Mixing Animals and Golf
We have all heard, and let it be known, that golf and nature get along. At A.H. Blank Park they take it to a new level. At Blank Park you have the A.H. Blank Zoo and A.H. Blank Golf Course sitting side by side. In a matter of hours you can visit animals from around the world and get in a round of golf. It is a great Park and asset for Des Moines area residents.
Blank Park Golf Course is one of three that the Park District owns and sits on the south side of town near the airport. Their flagship course is Waveland Golf Course located in the center of the City along I-235. It is the oldest municipal course west of the Mississippi River and I have had the privilege of completing a bunker plan for the course. Grandview Golf Course serves the residents on the east end of town.
This spring I began working the Park District as they have a desire to expand the Zoo. To accomplish this, they had to look at the possibility of swapping land with the golf course, which would require modifying many golf holes. Throughout the presentation of multiple plan options, we settled on a plan that rerouted five of the golf holes, two of which are located on adjacent land. Other holes were routed to improve safety and allowed us to keep two existing greens. Therefore, although five holes were altered, we could reduce cost and disruption by only needing to build three new greens. This new plan also had a bonus as it allowed us to gain some yardage on the golf course.
All the groups are very excited about the possibilities to update the golf course and zoo with one project. They now enter into the phase of finalizing budgets and timetables. It is exciting to continue to work in Des Moines where, besides Blank and Waveland, I have also worked on Jester Park Golf Course on the north side of town. It is a golf heavy City with a wide variety of public and private courses.