Weather permitting, golfers at the Paris Grand Country Club will tee off for the last time in mid-November after the property was sold to a developer for a housing subdivision.
“It’s a shame they’re closing this way,” Rick Piccolo, superintendent at Paris Grand, said in an interview Monday.
“It’s been a good course. But, in the end, it’s all business.
“It’s too bad for the town of Paris.”
The course opened 94 years ago at 10 Paris Links Rd. and today has 150 members and 50 employees. The club also plays host to wedding receptions and other community events.
“It has served the community well,” said Piccolo.
Conestogo-based GolfNorth Properties Inc. bought Paris Grand and other courses in nearby communities during the past five years.
Bisected by Paris Links Road, the 147-acre site also contains a clubhouse and various buildings associated with the maintenance and operation of the golf course. It is bounded to the south by the Grand River and a subdivision just to the west.
The property was originally in a tract of land in the former South Dumfries township. It was annexed by the former town of Paris and rezoned for development before the county’s amalgamation in 1999.
In 2014, the company presented a plan for a 400-unit housing subdivision to Brant County council’s planning advisory committee. The company was looking for a rezoning amendment that would allow it to build 300 homes and 100 townhouses.
But, months later, GolfNorth appealed to the Ontario Municipal Board on the basis of a “non-decision” on its application – arguing that the proposal hadn’t been dealt with. The application is still before the OMB.
The company has recently presented a revised application that calls for a more intensified development with a different combination of houses and semi-detached homes and other buildings.
The final decision will be made at the OMB, county planners say.
“A lot of people are upset about it because it’s been a part of the town, right on their doorstep,” said Mayor Ron Eddy.
“But you know how it is: Once rural land is designated for development, there isn’t much that can be done.”
