I suspect that they are recommending option three, because they no longer plan to tear down the Playhouse Theatre and replace it with car lots.

The fact that they have spent all their money on other projects such as Boundry Road, Community Energy System, New Police Station, and the Winter Games, tells me that they can no longer afford to give any serious thought to a high priced Performing Arts Centre in Prince George. They will now keep the Playhouse and tie it in with other facilities in the area like, curling, skating, golfing, etc. plus we will continue to use Vanier Hall, and Theatre North West.

Would be interesting to get a specific statement from the PAC Society, IPG, or the City of PG, as to where the PAC stands at the moment, and what are the long term plans.

Dont hold your breath.

I think we need a PAC, but not a 50 million dollar white elephant that is going to suck us dry on the operating cost.

Any bets, I forcast that the new golf course owned by the members will be filing for bankruptchy with in 5 years of moving to its new location.

I bet that the new owners of the golf course will not be doing a single thing to it, but to shut it down for three years and restart the golf course with new trees planted.

I've played the PGGCC numerous times since the trees were removed and to be perfectly honest, if they made some changes to the current design the course could remain where it is and be a great course for decades into the future.

I think they would need to change the location of some tee boxes, incorporate more bunkers, make the rough deeper, get some bulldozers in there and move some land around to add some elevation to the fairways and stuff like that, but it is certainly possible. There are loads of golf courses out there that don't have trees all over the place and they are still very challenging and playable.

The problem as I see it, is that the golf course is caught in a dilemma. They don't have the money to make improvements to the current spot and the only way they could get it is to sell off the land they currently occupy, which would necessitate the building of a new course.

Why don't they look at a third option? Hire a golf course architect to see how much the improvements would cost and then go from there. Get permission to sell off a chunk of land that is currently used by the parking lot (it's never fully utilized anyway), replace the restaurant with something more manageable, get rid of the curling rink, sell off the driving range area and move it back to the land behind the pro shop where the alternate Hole #10 currently sits and even look into the possibility of adding residential properties and/or condos at various locations on the course.

They seem stuck in this view that they have to move, but I think they could have a very attractive redesigned property if they took a fresh look at things. I think there is some serious tunnel vision and group think going on and I think everyone is convinced they need to move when they don't necessarily have to. Of course, they also need to figure out how to run an effective operation and whether they move or not, that will likely be the biggest issue for them moving forth.

I could not agree more with you NMG. The location is a tremndous asset as far as I can tell. You are also right on with the notion that there are courses that are in areas where trees grow very poorly and are totally or mainly treeless.

Of course, we can grow trees if we so wish and have some in place within a couple of decades.

Drop some higher density housing around the perimeter, perhaps even associated with a hotel and/or the pine centre over time, and we would again have something to be proud of.

There is more to the Golf Course problem than meets the eye. Firstly it is the Pr George Golf and Curling Club. That should tell you that the Curling people have some say as to what happens. You cannot just get rid of the curling club. I heard that they would want at least $5 Million out of the sale of the golf course to help them relocate. If they get $5 Million there is not enough money left to build a golf course.

Secondly the membership at the Golf Course has dropped dramatically in the last few years from a high of 800 with a waiting list, to a low of approx 450.

Being a **Society** they are limited in what they can do if they sell the present assets. I understand that they have some considerable debt which would have to be paid from the proceeds of the sale.

I agree with He Spoke. If they move they will be broke within 5 years.

They are between the proverbial rock and a hard place. Even if they stay they will be hard pressed to keep the facility going. It needs lots of maintenance, plus they would still have the debt.