the motion by voice vote; the chair said the motion carries and that the committee’s action will be reported to the full council later that evening.

The committee’s vote was procedural approval of the Parks & Recreation Committee recommendation; the meeting record does not specify a roll-call tally or a second on the motion in the transcript. Staff said their intention is to build enterprise-fund capacity so that future long-term capital needs, such as irrigation replacement, can be paid from reinvested course revenues and surcharges.