Mayor: City-Owned Becker Golf Course has Lost Over $2 Million in 6 Years

BECKER - The city-owned golf course in Becker has been losing money for years, and the city council is trying to find a way to reverse the trend.

Mayor Lefty Kleis says they've voided the lease with the tenant that was running the bar and restaurant, due to $63,000 in unpaid rent and utility bills.

And now this year the city is going to try to operate it on our own. We were just granted a liquor license from the state of Minnesota. We're not going to have a full restaurant, its going to be like a short order burger and fries. We'll also have events there, which will be catered.

Kleis says the city has hired staff to run the restaurant, which just re-opened last week.

They've also changed things up in an effort to get more young people on the course. The nine-hole blue course is now open for foot golf and fling golf.  The 18-hole championship course remains for just traditional golf.

The 27-hole Pebble Creek Golf Course has turned a profit just four-years in its 27-year history.  Mayor Lefty Kleis says its putting a strain on the city budget.

The numbers are hard to swallow. In the last six years we've lost over $2 million, which comes out to about $340,000 a year. That's just impractical for the city to continue to sustain those types of losses.

Kleis says he would prefer the city sell the golf course to a private company.

Pebble Creek Golf Course. Photo by WJON.com's Joshua Akkerman