With a week left before proposals are due to the town of Woodbridge, CT concerning the purchase or long term operations of the Country Club of Woodbridge, I have been asked to provide my thoughts about how the club has been run over the past two years.

For those not acquainted with the recent history of the club, in 2009, The Woodbridge Country Club experienced financial difficulties. Instead of the land being sold to a developer, the town stepped in and purchased the property. For the past two years, the club, renamed the Country Club of Woodbridge has been run for the town by a management country. Now, the Town of Woodbridge is seeking either a long term manager or a buyer.

I live approximately three quarters of a mile from the club. I have walked to the club to sled on its hills in the winter, just as my wife did when she was younger and would walk with her parents and grandparents to go sledding at the club.

Much of the focus of the current management has been on the golf operations and although I worked as a caddie about forty years ago, I am in no position to comment on that aspect of the operations. I also have eaten at the club restaurant from time to time. I was disappointed that the chef who had been at the club in 2009 did not return in 2010. I believe he provided real value to the club. I am glad that the town's Request for Proposals has asked all bidders to address issues of retaining current staff.

The aspect of the club that I have used most has been the pool. We were one of the first families to sign up for pool and tennis membership in both 2009 and 2010. I have used the pool extensively. In 2009, the pool didn't open until late in the season, and not many people joined. It often felt as if I had a great private pool to use in 2009. 2010 has been a different year. There have been days during 2010 which saw more people use the pool that used it in all of 2009.

As with any operation, there are minor things I would like to see done differently, yet all in all, through the difficulties of these first two years, the pool operations have been excellent. It is my hope that whomever buys or enters into a long term agreement to manage the club continues to run the pool the way it has been over the past two years.

The Town of Woodbridge has made a wise decision in purchasing the club and handling its operations as it has for these first two years. Hopefully, the decisions made by the town concerning the future operations will be as wise as these initial decisions and the people of Woodbridge will have this wonderful facility remain available, boosting the value of all the properties in town.

Thursday morning around two dozen people gathered at the Country Club of Woodbridge for information about the bidding process and a tour of the facilities. Participants included various representatives from town as well as representatives of an estimated six to eight possible bidding organizations.

The tour explored the bar, restaurant, and grill as potential bidders checked grease traps, joked about how there needed to be free samples for the visiting dignitaries at the bar, and recounted various stories of busy days at various country club bars around the country.

Visitors compared the locker rooms to some of the best in the land, and one joked about how he would love to be a member of the club, but wasn’t sure he wanted to own a club like this.

Town officials pointed out capital improvements that have been done since the town took over the club, but still some potential bidders wondered about the ongoing maintenance costs.

Proposals to run all, or part of the club, or to purchase the club outright are due September 6th.

The Town of Woodbridge is seeking bidders to either enter into a long term contract to manage, or to outright buy the Country Club of Woodbridge. The Request For Proposals went out on June 23 and is available on the Town Website.

Crucial to the bidding process is a mandatory pre-proposal conference which will take place July 15th at 10:00 AM. There will also be a Facility Open House on July 29th for prospective bidders. For those wishing to enter into a long term concession contract, the contract should be for between ten and twenty years. The bid can come either from an organization wishing to handle all aspects of running the club or from a coalition of groups that would submit a single bid to handle all aspects of running the club.

The RFP states that “No representations are being made with regard to historical or projected business volume”. However, anecdotal information may be of interest to bidders. People familiar with the operations of the club over the past decade observed that the single day usage of the pool during a couple days over the Fourth of July Weekend exceeded the total pool usage of the previous year and was on a par with the busiest days of the pool over the past ten years. It appears as if the town club has regained an important place in the Woodbridge Community.

Various people in town have many different opinions about what should happen with the country club and the town appears to be walking a careful line between bringing in as much input as possible, while at the same time moving ahead with a very complicated financial transaction.

As an illustration, the RFP states that “The Town requests that the successful bidder interview and consider all current employees who are interested in continued employment.” Not only is this good for the town, it is good business sense. There are several people who have long histories with the Woodbridge Country Club that are likely to provide great value to whomever runs the club next year. Some personnel changes are bound to happen, such as this year when the club lost a valuable long time chef.

Another key aspect in the RFP is the “Bidder’s dedication to fostering a harmonious relationship with the Town and its residents”. Again, this makes great sense for the town, as well as solid business sense for the bidder. Part of this includes a 20% discount residents of Woodbridge. Related to this is a point in the Marketing and Promotions section of the RFP which states that the Bidder should address “Community outreach programs”.

One of the concerns that many people have expressed about the continued operation of the country club is the environmental impact and the RFP states, “It is essential that the operation of the Facility be in accordance with the highest environment standards. The Bidder will avoid harmful and wasteful management practices and products and will promote, wherever practical, environmentally-friendly, and sustainable practices and policies”.

All in all, the RFP is thirty-eight pages long and interested parties are encouraged to read it on the town website.