Stay the course

Well, fellow Chicoans, here we go again. The City Council has made multiple decisions about disc golf in Upper Park, and further reconsideration is on the agenda for Tuesday (May 19). Chances are decent that a majority—4-3, conceivably 5-2—will keep both courses at the Highway 32 site on condition that the disc-golf community, via its nascent nonprofit, maintain them.

For months, officials have examined the various in-town options. Approval for a short course at Caper Acres was tenuous: 4-3, with two of the yes votes coming from councilmen who dislike the site.

Come Tuesday, Tom Nickell will likely cast the pivotal vote. Andy Holcombe might support the site, too, if persuaded by ex-Park Commissioner Jim Walker that disc golf is indeed a use consistent with the master management plan. Of course, neither may switch, and Scott Gruendl always could, tilting the balance the other way. Such is the uncertainty of this legislative body.

We hope the council will keep the courses where they are. As we’ve editorialized before, if done right disc golf should have no more effect on the park than mountain biking or hiking. For the better part of a decade, the city prevented disc golfers from servicing the course—if they get the chance and squander their responsibility, the council always can rescind their privileges.

It’s time to put this distraction to rest and focus on more important matters.