On Tuesday, February 21, 2023, the Nampa City Council approved the purchase of Centennial Golf Course and Ridgecrest Golf Club in the amount of $5,690,775 from the Idaho Department of Health and Welfare.
In 1983, the City of Nampa began leasing land from the State of Idaho to build Centennial Golf Course. Land improvements were completed by the City of Nampa and countless volunteers. Due to the popularity of golf in the early 1990’s, the City of Nampa leased additional land from the State of Idaho and established a second municipal golf course, Ridgecrest Golf Club, in 1996. The combined area of the two separate golf courses and associated land is 498.93 acres.
Nampa Mayor Debbie Kling said, “This is an exciting day for Nampa. The City of Nampa has been leasing this land for 40 years and began exploring the possibility of purchasing the ground around 17 years ago. This was a community-wide effort to first build the golf courses and now finally own them. It would not have been possible without the collaboration of Idaho Department of Health and Welfare, the support of the golf commission and community members and the countless hours by our Parks and Recreation staff.”
Parks and Recreation Director Darrin Johnson shared, “I am proud of our citizens, staff, city officials and State of Idaho leaders who advocated and worked in cooperation to preserve approximately 500 acres of greenspace in the heart of Nampa. With Nampa purchasing and having ownership of the two golf course properties, we can forever maintain golf and offer other recreational opportunities that will enhance the quality of life throughout the Treasure Valley.”
Randy Aldridge, President of the Men’s Senior Golf Association at Centennial Golf Course, said, “This has been a long time coming. We accomplished something we never thought would be accomplished.”
The funding for the purchase of the golf courses will come from city reserves. The amount of $3,000,000 will come from the golf fund reserves and the remaining balance of $2,690,775 will come from the city’s general fund reserves. More information on Centennial Golf Course and Ridgecrest Golf Club can be found at https://www.nampaparksandrecreation.org/300/Municipal-Golf-Courses.