After consideration, Diaz Jr. jumps on board with Ferry Point Park golf course

Bronx Borough President Ruben Diaz Jr. didn't come right out praising or damning the Donald Trump deal to bring a Jack Nicklaus golf course to the South Bronx. He sat back, considered the options, and finally chose to praise the deal.

“After extensive discussions and meetings between myself, my office and the Trump Organization over the past week; in addition to hearing from local elected officials, business and community leaders in the area, I have decided to support their concession for a golf course at Ferry Point Park," he said in a statement released Wednesday, Jan. 18.

“The Trump Organization has answered my concerns on this project, and has vowed to be a good neighbor to the people of the Bronx. This includes commitments on local hiring, outreach to our business community, both in the surrounding neighborhood and across the borough; and vital community access to the golf course for both young people and Bronx residents alike, among other points."

The reason this will be a good project for the Bronx, Diaz says, is because Trump is committing a significant amount of money to the Bronx, and having a PGA Tour quality course will enhance the borough's reputation nationally and internationally (No one exactly equates golf with crime and poverty).

City Councilman James Vacca came out praising the project yesterday, after the city's Franchise and Concession Review Committee approved the project.

“A patient and appreciative Throggs Neck community has reason to celebrate today!" Vacca exclaimed. "Although it was initially proposed 32 years ago, a vote by the Franchise and Concession Review Committee means that Ferry Point Golf Course is finally full steam ahead. This project has gone from one misstep to another, and had many observers truly wondering whether this course would ever be finished."

In 1979, as Chairman of Bronx Community Board 10, Vacca was involved in creating this project. "Today, as the District 13 Councilman, I am seeing the reality. It’s been a long fight and a long wait, but let me be clear, there is no reason for any further delay and my community will accept none."

Donald Trump to build public golf course in Ferry Point Park

A little bit of Jack Nicklaus is coming to the Bronx, via The Donald.

Parks & Recreation Commissioner Adrian Benepe today announced that the City has negotiated a 20-year license agreement for the operation of the Ferry Point Golf Course to the Trump Organization. The course is a Jack Nicklaus Signature, tournament-quality golf course that will be open to the public and will generate economic activity in the Bronx.

The golf course is expected to open to the public for play in the spring of 2014.

In addition to the primary responsibilities of maintaining and operating a tournament-quality golf course, the Trump Organization has committed to a minimum $10 million capital investment to design and construct a new, state-of-the-art golf clubhouse – expected to create 100 new construction jobs. The clubhouse will include a cart storage facility, locker rooms and a grill room.

The parks department has not yet said when construction will begin.

The Trump Organization was selected through a public Request for Offers issued by the Parks Department.

“This new public golf course will be a great amenity for the Bronx, for the City, and for visitors,” said Parks & Recreation Commissioner Adrian Benepe. “More than $600 million has been invested in parks around the Bronx during Mayor Bloomberg’s tenure, and now this long-awaited golf course will soon be among them – bringing more people from across the country and around the world to the Bronx. The Trump Organization is known for operating world-class golf courses, and I’m excited to be able to partner with them to build and run the first tournament-quality golf course in New York City.”

“This is an opportunity to have one of our country’s greatest golf courses right smack in the middle of New York City – an unheard of opportunity,” said Trump Organization CEO and Chairman Donald J. Trump. “The residents of New York City will be very proud of the end result which will include championship tour play, with all of its benefits, right down the road.”

At 222 acres, Ferry Point Park East represents one of the largest pieces of previously undeveloped parkland in New York City, and one of the biggest opportunities for augmenting the City’s recreational resources. When complete, the new park will contain the golf course, a community park with playgrounds and ball-fields, and a waterfront park with rambling trails and scenic overlooks.

Ferry Point Golf Course is an 18-hole, links-style, Jack Nicklaus Signature golf course that will be open to the public. Sitting at the foot of the Whitestone Bridge in the Bronx, it is designed specifically to take advantage of spectacular views of the Manhattan skyline, East River, and Whitestone and Throgs Neck Bridges. In addition to the 18-hole course, the facility also will include a clubhouse, snack bar, comfort station, and driving range. It will be the only tournament-quality course in New York City, giving avid golfers a unique and more challenging alternative to the City’s other well-maintained (hehe, nice try Parks Department) public courses.

The Trump Organization has past experience developing, maintaining and operating first-class golf venues around the world including a recently completed links-style course in Aberdeen, Scotland. Trump courses have played host to major professional golf tournaments, including the LPGA playoffs in West Palm Beach and the PGA Puerto Rican Open. The Trump Organization is also an experienced Parks concessionaire with background operating the Wollman and Lasker ice skating rinks and the Central Park carousel.