We call on the Rye City Council to publicly commit to directing the Rye Golf Commission to abandon its master plan to redesign the Rye Golf Course.  The RGC master plan does not take the needs of the surrounding neighborhoods in to consideration and will wreak environmental destruction in the process.  The first phase of this plan alone requires the destruction of 120 mature trees; adoption of the master plan will destroy many more trees.  Alarmingly, a majority of the 120 trees have been flagged for removal as part of "routine maintenance", all of which, coincidentally, would have to be destroyed to enable the re-routing of holes 4-5-6.  This is a stealth attempt to advance the plan without City Council approval.  The planned felling of these trees is tone-deaf in light of concerns over climate change, and will exacerbate flooding issues, as the root system of each tree holds approximately 500 gallons of water (collectively, the trees' root systems hold 60,000 gallons).  Further, tree removal may facilitate pesticide and fertilizer migration off of the golf course and onto both neighboring properties and the watershed.  Last, the plans for the first phase call for the piping over of a brook, which will also increase flooding risk.  There will be a direct impact to homes surrounding the golf course.

If you haven't heard of the master plan, that's because it has been developed in secrecy.  There are no minutes posted for Rye Golf Commission meetings in 2020, and details of the plan have not been disclosed to the membership, much less the broader community.  The redesign is not supported by a majority of RGC members - a survey on the concept had a participation rate of only 20%.  The golf course is popular under its current configuration, as evidenced by the waitlist. 

The total cost of the master plan is estimated at $5.7mm, and the Commission has not provided a plan to pay for this enormous expenditure.  This is a top down initiative from the Commission, which wants to make the golf course easier.  The Commission has put the cart before the horse - it has not even assessed the environmental impact of the redesign.  This is a shoddily-developed vanity plan by an unaccountable Commission that must be stopped dead in its tracks, immediately.