The Fargo Park District may not tee off on a new Edgewood Golf Course clubhouse until next spring.
"It's incredibly complex to find the right answer," said Roger Gress, park district superintendent.
The clubhouse is about 50 feet from the Red River, and the river is eroding the ground in between. Park district officials have struggled for several years to find the best solution.
The Park District already has plans, presented Tuesday by Michelle Mongeon of JLG Architects in Grand Forks, N.D., for a new clubhouse. It would be about 350 feet southwest from the existing one and about 400 feet from the river.
The new clubhouse would be much larger than the existing one and provide seating for 60 to 70 people, Gress said.
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But though it's tempting to go ahead right now with the new clubhouse, he said, doing so would be unwise.
Park district officials need more information on the stability of the ground on which the new clubhouse might go, he said.
Measurements to be taken in October and next spring are expected to provide at least some of the answers, park district officials say.
Commissioner Tom Barnhart said the erratic pace of river erosion, and its toll on nearby soil, complicates the clubhouse decision.
Commissioners took no action Tuesday and a decision on the clubhouse might not come until soil stability measurements are collected in the spring.
Also at Tuesday's meeting, commissioners unanimously approved the district's 2004 budget of $15.5 million, about $700,000 more than this year.
District officials said the increase reflects inflation, rather than any major new undertaking.
The budget includes about $9 million for the general fund, which covers items like recreation, cultural arts, concessions and swimming pools.
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It also includes about $1.4 million for debt service, $2.5 million for senior citizens programs and $877,000 for pensions, forestry and insurance.
The budget calls levying 32.98 mills, or about $148 on a $100,000 home -- the same as this year.
Readers can reach Forum reporter Jonathan Knutson at (701) 241-5530
