Sunday, November 4, 2018, will be the final day for all 36 holes of golf at family-owned Tam O’Shanter Golf Course in Jackson Township near Canton.
Company president Chuck Bennell explained the closing.
“Our golfers really love Tam O’Shanter and our people love taking care of them. We have built lasting friendships within our team and among our customers, and this is an emotional time for everyone,” Bennel stated. “But the third and fourth generations of the two families who share ownership of our company are scattered across the country and there is no ‘next generation’ member with golf management experience. It’s the right time for us to leave the golf business.”
The last day for the Hills Course will be Sunday, October 7th. The last day for the Dales Course and the driving range will be Sunday, November 4th.
The Stark County Park District is under contract to buy the south portion of the Dales Course in 2018 and also to buy the Hills Course in 2019. In all, 205 acres of Tam O’Shanter will be preserved for open space and passive recreation.
Tam O’Shanter also committed to donate 20 acres to Jackson Township Parks for active recreation, a soccer and sports complex accessible from Fulton Drive. A total of 225 acres will become new county and township public parkland.
“Up until now we had hoped to open the Hills Course in 2019. However, it’s possible Stark Parks can move faster than anticipated to purchase the rest of our land instead of waiting until the end of next year, and we want to give them plenty of flexibility.”
“It would be dishonest if we were to tell golf leagues and outings to make reservations for 2019 and then abruptly cancel their bookings if the land sale happens early. Our customers need to plan now for where they will play next year”, Mr. Bennell concluded.
After a successful effort in 2017 to re-zone 62 acres along Everhard Road and Fulton Drive for commercial use, the Tam O’Shanter owners are working with a real estate company that is planning a retail and professional office development. This commercial area will connect via biking and hiking trails to the newly created parks.
Golf Services Manager Patty Gaston touched on the emotion of the announcement. “This is one of the hardest emails I have ever had to write in my 25 years at Tam O’Shanter. On behalf of everyone here, we thank everyone for making Tam O’Shanter your course. We will continue to keep our courses in terrific condition as there is still some golf to be played. It has been our pleasure to work with all of our friends in the community.”
Sad that our taxpayer dollars are being spent to bale out business’.