WINNEBAGO, ILLINOIS (AP) – This summer, the former Westlake Village Golf Course will reopen under a new name and with new owners.
The 18-hole course was purchased by brothers Steve and Scott Leathers on March 30 with the intention of restoring it to its former glory and renaming it the Lynx Golf Course at Westlake Village. The course is located in a little village between Rockford and Freeport, Illinois, approximately 90 miles west of Chicago.
“The goal is to have golf open on August 1,” stated Steve Leathers.
“It’s time to repaint the greens.” That’s really the only thing keeping you from playing golf. “The greens are being reseeded and restored.”
Midwest Irrigation and Swan Hills Golf, LLC, owner Peter Beaves, informed the Register Star in 2018 that the course closed four years ago after losing $135,000 per year for six years. The 131-acre land has since been turned to an agricultural property where hay is produced.
David Esler, who also created Black Sheep Golf Club north of Chicago, which is ranked No. 8 in Illinois on Golfweek’s Best 2021 private golf courses in every state, designed the course in 1999.
The brothers paid $550,000 for Westlake Village and expect to invest a “substantial” sum over the following five years. In exchange, they want Winnebago County to provide them a 10-year tiered tax relief.
The tax abatement rate would be 100% in the first year, but it would drop to 25% by the tenth year.
According to aerial pictures from 2021, 34 of the 172 lots that border the golf course are unoccupied.
According to Leathers, who is in the process of purchasing a vacant lot, the number of vacant lots will shortly fall by one. He believes that after the golf course reopens, it will spur additional residential construction.
The clubhouse, which includes a new 25-by-67-foot terrace out back, is expected to reopen as soon as June 1, according to Leathers.
He explained, “There will be outdoor seating for visitors to enjoy the weather.” “Down the road, the goal is to have some music and bands.”
Leathers aims to hire eight full-time employees and seven part-time workers.
Leathers also hopes to collaborate with the Pecatonica and Winnebago school districts to turn Lynx into a practice and competition course, similar to how the former golf course was used before it closed.
The county’s Economic Development Committee approved the tax abatement proposal 6-0, and it is likely to go before the Winnebago County Board for a vote Thursday night.
