BREAKING: City Axes Golf Course Purchase
By: Laura Kellerman/Brittany Pelletz
Updated: February 12, 2009
By a heated vote of 4 to 3, the Abilene City Council decided not to go ahead with a proposal to purchase the Diamondback Golf Course.The vote spawned both cheers and jeers from citizens gathered in the council chambers. People held up posters and yelled out of turn as the issue was discussed.
The future of Maxwell is still up in the air.
The committee appointed by the Abilene City Council submitted its recommendation today, advising the city to purchase the Diamondback Golf Course for $1.5 million; $1 million below owner Charles Coody's asking price. Other recommendations from the committee included building a clubhouse to use as a possible bar, which the committee said would increase revenue and drive additional traffic to the course.
Mayor Norm Archibald supported the purchase with his "yes" vote, along with councilmen Joe Spano and Robert Briley. Those councilmembers in favor of ceasing all conversation with Diamondback were Sam Chase, Stormy Higgins, Laura Moore and Anthony Williams.
The city council meeting, which began at 8:30 a.m., took three and a half hours to complete.
