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Golfers would miss Cohanzick's greens
Country club's owner may sell land to state
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FAIRFIELD TOWNSHIP - Standing at the ninth hole of the Cohanzick Country Club golf course Wednesday, Anthony Ganci could not help but feel a little wistful.
It is only a distant possibility that the course may be sold to the state's Green Acres program for preservation as open space, which probably would preclude it from being used for golf. The mere thought that might happen, though, was enough to make Ganci feel sorrow for the loss of one of his favorite places to golf.
"I think it'd be a shame," the 20-year-old Vineland resident said. "You can't beat the view."
The state Department of Environmental Protection, which administers the Green Acres program, recently submitted an application to the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service's National Coastal Wetlands grant program for help in acquiring both the Cohanzick Country Club and another nearby property abutting the Cohansey River.
DEP spokeswoman Karen Hershey said Wednesday that the application was submitted to meet a June 30 deadline. State officials expect to hear word from the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service this fall.
While the country club has been on the market for some time, its owner only recently contacted the state with an offer to sell.
A condition of receiving the grant, though, is that any purchased property be restored to coastal wetlands. That would essentially rule out playing golf there, Hershey said.
It has been a rough two years for golf courses in southern New Jersey. News of the Cohanzick Country Club's possible sale comes on the heels of the announcement this week that RC Cape May, owner of the B.L. England power plant, also wants to turn the company's public nine-hole golf course in Upper Township, Cape May County, into a solar energy farm. RC Cape May plans to install 26 acres of solar panels at the B.L. England golf course next to the coal-fired power plant, generating 4 megawatts of electricity. The company plans to apply for Solar Renewable Energy Certificates, spokesman Stephen Ross said. The certificates are the commodities companies use to meet New Jersey's renewable portfolio standard of providing at least 22.5 percent of all electricity through renewable energy by 2021, and can be traded or sold to other energy suppliers.
The Holly Hills Golf Club in Alloway Township, Salem County, another popular course for golfers in Cumberland County, was closed at the end of 2007.
Those gathered at the Cohanzick Country Club on Wednesday said losing the club would be a blow to golfers who live in the area for two reasons. One was the scenic course itself, which many described as a pleasurable but challenging one. The other was its affordability. Compared with the other golf courses in the area, many said, the rates at the Cohanzick Country Club - as low as $15 per round at certain times - were the lowest.
"You can't beat it, man," said Vineland resident John Marcucci, 20. "For the price, the quality and the scenery, it's probably the best course" in southern New Jersey.
Golfers are not the only ones to remark on the club's natural beauty. Hershey, the DEP spokeswoman, said the state is interested in acquiring the land because it serves as a significant natural resource.
"We see the importance of preserving it for so many reasons, but mostly to protect our natural resources," she said. "If successful, we'd restore that area to a coastal wetland."
Williamstown resident Richard Graves, 39, who works as a cook supervisor at the nearby Fairton Federal Correctional Institution, said Wednesday that he plays golf at the Cohanzick Country Club several times a week.
He has been doing so for 15 years, Graves said, adding that he hated the idea of losing the golf course.
"This is the only golf course in the immediate area," he said. "It's a golfer's golf course. People from Cherry Hill come to play here."
Lawrence Township resident Mike Lambert, 43, said he has been playing at the Cohanzick Country Club for 10 years. Like some other golfers on the fairway Wednesday, Lambert said the timing of the possible sale was especially regrettable because the course has never looked better.
"It'll be a loss for the community," he said. "I'd hate to see it go."
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Posted in Cape_may on Friday, July 3, 2009 3:45 am Updated: 6:42 am.
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