The city of Gainesville has started, finished and is currently working on improvements at Ironwood Golf Course that will touch every aspect of the course.  

The improvements are a combination of planned maintenance and fixing issues caused by weather and water intrusion, according to Parks, Recreation and Cultural Affairs Director Roxy Gonzalez. In a city release, Gonzalez said patrons have noticed.  

“We’ve received an influx of feedback in the past few days, asking why the course and clubhouse aren’t in their usual condition,” Gonzalez said. 

She said recent cold weather has delayed the city’s course upgrade. Gainesville planted winter ryegrass in late December, but the cold snap slowed down the seed germination and growth.  

As warmer weather continues, the new grass will sprout and improve the playing experience, Gonzalez said.  

The course has also had changes with the clubhouse and bar, restrooms and golf carts.  

A new company will take over operations of the bar, and the transition is almost finished, the city reports. The operators are in the final phase before opening, including inspections and obtaining proper licensing.  

In mid-January, plumbing failed and pushed water into the restrooms, administrative offices, banquet room and front entrance.  

The city said it started repairs immediately. The repairs will include new flooring and drywall followed by proper inspections. But the restrooms have reopened for guests.  

Gainesville’s current budget includes funding for new golf carts, and the purchase is already underway, the city said. 

“Your experience matters to us,” Gonzalez said. “Thank you for understanding as we do the work needed to keep Ironwood a community gem well into the future.”  

Mayor Harvey Ward said the city continues to stand behind the golf course and looks to improve the feature.  

The course entered a management watch to ensure the facility remained feasible and properly supervised. City Manager Cynthia Curry announced that the course left management watch, and Ward said he expects the city manager will come forward with recommendations following her review. 

Ward said the facility is unique since it’s the only golf course managed by Gainesville. 

“We have 27 or 28 different parks, and they all share similarities,” Ward said in an interview. “We have three different public pools, and they all share similarities. But the golf course is a thing unto itself, and that makes it kind of weird to manage from City Hall.”   

Ward said he’d be interested in researching the possibility of hiring a management company to run the course. He said the city may then decide to keep operations internal or find a better way.  

Alachua County owns the sports and events complex in Celebration Pointe, but the outside company RaddSports manages the day-to-day operations. 

However, Ward made clear that the city has no plans to close the course—despite seemingly lagging golf enthusiasm in the area.  

He pointed to three courses that have closed in the last five years —West End Golf Course, Meadowbrook Golf Course and Gainesville Country Club. Ironwood and Turkey Creek Golf Course are now the only two public courses in the county.  

“In Marion County, you can’t get a tee time,” Ward said. “In Alachua County, you drive up to the golf course and find out it’s no longer a golf course.”   

The other closures don’t seem to have impacted Ironwood, Ward said.  

He said the city wants to invest in Ironwood and make it a solid city-run course that local golfers enjoy. But he said a major rehab or redesign to become a pro-level course doesn’t seem likely.  

“I don’t think that we’re going to do anything different with Ironwood than we have,” Ward said. “Over the last year, we’ve had a lot of discussion about whether this should be a different future, and I don’t feel like the community is ready to do anything different with Ironwood, which means we need to put some more investment into it.”